Khutswe Sothos speak North Sotho. They live in South Africa.Before being conquered by Europeans, the Khutswe Sothos were cattle herders and farmers. Using simple hoes, women grew sorghum, pumpkins, and legumes on fields allocated to them once they were married. Bigger farming projects required entire villages to work together. Village chiefs made sure they had a rainmaker who they thought ensured adequate water for their crops and livestock.Changes came when they developed the animal-drawn plow and the cultivation of maize. More changes came when Khutswe Sotho men had to live away from their families for long periods of time as wage laborers. Women maintained farms, and there was plenty of work for the men when they returned. Eventually, the situation led to rebellion, which European colonizers squelched in the 1950s.
Many Khutswe Sothos try to retain subsistence farming, which has led to widespread poverty. Finding that unsustainable, men try to find jobs in mines or factories while their wives work as domestic help. In recent years, there have been rising levels of education and expectations, combined with a sharp drop in employment rates.
They have numerous Christian denominations. Khutswe Sothos blend biblical teachings with pre-Christian beliefs. They believe in diviners who they think have the power to communicate with ancestral spirits to benefit the living. Because they believe in ancestral spirits, funerals are important in their culture. Funerals are elaborate. They often involve slaughtering cattle to feed guests. When one dies, they graduate from being an elder to being an ancestor. Those who die with regrets become ghosts who haunt the living during the night. This is one more reason they take great care of these spirits.
Khutswe Sothos need more education and employment opportunities. They will not climb out of poverty unless they have higher education and valuable urban training.Divorce is common. Women often raise children alone, leading to poverty. Khutswe Sothos are developing new patterns where brothers and sisters live and work together, or the women get help from matrilineally linked relatives.
Pray for hundreds to be raised up with a defiant faith in Christ, one that will not be shaken, no matter what comes their way.Pray for God to bring about his purpose for the Khutswe Sothos.Pray for Khutswe Sotho Christians to have love, joy, peace, and patience as they tell others about the King of kings.Pray for a mighty Holy Spirit revival to flood through South Africa, blessing southern Africa in every way.
Scripture Prayers for the Sotho, Khutswe in South Africa.
https://www.101lasttribes.com/tribes/pedi.htmlhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedi_people
| Profile Source: Joshua Project |
