Description

The !Xun are a San people living in the Kalahari Desert in Namibia, Botswana, and in Angola. In this book, the cultural and ecological foundations of ethnicity of the !Xun provide a case study for an intensive regional structural comparison of Ju societies. Long known to Western Europe as the 'Bushmen, ' the San consist of various groups distinguished by language, locale, and practice. Narratives on San Ethnicity focuses on the !Xun who have lived in north-central Namibia for centuries, and it adopts a life story approach to understand the lived histories of the people. The book looks at inter-ethnic relationships and the multi-dimensional associations with neighboring groups, particularly the Owambo and Akhoe. It scrutinizes kinship and naming terminologies, transitions of ethnicity, the interplay between ethnicity and familial / kin relationships, and the reorganization of environmental features that effect child socialization. Narratives on San Ethnicity provides a valuable research perspective in San studies and in the emerging anthropology of their life-world. It is a significant addition to the small body of anthropological studies on the !Xun. *** "The text, replete with numerous individual, indigenous narratives followed by the author's subsequent commentary, results in a persuasive and respectful portrait of these still-interesting people. Highly recommended." -- Choice, Vol. 53, No. 3, November 2015 [Subject: Anthropology, African Studies, Ethnic Studies]