Leisure and Learning in African Children’s Literature: The Case of Swati Riddles

Abstract

The Swati, like other Africans, use songs, plays, games, taboos, proverbs and riddles to fashion, store, and transmit their cultural values and worldview as well as to socialise citizens. In this article, we use the theory of Afrocentricity to analyse how entertainment and learning are intertwined in Swati riddles, known as tiphicwaphicwano. The tenets of the Afrocentricity theory employed in this study include the need for African literary works to be looked at as appreciated and understood by the participants, returning to Africans the agency they were robbed of through colonialism, and humanising and harmonising humans with nature and the communal nature of African life. Drawing examples from two anthologies on Swati oral lore, Giya Sigiye by Vilakati and Msibi and Swazi Oral Literature by Kamera, and from everyday use, our analysis shows that Swati riddles are a form of art and game largely played by children as they pass time. The game calls for the participation of more than one person; it is played in the form and spirit of competition and, as the children pass time, they also gain cultural knowledge, values, worldview, life skills and an understanding of how to relate with each other and with nature. Overall, Swati riddling sessions interface learning and playing. These findings have a bearing on further research and on how today’s society can socialise its citizens.