The Xhosa people are descendants of Nguni clans who settled in the Southeastern part of Southern Africa displacing the original inhabitants i.e. the KHOI-SAN.

[clarification needed][6] Some archaeological evidence has been discovered that suggests that Xhosa-speaking people have lived in the Eastern Cape area since at least the 7th century.

Xhosa oral history also mentions a historical settlement called 'Eluhlangeni' believed to have been in East Africa in which the Ngunis lived in for some time before continuing with their migration.

[citation needed] Upon crossing mountains and rivers in South Africa, these farm-working agro-pastoralists brought their cattle and goats with them and absorbed the weaker San groups in the region.

They also brought weapons, notably their assegais and their shields and would form groups or chiefdoms and kingdoms mainly in what is now the Eastern Cape.

[citation needed] The Xhosas called these various tribes AmaMfengu, meaning wanderers, and were made up of clans such as the amaBhaca, amaBhele, amaHlubi, amaZizi and Rhadebe.

[citation needed] Xhosa unity and ability to fight off colonial encroachment was to be weakened by the famines and political divisions that followed the cattle-killing movement of 1856–1858.

[citation needed] Some historians argue that this early absorption into the wage economy is the ultimate origin of the long history of trade union membership and political leadership among Xhosa people.

[citation needed] That history manifests itself today in high degrees of Xhosa representation in the leadership of the African National Congress (ANC), South Africa's ruling political party in the government.

Starting from imbeleko, a ritual performed to introduce a new born to the ancestors, to umphumo (the homecoming), from inkwenkwe (a boy) to indoda (a man).

This forms the roots of ubuntu (human kindness) – a behaviour synonymous to this tribe as extending a helping hand to a complete stranger when in need.

[12] In March 2007, a controversial mini-series dealing with Xhosa circumcision and initiation rites debuted on South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Titled Umthunzi Wentaba, the series was taken off the air after complaints by traditional leaders that the rites are secret and not to be revealed to non-initiates and women.

[14] The South African Film and Publication Board ruled that the website was "scientific with great educative value", addressing a "societal problem needing urgent intervention".

[16] Other rites include the seclusion of mothers for ten days after giving birth, and the burial of the afterbirth and umbilical cord near the village.

[18] To start off the procedures the male intending to marry goes through Ukuthwalwa which entails him choosing his future bride and making his intentions of marriage known, however this practice was not done by all the tribes within the Xhosa people.

Burial practices and customs include a specific sequence of events and rituals which need to be performed in order to regard a funeral as dignified.

In the 21st century, it is regarded as taboo to feed mourners with 'inkobe' and, as a result of shame, funeral catering has become a lucrative business for the industry during burial events.

On the day of burial, before extended family members disperse to their homes, the ukuxukuxa (cleansing) ritual occurs and a goat or sheep or even a fowl is slaughtered.

[23][24] A cleansing ritual is done the day after the burial, in which the bereaved women of the family go to the nearest river to wash all the materials and blankets that were used by the deceased before death.

Traditional music features drums, rattles, whistles, flutes, mouth harps, and stringed-instruments and especially group singing accompanied by hand clapping.

[citation needed] "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika", part of the National anthem of South Africa is a Xhosa hymn written in 1897 by Enoch Sontonga.

Beads are small round objects made of glass, wood, metal, nutshell, bone seed and the likes, which are then pierced for stringing.

Motifs on the beads often used include trees, diamonds, quadrangles, chevrons, triangles, circles, parallel lines that form a pattern that is exclusive to certain age groups.

The dominant colours in the beadwork are white and navy blue, with some yellow and green beads symbolising fertility and a new life, respectively.

On special occasions such as weddings or initiation ceremonies, Xhosa men wear embroidered skirts with a rectangular cloth over the left shoulder alternatively, a tunic and strands of beaded necklaces can be worn.

[citation needed] Education in primary-schools serving Xhosa-speaking communities is conducted in Xhosa, but this is replaced by English after the early primary grades.

Professor Russel H. Kaschula, Head of the School of Languages at Rhodes, has published multiple papers on Xhosa culture and oral literature.

[citation needed] The effects of government policies during the years of apartheid can still be seen in the poverty of the Xhosa who still reside in the Eastern Cape.

[citation needed] After the breakdown of apartheid, migration to Gauteng and Cape Town has become increasingly common, especially amongst rural Xhosa people.