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Worksheet: From Nelson Mandela, by Benjamin Pogrund
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on July 18th 1918. In accordance
with custom, he was given a 'European' name as well as his Xhosa
name which means 'one who brings trouble on himself'.
His father Henry Mphakanyiswa Gadla, was a chief - wealthy enough
to own a horse and have enough cattle for four wives. He had twelve
children. Nelson was the son of his third wife, Nosekeni; she also
had three daughters.
Mandela was born in the Transkei region of South Africa, in the
small village of Qunu - a collection of beehive-shaped huts with
thatch roofs, known as rondavels. His mother had three huts and
Mandela lived with her and his three immediate sisters. One hut
was used for sleeping, another for cooking and the third for storing
grain and other food. Everyone slept on mats on the ground, without
pillows. His mother, as a married woman, had her own field to tend
and her own cattle kraal - an enclosure for cattle made from thorn
bushes.
It was a quiet, tranquil existence. Qunu was a long way from anywhere,
especially in those days when local roads, if they existed at all,
were unsurfaced.
Almost as soon as Nelson was old enough to walk properly, he had
the job of helping to look after the family's precious cattle and
goats. Relatives remember that he loved animals and, while herding,
he would speak to each cow by its name, as if it was a friend.
His mother could not read or write, but Nelson had to be educated,
and he started as a pupil at the local school. He was noted as quiet,
industrious boy who did not live up to his Xhosa name. The school
had classes for only the early years and in any event, when Nelson
was ten, his father died and there was no money for any further
education. So his father's nephew, Chief Jongintaba, took over.
In Xhosa society that was the natural thing to do. Jongintaba was
the head of the Madiba clan. In terms of custom, all members of
the clan were treated like people in the same family because they
were all descended from the same ancestor. Mandela, or anyone else,
could go to the home of any fellow Madiba member, whether in the
same village or in a village miles away, and know that he would
get food and shelter.
So in 1928, Nelson moved to the Great Place and shared a rondavel
with his cousin, Justice. The school was a rough building, and two
classes were held in one room at the same time. Nelson learnt English,
Xhosa, Geography and History. He did not have writing books so wrote
on slates.
Each day after school he and Justice went to the fields to look
after the cattle, and to drive them back to the kraal in the evening
for milking.
Lesson plan: Biography and autobiography information
exercise | Lesson plan:
Biographies of Nelson Mandela
From the Nelson Mandela online resource
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