shweshwe

{{Short description|Southern African printed dyed cotton fabric}}

{{Use South African English|date=January 2014}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2014}}

File:Jane in brown shweshwe.jpg woman wearing a brown shweshwe dress]]

Shweshwe ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ʃ|w|ɛ|ʃ|w|ɛ}}){{cite web|title=shwe-shwe or shweshwe|url=http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/shwe-shwe|work=Collins English Dictionary|access-date=30 January 2014}} is a printed dyed cotton fabric widely used for traditional Southern African clothing.{{cite news|date=5 June 2009|first=Margy|last=Rochlin|title=Jo Katsaras: 'No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'|newspaper=New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/arts/television/07kats.html|quote=But Ms. Katsaras always keeps the series's central character, the private investigator Precious Ramotswe (Jill Scott, above), the focus of attention with colorful dresses and head scarves made of shweshwe, the traditional South African fabric known for its pulsating motifs.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140124100251/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/arts/television/07kats.html?_r=0|archive-date=24 January 2014 |url-status=live}}{{cite news|last=Grange|first=Helen|title=Stylish isishweshwe? Check|url=http://www.thepost.co.za/stylish-isishweshwe-check-1.1064242#.UuKQ2NL8Ls0|access-date=24 January 2014|newspaper=The Star|date=4 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140124161708/http://www.thepost.co.za/stylish-isishweshwe-check-1.1064242|archive-date=24 January 2014|url-status=live}} Originally dyed indigo, the fabric is manufactured in a variety of colours and printing designs characterised by intricate geometric patterns.{{cite journal|last=deVillemarette|first=Cynthia|title=Shweshwe: A True Blue Passion|journal=The Country Register of Tennessee & Kentucky|date=July–August 2010|quote=The designs are created using a discharge process, unlike modern printed fabrics where color is added to the surface. With Shweshwe, the cotton cloth is first entirely dyed, thoroughly penetrating the fiber. Then, the cloth is passed through copper design rollers, which emit a mild acid solution, removing color with pinpoint accuracy. One of the characteristics of Shweshwe is the intense use of picotage, tiny pin dots that create not only the designs, but also texture and depth. It is because of the difficulty and expense in creating these designs that they fell out of favor with American and European manufacturers, who chose instead to move to printing processes. Da Gama Textiles of South Africa is the only known manufacturer of fabrics still using the discharge process ... The reverse side of the fabric will be a solid color because it was dyed. Da Gama also prints its seal on the back to help you identify it.}}{{cite book|editor-last=Dudley|editor-first=Sandra H.|last=Rovine|first=Victoria L.|title=Museum Objects: Experiencing the Properties of Things|chapter=Handmade textiles: global markets and authenticity|year=2012|publisher=Routledge|location=Oxon|isbn=9781135721473|pages=276–277|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hq3aUBCahPYC}}{{cite web|last=Davie|first=Lucille|title=Shweshwe, the denim of South Africa|url=http://www.mediaclubsouthafrica.com/land-and-people/3556-shweshwe-the-denim-of-south-africa|work=Media Club South Africa|date=18 November 2013|access-date=20 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140120212524/http://www.mediaclubsouthafrica.com/land-and-people/3556-shweshwe-the-denim-of-south-africa|archive-date=20 January 2014|url-status=live}} Due to its popularity, shweshwe has been described as the denim, or tartan, of South Africa.{{cite news|title=A stylish ode to Mama Afrika|url=http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/style/fashion/a-stylish-ode-to-mama-afrika-1.1145657#.Ut6SjdL8Ls0|access-date=21 January 2014|newspaper=The Star|date=27 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111230183238/http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/style/fashion/a-stylish-ode-to-mama-afrika-1.1145657|archive-date=30 December 2011|url-status=live}}

Name

File:2008-02-09 Xhosa women.jpg women in traditional costume wearing indigo shweshwe aprons]]

File:Xhosa traditionally dressed women.jpg woman wearing a head scarf made from indigo shweshwe (on the right)]]

The local name shweshwe is derived from the fabric's association with Lesotho's King Moshoeshoe I,{{cite news|last=Kuper|first=Jeremy|title=London shows material interest in Africa's old clothes|url=http://mg.co.za/article/2013-04-19-london-shows-material-interest-in-africas-old-clothes|access-date=20 January 2014|newspaper=Mail & Guardian|date=19 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525031602/http://mg.co.za/article/2013-04-19-london-shows-material-interest-in-africas-old-clothes|archive-date=25 May 2013|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last=Holmes|first=Thalia|title=The fabric of society needs underpinning|url=http://mg.co.za/article/2013-11-22-00-the-fabric-of-society-needs-underpinning|access-date=20 January 2014|newspaper=Mail & Guardian|date=22 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140120141942/http://mg.co.za/article/2013-11-22-00-the-fabric-of-society-needs-underpinning|archive-date=20 January 2014|url-status=live}} also spelled "Moshweshwe". Moshoeshoe I was gifted with the fabric by French missionaries in the 1840s and subsequently popularised it.{{cite book|last=Futhwa|first=Fezekile|title=Setho: Afrikan Thought and Belief System|year=2012|publisher=Nalane ka Fezekile Futhwa|isbn=9780620503952|pages=107–115|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bH1cVBzspaUC}}{{cite news|last=Joyce|first=Liam|title=Swish shweshwe!|url=http://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/lifestyle/fashion/swish-shweshwe-1.1591302#.Ut0zpdL8Ls0|access-date=20 January 2014|newspaper=Daily News|date=14 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105185800/http://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/lifestyle/fashion/swish-shweshwe-1.1591302|archive-date=5 November 2013|url-status=live}}

It is also known as sejeremane or seshoeshoe in Sotho as well as terantala (derived from Afrikaans tarentaal), and ujamani in Xhosa, after 19th century German and Swiss settlers who imported the blaudruck ("blue print") fabric for their clothing and helped entrench it in South African and Basotho culture.{{cite web|title=The Isishweshwe Story: Material Women?|url=http://www.iziko.org.za/news/entry/the-isishweshwe-story-material-women|publisher=Iziko Museums|date=23 February 2013|access-date=22 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130329032234/http://www.iziko.org.za/news/entry/the-isishweshwe-story-material-women|archive-date=29 March 2013|url-status=live}}{{Cite journal|last1=Pheto-Moeti|first1=B|last2=Riekert|first2=D.M.|last3=Pelser|first3=A.J.|year=2017|title=Perceptions of Seshoeshoe fabric, naming and meanings of motifs on fabric|url=https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jfecs/article/view/156131|journal=Journal of Consumer Sciences|volume=2 (2017)|pages=24–39|via=African Journals Online}}

In Botswana, this traditional fabric is known as "leteisi," 'jeremani," or "German print."{{cite news |title=Botswana: Leteisi is Back With a Bang |url=https://allafrica.com/stories/200911231920.html |access-date=19 February 2025 |work=AllAfrica |date=23 November 2009 |quote=Ask any Motswana what the traditional attire is, the answer will be none other than leteisi. Knowing very much that saying jeremani is the Setswana version for the German print fabric, they would prefer to run away from the obvious question: If it is the traditional attire why then is it called the German print?}}{{cite news |title=Seshoeshoe or shweshwe, otherwise locally known as Leteisi is woven tightly into the fabric of southern African life |url=https://www.mmegi.bw/arts-culture/wow-look-at-shweshwe-now/news |access-date=19 February 2025 |work=Mmegi (Botswana)|date=10 January 2021 |quote=Used for everyday wear, but also for weddings and other traditional ceremonies, shweshwe used to be manufactured only in chocolate brown, blue and red, but now new colours have been introduced.}}

Uses

Shweshwe is traditionally used to make dresses, skirts, aprons and wraparound clothing. Shweshwe clothing is traditionally worn by newly married Xhosa women, known as makoti, and married Sotho women.{{cite news|last=Miti|first=Siya|title=Textile sector threat to fabric of society|url=http://www.dispatch.co.za/news/textile-sector-threat-to-fabric-of-society/|access-date=20 January 2014|newspaper=Daily Dispatch|date=11 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131217101058/http://www.dispatch.co.za/news/textile-sector-threat-to-fabric-of-society/|archive-date=17 December 2013|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Event – Material women? The shweshwe story|url=http://www.iziko.org.za/calendar/event/material-women-the-shweshwe-story|publisher=Iziko Museums|access-date=20 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140120164029/http://www.iziko.org.za/calendar/event/material-women-the-shweshwe-story|archive-date=20 January 2014|url-status=live}} Xhosa women have also incorporated the fabric into their traditional ochre-coloured blanket clothing.{{cite journal|last=Bryant|first=Judy|title=Transplanted Culture Through Trade|journal=Cape Crafts & Design Institute|date=June 2012|pages=21–22|url=http://www.ccdi.org.za/media-room/newsletter/june-2012-ccdi-newsletter-files/history.pdf|access-date=20 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140121075609/http://www.ccdi.org.za/media-room/newsletter/june-2012-ccdi-newsletter-files/history.pdf|archive-date=21 January 2014|url-status=live}}

In Botswana, the fabric is also traditionally associated with brides and married women, but has recently moved into much wider popularity.{{cite web |title=Leteisi - German Print Fabric |url=https://www.knowbotswana.com/botswana-attire-leteisi.html? |publisher=Know Botswana |access-date=19 February 2025 |quote=In Botswana, the fabric was originally used during traditional functions commonly marriage rituals...Unlike in the past when it was used mainly by the Tswana ethnic groups (especially Bakgatla and Bakwena tribes), it is now worn by all Botswana ethnic groups.}}{{cite news |title=Fashion galore at Leteisi On Fleek |url=https://www.mmegi.bw/lifestyle/fashion-galore-at-leteisi-on-fleek/news |access-date=19 February 2025 |work=Mmegi (Botswana) |date=15 November 2023 |quote=Traditionally, the fabric is used for events like Kgotla meetings or weddings. But overtime it has become prominent in the fashion industry as more and more Batswana embrace our tradition.}}

Aside from traditional wear, shweshwe is used in contemporary South African fashion design for women and men from all ethnic groups, as well as for making accessories and upholstery.{{cite news|last=Lewis|first=Esther|title=IsiShweshwe: cut from a different cloth|url=http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/style/fashion/isishweshwe-cut-from-a-different-cloth-1.1493251#.Ut-5AdL8Ls0|access-date=22 January 2014|newspaper=Cape Argus|date=28 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202184008/http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/style/fashion/isishweshwe-cut-from-a-different-cloth-1.1493251|archive-date=2 February 2014|url-status=live}} It is also used in the United States as a quilting fabric.{{cite web|last=Fulton|first=Claire|title=Cottoning on to Shweshwe chic|url=http://www.southafrica.info/business/trends/newbusiness/shweshwe.htm#.UuCn89L8Ls0|date=23 November 2006|work=South Africa.info|access-date=23 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120114011121/http://www.southafrica.info/business/trends/newbusiness/shweshwe.htm|archive-date=14 January 2012|url-status=live}}

Production

File:Brown shweshwe.jpg

Shweshwe is manufactured with an acid discharge and roller printing technique on pure cotton calico.{{cite web|title=Home Sewing|url=http://www.dagama.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=103%3Ahome-sewing&catid=42%3Adagama-general&Itemid=199|publisher=Da Gama Textiles|access-date=22 January 2014|quote=Some of our recognised brands include ... The Original Shweshwe ethnic printed 3 CATS, 3 LEOPARDS, TOTO and FANCY PRINTS, which are acid discharge prints on cotton calico.}} It is printed in widths of 90 cm, in all-over patterns and A-shaped skirt panels printed side by side. The fabric is manufactured in various colours including the original indigo, chocolate brown and red, in a large variety of designs including florals, stripes, and diamond, square and circular geometric patterns. The intricate designs are made using picotage, a pinning fabric printing technique rarely used by contemporary fabric manufacturers due to its complexity and expense, although the design effects have been replicated using modern fabric printing techniques.

Previously imported to Southern Africa from Europe, the trademarked fabric has been manufactured by Da Gama Textiles in the Zwelitsha township outside King William's Town in the Eastern Cape since 1982. In 1992, Da Gama Textiles bought the sole rights to Three Cats, the most popular brand of the fabric made by Spruce Manufacturing Co. Ltd in Manchester, and the original engraved copper rollers were shipped to South Africa.{{cite web|title=History of Shweshwe|url=http://www.dagama.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=102&Itemid=164|publisher=Da Gama Textiles|access-date=21 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130809184848/http://dagama.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=102&Itemid=164|archive-date=9 August 2013|url-status=live}} Da Gama Textiles has made shweshwe from cotton imported from Zimbabwe and grown locally in the Eastern Cape.

The local textile industry, including shweshwe production by Da Gama Textiles, has been threatened by competition from cheaper inferior quality imitations made locally and imported from China and Pakistan.{{cite news|last=Sparg|first=Linda|title=Fabric firm wins with a focus on local flair|url=http://www.iol.co.za/business/news/fabric-firm-wins-with-a-focus-on-local-flair-1.1212960#.Ut4Wu9L8Ls0|access-date=21 January 2014|newspaper=Business Report|date=15 January 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140121064459/http://www.iol.co.za/business/news/fabric-firm-wins-with-a-focus-on-local-flair-1.1212960|archive-date=21 January 2014|url-status=live}} The genuine product can be recognised by feel, smell, taste, sound, a solid colour from dyeing and trademark logos on the reverse side of the fabric, a smaller than average 90 cm fabric width and stiffness of the new fabric from traditional starching which washes out. As at November 2013, shweshwe production by Da Gama Textiles had reduced to five million metres per annum.

See also

References

{{reflist|2}}

Further reading

  • {{cite book|last=Ralfe|first=Liz|editor-last1=Weber|editor-first1=Sandra|editor-last2=Mitchell|editor-first2=Claudia|chapter=Love Affair with my Isishweshwe|title=Not Just Any Dress: Narratives of Memory, Body, and Identity|year=2004|publisher=Peter Lang|location=New York|isbn=978-0-8204-6118-2|pages=211–218|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=03oHPgPXWngC}}
  • {{cite thesis|degree=M.Sc.|first=Mabokang Baatshwana|last=Pheto-Moeti|title=An Assessment of Seshoeshoe Dress as a Cultural Identity for Basotho Women of Lesotho|publisher=University of the Free State|year=2005|url=http://etd.uovs.ac.za/cgi-bin/ETD-browse/view_etd?URN=etd-09012006-074550|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140122120233/http://etd.uovs.ac.za/cgi-bin/ETD-browse/view_etd?URN=etd-09012006-074550|archive-date=22 January 2014|df=dmy-all}}
  • {{cite thesis|degree=M.A.|first=Shonisani|last=Maphangwa|title=From Colonial to Post-Colonial: Shifts in Cultural Meanings in Dutch Lace and Shweshwe Fabric|publisher=University of Johannesburg|year=2010|url=https://ujdigispace.uj.ac.za/handle/10210/4516|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140122115150/https://ujdigispace.uj.ac.za/handle/10210/4516|archive-date=22 January 2014|df=dmy-all}}
  • {{cite book|editor-last1=Moletsane|editor-first1=Relebohile|editor-last2=Mitchell|editor-first2=Claudia|editor-last3=Smith|editor-first3=Ann|title=Was it Something I Wore?: Dress, Identity, Materiality|journal=Dress Identity Materiality|year=2012|publisher=HSRC Press|location=Cape Town|isbn=978-0-7969-2362-2|url=https://www.academia.edu/3025642}}
  • {{cite news|last=Rossouw|first=Mandy|title=Londen oorrompel deur SA se modes|url=http://152.111.1.88/argief/berigte/beeld/2006/09/23/B1/3/mrmode.html|language=af|trans-title=London taken over by SA's fashions |access-date=22 January 2014|newspaper=Beeld|date=23 September 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140122144516/http://152.111.1.88/argief/berigte/beeld/2006/09/23/B1/3/mrmode.html|archive-date=22 January 2014|url-status=live}}
  • {{cite news|last=Lamprecht|first=Bettie|title=Ikoniese materiaal wat geen grense ken|url=http://152.111.1.88/argief/berigte/beeld/2013/03/05/B1/10/lapstorie-142.html|language=af|trans-title=Iconic material without borders|access-date=22 January 2014|newspaper=Beeld|date=5 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140122102357/http://152.111.1.88/argief/berigte/beeld/2013/03/05/B1/10/lapstorie-142.html|archive-date=22 January 2014|url-status=live}}
  • {{cite book|last=Leeb-Du Toit|first=Juliette|title=isiShweshwe: A History of the Indigenisation of Blueprint in South Africa|year=2017|publisher=University of KwaZulu-Natal Press|location=Pietermaritzburg|isbn=9781869143145}}