BEYOND DUDLU NTOMBAZANA! – THE VOICE OF S.E.K. MQHAYI

This article analyses a number of poems produced by S.E.K. Mqhayi, a well-known writer of isiXhosa poetry whose work was published in a number of isiXhosa early newspapers. Mqhayi is also acknowledged as the first prominent isiXhosa writer, producing poetry and novels and being credited for initiating the transition from oral to written literature at the beginning of the nineteenth century. In this article selected poems are analysed against the backdrop of gender relations among the amaXhosa. The article sets out to discover the way in which Mqhayi was able to depict and praise women and their contribution in early amaXhosa society.