page_title: Xhosa people
section_title: Xhosas in modern society
hierarchical_section_title: Xhosa people / Xhosas in modern society
caption_attribution_description: Vue de l'Eastern Cape en Afrique du Sud.
context_page_description: Xhosa people are a Bantu ethnic group from Southern Africa whose homeland is primarily within the modern-day Eastern Cape. There is a small but significant Xhosa-speaking community in Zimbabwe, and their language, isiXhosa, is recognised as a national language.
  The Xhosa people are divided into several tribes with related yet distinct heritages. The main tribes are the amaGcaleka, amaRharhabe, imiDange, imiDushane, and amaNdlambe. In addition, there are other tribes found near or among the Xhosa people such as abaThembu, amaBhaca, abakoBhosha and amaQwathi that are distinct and separate tribes which have adopted the isiXhosa language and the Xhosa way of life.
  The name "Xhosa" comes from that of a legendary leader and King called uXhosa. There is also a fringe theory that, in fact the King's name which has since been lost among the people was not Xhosa, but that "xhosa" was a name given to him by the San, which means "fierce" or "angry" in Khoisan languages. The Xhosa people refer to themselves as the amaXhosa, and to their language as isiXhosa.
context_section_description: Xhosa people currently make up approximately 18% of the South African population. The Xhosa are the second largest cultural group in South Africa, after the Zulu-speaking nation.
  Under apartheid, adult literacy rates were as low as 30%, and in 1996 studies estimated the literacy level of first-language Xhosa speakers at approximately 50%. There have been advances since then, however.
  Education in primary-schools serving Xhosa-speaking communities is conducted in Xhosa, but this is replaced by English after the early primary grades. Xhosa is still considered as a studied subject, however, and it is possible to major in Xhosa at university level. Most of the students at Walter Sisulu University and University of Fort Hare speak Xhosa. Rhodes University in Grahamstown, additionally, offers courses in Xhosa for both mother-tongue and non-mother-tongue speakers. These courses both include a cultural studies component. Professor Russel H. Kaschula, Head of the School of Languages at Rhodes, has published multiple papers on Xhosa culture and oral literature.
  The effects of government policies during the years of apartheid can still be seen in the poverty of the Xhosa who still reside in the Eastern Cape. During this time, Xhosa males could only seek employment in the mining industry as so-called migrant labourers. Since the collapse of apartheid, individuals can move freely.
  After the breakdown of apartheid, migration to Gauteng and Cape Town has become increasingly common, especially amongst rural Xhosa people.
caption: Xhosa Man, Eastern Cape
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