Showcasing A Video Of A Zulu Young Woman's Group Named Oqondanisa Singing, Dancing, & Moving In A Single File Similar To The "Follow The Leader" Game & The Conga Dance Line

Nhlaka Mdlalose, Feb 13, 2025

Oqondanisa is a revered group of young Zulu maidens who uphold the sacred traditions of purity, discipline, and cultural pride. Rooted in the rich heritage of the Zulu people, these girls participate in ceremonies that celebrate womanhood, respect, and moral integrity. Adorned in vibrant traditional attire, they embody the values of dignity and honor, serving as living symbols of the community’s commitment to preserving its ancestral customs. Through dance, song, and ritual, Oqondanisa stands as a testament to the strength and grace of Zulu femininity, bridging the past with the present in a powerful display of cultural resilience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=av1CCU4UY-4

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post showcases a YouTube video of Oqondanisa, a Zulu young women's organization singing while standing in military like columns and then singing while moving in a "Follow the leader", "Conga dance line like" single file formation.

This post presents my descriptions of this video and includes a comment that I wrote on that video's discussion thread thanking the video's publisher, informing Nhlaka Mdlalose, the publisher of that video, about this pancocojams post and requesting more information about the song/songs that were performed and information about the way the group performed the song/s in that video.

This post also presents some online information about the IsiZulu words that are given as the title of this video.
 
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Oqondanisa for their social, cultural, musical, dance legacy. Thanks also to Nhlaka Mdlalose for publishing this video and other videos of Oqondanisa on YouTube. 

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ZULU TO ENGLISH ONLINE DEFINITIONS OF THE WORDS THAT ARE GIVEN IN THIS VIDEO'S TITLE

Title #3 Oqondanisa | Ingoma yezintombi | eMidrand eGoli
1. Zulu to English meanings:Oqondanisa: https://glosbe.com/zu/en/qondisa

"Oqondanisa Zulu to English Alignment

Translation of "qondisa" into English:

align is the translation of "qondisa" into English. Sample translated sentence: Qondisa Amagalelo Akho Ngokuhlakanipha ↔ Direct Your Blows Wisely"

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https://zulu.english-dictionary.help/english-to-zulu-meaning-straighten

"English to Zulu Meaning of straighten - qondanisa"

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2. ingoma 
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/the-meaning-of/zulu-word-fb5c52b67697ce8fd29f9fb5446130394ac210b2.html
"What does ingoma mean in Zulu?
English translation - song"

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3. yezintombi"

Google search for "What does yezintombi mean?"

Referred to this result:

What does intombi mean?

AI Overview

"Intombi" is a South African Xhosa and Zulu word that means "young woman" or "maiden". It can also refer to a young girl who is of marriageable age.

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eMidrand eGoli = Zulu to English = in Midtrand in Goli

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midrand
"Midrand is a town in central Gauteng, South Africa. It is situated in-between Centurion and Sandton. Formerly an independent municipality, Midrand now forms part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality….

History

Midrand was established as a municipality in 1981 (in an area known as Halfway House, named after its position between Pretoria and Johannesburg[2]), but ceased to be an independent town in the restructuring of local government that followed the end of apartheid in 1994. It was incorporated in the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality in 2000. It was made part of Region 2 and, as of 2006, when the number of regions were reduced to seven, it forms part of Region A of the City of Johannesburg.

Though no longer an independent town, the name Midrand is still in common use”…

https://dsae.co.za/entry/egoli/e02218 Dictionary Of South African English

Origin:  IsiZulu, ‘place of gold’, locative prefix e- + -goli (adaptation of English gold).

Golden City. Also attributive.

[1925 D. Kidd Essential Kafir 26If they have been to Johannesburg — ‘Goldi’ or ‘Josaberg’ is what they usually call it — they will probably have brought back with them a great variety of things.]

[…]

c1948 H. Tracey Lalela Zulu 80Beyond the banks of the Vaal, We come to the great city of Goli.

[…]

1959 L. Longmore Dispossessed 16Igoli, the Golden City, the dazzling magnet attracting Africans from all over the vast sub-continent of Africa, has provided the biggest problem that Africa has to face today, namely, the African projected into an urban, industrialized environment.

1964 H.H.W. De Villiers Rivonia 43The Bantu usually refers to Johannesburg as ‘Goli’ (‘Goldie’). The Whites sometimes refer to Johannesburg as the ‘City of Gold’.”…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egoli
"eGoli is the alternative, Zulu name for Johannesburg, South Africa."
-snip-
Based on these results, I believe that Oqondanisa (Zulu young woman's group) is located in the Midrand portion of Johannesburg, South Africa. 

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MY DESCRIPTION OF THE VIDEO THAT IS SHOWCASED IN THIS PANCOCOJAMS POST
This group shows members of Oqondanisa, a Zulu young woman's group, singing while performing coordinated syncopated choreographed dance movements and individual hand claps.  The video begins with the group standing in military like rows (columns) being directed (led) by a woman who mostly stands on the side of the group.

The young women* in this video exude a joyful, confident, determined spirit. While continuing to sing the members of the group eventually move in a single file procession following the actions of the same female leader. The group imitates that leader's gestures, moving forward, backwards, and in circular directions. The video ends with the group humming and still moving following the leader in a Conga like line (without touching the person in front of them). 

*The members aren't all young marriageable age females. I noticed at least one young girl in this group.

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MY COMMENT TO THE PUBLISHER OF THIS VIDEO THAT I ADDED TO THAT YOUTUBE VIDEO'S DISCUSSION THREAD

@azizip171, February 25, 2025

@Nhlaka Mdlalose, thank you for publishing this video and other videos of Oqondanisa. I've just subscribed to your channel. Thanks for sharing general information about this group. I'm very impressed with their purpose and with their very high level of musicality, dance skills, and visual artistry (the entire way the group visually presents themselves). I'm an African American woman who informally collects, studies, and shares information about and examples of Black folk performance arts from around the world. I took the liberty of sharing this video in a post on my pancocojams blog. The purpose of this blog is to share cultural information and examples to learn more about, honor, and celebrates these cultures. The title of that post is "Showcasing A Video Of A Zulu Young Woman's Group Named Oqondanisa Singing, Dancing, & Moving In A Single File Similar To The "Follow The Leader" Game & The Conga Dance Line" I hope that sharing this video on my blog is alright with you. I would appreciate you correcting or adding to my description of this video. I'd also love it if you would share the title/s of the song or songs that the group sings in this video as well as information about the general meaning of this song or songs. Is the song/songs traditional or new? Also, I've read a little bit online about Toyi Toyi, the protest dance. Were the movements that the group did before their procession the same as or based on Toyi Toyi? I appreciate your responses to these questions.

Thanks again, Nhlaka Mdlalose and Oqondanisa, -snip- I'll add any responses that I receive to this comment in this post. **** Thanks for visiting pancocojams. Visitor comments are welcome. .