Nomkhubulwane (Princess of the Sky)
Swazi · deity · Swazi traditional religion; continuing · Recorded classification
Nomkhubulwane, the 'Princess of the Sky' (Inkosazana), is a pan-Nguni rain-and-grain goddess associated with fertility and the first-fruits; among the Swazi her rites were performed by young women at planting time.
Domains
- rain and fertility
- agriculture and first fruits
Powers
- to grant rain, grain and the fertility of the fields
Sources
- Nomkhubulwane (Inkosazana yezulu, 'the Princess of the Sky') is the Nguni goddess of rain, agriculture and fertility venerated by the Swazi in maidens' first-fruits rites.: Molefi Kete Asante & Ama Mazama (eds.), Encyclopedia of African Religion (Thousand Oaks: SAGE, 2009), s.v. 'Swazi'. (secondary); Hilda Kuper, An African Aristocracy: Rank Among the Swazi (London: Oxford University Press for the International African Institute, 1947). (secondary)