The swagger stick. A 'knobkerrie' is more than just a weapon
- Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½ University
"Although it looks very dangerous it is actually not meant to kill anybody," says Professor Hlonipha Mokoena.
"The idea that it is a killing object it is actually a colonial idea. It's not that the Zulu tribe did not get into fights and end up fighting each other using them but they were not made as a weapon it had other purposes."
Mokoena, an associate professor at Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½ Institute for Social and Economic Research (Wiser), shared her knowledge into the origin and the history of the knobkerrie in an .
"The 'knobkerrie' is a short stick with a knob at the top, traditionally used as a weapon by mostly Zulu and Xhosa tribes. Lately, it has been seen also being used as a fashion statement by youngsters, calling it a swagger stick." Read the on 702's website.
Mokoena argues that the Knobkerrie is not just a weapon as people assume but it can be used for ceremonial purposes.