MAXHOSA BY LADUMA

I will share a story about how I designed a range of men’s knitwear for amakrwala, in order to introduce traditional Xhosa aesthetics into their attire.

But what does Amakrwala mean? Traditionally, in the Eastern Cape Xhosa communities, hundreds of Xhosa boys aged between eighteen and twenty-three attend Xhosa circumcision schools for a manhood initiation ritual. After these Xhosa initiates return home from the initiation school, they are guided through a six-month process where their elders teach them manhood protocol. Xhosa initiates are traditionally called amakrwala during this process.

Before amakrwala go to a circumcision school, all their old clothes have to be given away as a sign of the end of their boyhood and their parents have to buy them a range of new clothing. Part of that new clothing range includes high quality men’s knitwear. Currently, for amakrwala to obtain high quality men’s knitwear means purchasing imported knitwear brands like Pringle and Lyle & Scott.

As a person who has undergone the Xhosa initiation ritual, I felt that knitwear brands like these bear no aesthetic resemblance to Xhosa traditions.

For this reason I felt that I needed to develop a Xhosa-inspired range of men’s knitwear for amakrwala, using my experience in machine-knitting and South African

By Angela Shaw, WGSN, 11 July 2011 (www.wgsn.com)

WGSN speaks to South African knitwear designer Laduma Ngxokolo about his success so far, managing an emerging business, and how he plans to develop his collection.

How did knitwear start for you?
I was taught to knit as a hobby by my grandmother when I was 15. My late mother, Lindelwa Ngxokolo, was also a knitwear designer and she motivated me to learn more about textiles and inspired me to embrace my Xhosa heritage.

Last year you won the Society of Dyers and Colorists International Design Award.
I was in my final year of Textile Design and Technology at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) in Port Elizabeth. For the award, I submitted my research specialty for my degree, The Colorful World of the Xhosa Tribe. I first won the South African national leg, and then went to London where I was awarded the international first prize.

What is the inspiration for the range?
In 2007 I underwent my Xhosa initiation ritual, where boys spend time apart from society and emerge as men. Traditionally, in the Eastern Cape Xhosa communities, hundreds of Xhosa boys aged between eighteen and twenty-three attend Xhosa circumcision schools for a manhood initiation ritual. After Xhosa initiates return home from the initiation school, they are guided through a sixmonth process where their elders teach them manhood protocol. They are traditionally called amakrwala during this process. A big part of the ritual is that your boyhood clothing has to be given away and

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