Umhlanga, or Reed Dance ceremony, is an annual Swazi and Zulu cultural event. In Swaziland, tens of thousands of unmarried and childless Swazi girls and women travel from the various chiefdoms to the Ludzidzini Royal Village to participate in the eight-day event. read more
Reed dance is one of the most adored and respected dances in South Africa. The Zulus consider it important even to the extent that it is even attended by their leaders. In Zululand, the dance takes place each year in September at the royal palace. read more
It is an annual dance which takes place in September. Young girls clad only in woven skirts congregate at the riverside before the Zulu king. Each girl picks a reed from the river and a dance takes place. read more
Umhlanga was created in the 1940s in Swaziland under the rule of Sobhuza II, and is an adaptation of the much older Umcwasho ceremony. The reed dance continues to be practised today in Swaziland. In South Africa, the reed dance was introduced in 1991 by Goodwill Zwelithini, the current King of the Zulus. read more