This. Southern Africa was way too remote. It'll do well OTL, assuming that the ANC youth league doesn't do well.
This.
So to summarize, the problems with a "more civilized" South Africa is that they'd be too isolated to develop the same variety of crops and cattle and technologies as seen in Europe or Asia. On ther other side, the Phoenicians would only make it to Gaboon.
I have been hypothesizing a possible Cape Khoisan civilization relegated mainly to the Western and eastern Capes. It would rely on sparrows bringing undigested wheat and flax seeds to Modern Cape town, pooping the seeds out, and then allowing them to spread. They [the Khoisan Civilization] would develop similarly to North american civilizations or New Guinea in the absence of domesticates. Most likely there would be two stages of growth or so before the Bantu invasions.
1. The first stage would be the discovery of agriculture. This would cause a population explosion within the Cape Khoi until it plateaus once the resources of the marginal area of the Mediterranean area in South Africa are used up.
2. The second population explosion would occur when the eastern parts of the western cape are tamed, allowing the population to spread out eastwards. they would also begin to settle in the eastern cape but dry climate would make any expansion more difficult.
Once the Bantu come, everything changes. They have sorghum, iron, and cattle. Once the 'dark age' from their arrival and disruption of the native population ends, it is assumed they will allow a much larger diversification of the society. Cattle would allow ploughs and easier farming, increasing yields, and subsequently, population. With the collapse of urban life with the arrival of the Bantu, many may take these new-found cattle to the Great Karoo, Natal, and the highveld, where they can be put to better use. Parts of Natal and the eastern cape could now be harvested with Sorghum(though Grain's different growing cycles would not permit it's growth beyond the subtropical line).
It is expected that such areas as the Highveld will become analogous with Zimbabwe in regards to wealth with stratified societies able to mine out the gold in significant quantities.
That might work. But don't make the mistake of uniting the Bantu, there would be a shitload of different tribes existing in completely different areas. Also, don't forget that only the edge of South Africa is European in climate, the interior is veld and savannah.
Bollucks. This website shows what traditional african clothing in South Africa was like, you'll see that the basotho wore clothes, and if you search traditional Shona and Kalanga clothing you'll see they were clothes as well.
Maybe, though I'm skeptical about how well it would grow in most of South Africa.
According to this website, Basotho blankets came from contact with the Europeans. This makes sense as Southern Africans had no fiber crop, and the Basotho were quick to pick up other European ways, like horse riding.
http://www.malealea.co.ls/basotho-culture/basotho-blankets.html
one seventeenth century visitor to southern African empire of Monomotapa, that ruled over this vast region, wrote that: “The people dress in various ways: at court of the Kings their grandees wear cloths of rich silk, damask, satin, gold and silk cloth; these are three widths of satin, each width four covados [2.64m], each sewn to the next, sometimes with gold lace in between, trimmed on two sides, like a carpet, with a gold and silk fringe, sewn in place with a two fingers’ wide ribbon, woven with gold roses on silk.”
I have been hypothesizing a possible Cape Khoisan civilization relegated mainly to the Western and eastern Capes. It would rely on sparrows bringing undigested wheat and flax seeds to Modern Cape town, pooping the seeds out, and then allowing them to spread. They [the Khoisan Civilization] would develop similarly to North american civilizations or New Guinea in the absence of domesticates. Most likely there would be two stages of growth or so before the Bantu invasions.
How far back did the African/Indian/Chinese trade network go? To be sure, in OTL, the trade network never went to the Meditteranean-climate part of S. Africa, but there was nothing there to draw traders.
Went back to Mapungubwe so about 1200AD.
well, that's way too late to do any good. Would it be possible for S. Africa to get domestic animals just by way of trading in Africa itself? In OTL, there were just stone-age Khoi tribes there, nothing to cause any real trading between them and the tropical parts to the north. In this scenario, presuming there are villages and cities in SA, thanks to the presence of a native cereal plant, could domestic animals arrive via just the general trading that went on, cows and goats making their way south little by little?
The mining of diamonds and gold could constitute active trade, yes. The only problem being, of course that they find a competitor in the latter in the form of Zimbabwe.
Above ground it produces seeds similar to the peanut or soybean, but is actually higher in nutritional value than either; below ground it produces a high-protein tuber that is bigger and healthier than potatoes, yams or sugar beets. And to top it off, the planet can also generate a high quality vegetable oil.
Native to the Kalahari Desert across Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, marama has been a part of the diet of the indigenous people in the area for the generations. And yet, it has not been introduced into wide range cultivation and remains one of the most neglected indigenous vegetables in Africa.
Nutritious beans and tubers aren’t the only benefits. The plant thrives in the poor quality, sandy soil of the desert, withstanding blistering summer temperatures, freezing nights of the Kalahari winters, and highly erratic – and often absent – rainfall. While marama seeds are virtually inedible straight from the pod, they are delicious once they harden and are often roasted, compared to the nutty flavor of cashew nuts. In addition to the oil that can be produced from the seeds, the plant is particularly good fodder for livestock.
Dovyalis caffra Warb., the Umkokola, or Kei apple, is a small to medium-sized tree, native to southern Africa. Its distribution extends from the Kei River in the south, from which the common name derives, northwards along the eastern side of the continent to Tanzania. The ripe fruits are tasty, reminiscent of a small apple.
It is a usually found in dry types of woodland when it grows to 6 m tall. In moister types of open woodland it reaches its greatest size of about 8-9 metres. It is a rather straggly tree, with sharp, 3-6 cm long stem spines in the leaf axils.
The fruit is an edible bright yellow or orange globose berry 2.5-4 cm diameter, with the skin and flesh of a uniform colour and containing several small seeds. Production is often copious, weighing down the branches during the summer. They are juicy, tasty and acidic.
A traditional food plant in Africa, this little-known fruit has potential to improve nutrition, boost food security, foster rural development and support sustainable landcare.[1]
Kei-apples are often eaten fresh, or sprinkled with sugar to complement their natural acidity. Aside from being eaten fresh, the fruit can be made into jam, and is also popular pickled or used in desserts.
Although it is native to Africa, it has also been introduced to the Mediterranean, California, Florida and other regions with subtropical and warm temperate climates. In these places it is most often grown as an ornamental plant, being popular as an impenetrable hedge. It is salt- and drought-tolerant, so useful for coastal landscaping in dry regions.
Although a subtropical species, the Kei apple is able to survive temperatures as low as −6°C.
Since 2008, there has been increasing interest for developing baobab as a nutrient-rich raw material for consumer products.[7][8]
The leaves are commonly used as a leaf vegetable throughout the area of mainland African distribution, including Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the Sahel. They are eaten both fresh and as a dry powder. In Nigeria, the leaves are locally known as kuka, and are used to make kuka soup.[9][unreliable source?]
The fruit is nutritious, possibly having more vitamin C than oranges, and exceeding the calcium content of cow's milk.[10] The dry fruit pulp, separated from seeds and fibers, is eaten directly or mixed into porridge or milk, and is also known as "sour gourd" or "monkey's bread". In Malawi, the fruit pulp is used to make a nutrient-rich juice.[10] In Zimbabwe, the fruit is known as mawuyu in the Shona language and has long been a traditional fruit. In the coastal areas of Kenya, baobab seeds, called mbuyu, are cooked with sugar, colored, and sold as a snack.[citation needed] Mabuyu is also the term used in Tanzania for seeds of the calabash gourd, which are prepared in a similar fashion.
The fruit can be used to produce cream of tartar.[11] In various parts of East Africa, the dry fruit pulp is covered in sugary coating (usually with red coloring) and sold in packages as a sweet and sour candy called umbuyu.
The seeds are mostly used as a thickener for soups, but may also be fermented into a seasoning, roasted for direct consumption, or pounded to extract vegetable oil. The tree also provides a source of fiber, dye, and fuel.
The dry pulp is either eaten fresh or used to add to gruels on cooling after cooking – a good way of preserving the vitamin contents. It can also be ground to make a refreshing drink with a pleasing wine-gum flavour. In Tanzania, it is added to aid fermentation of sugar cane for beer making.[12]
Pulp can be stored for fairly long periods for use in soft drink production, but it needs airtight containers. Storage is improved by the use of sodium metabisulphite (Ibiyemi et al., 1988). It can also be frozen if ground to a powder.
Indigenous Australians used baobabs as a source of water and food, and used leaves medicinally. They also painted and carved the outside of the fruits and wore them as ornaments. A very large, hollow baobab south of Derby, Western Australia was used in the 1890s as a prison for Aboriginal convicts on their way to Derby for sentencing. The Boab Prison Tree still stands and is now a tourist attraction.
Pepsi Japan has used baobabs in a limited-edition carbonated soda called
Baobab Pepsi that is described as having a citrus taste.[13]
The whole fruit of the baobab is not available in the EU, as current EU legislation from 1997 dictates that foods not commonly consumed in the EU have to be formally approved before going on sale. On 15 July 2008, the EU authorized the use of baobab dried fruit pulp as a food ingredient in smoothies and cereal bars.[14] More recently, Baobab Dried Fruit Pulp achieved GRAS status for these same food uses.[15]
Traditional uses of the whole fruit are unlikely outside of Africa, as the fruit will be processed for export as a white powder with a cheese-like texture to be used as an ingredient in products.[10]