Nguni stick fighting
Type of dance
ングニ棒術
- Country of origin
- South Africa
- Type
- weapon dance, type of dance
Nguni stick-fighting (also known as donga, or dlala 'nduku, which literally translates as 'playing sticks') is a martial art traditionally practiced by teenage Nguni herdboys in South Africa. Each combatant is armed with two long sticks, one of which is used for defense and the other for offense. Little armor is used. For up to five hours, players alternate between offense and defense to score points based on which body part is struck.
Although Nguni/Xhosa styles of fighting may use only two sticks, variations of Bantu/Nguni stick-fighting throughout Southern Africa incorporate shields as part of the stick-fighting weaponry. Zulu stick-fighting uses an isikhwili or attacking stick, an ubhoko or defending stick and an ihawu or defending shield.
External links
Facts from Wikidata Q3112905 (CC0); quoted introduction from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Data retrieved 2026-10-22.
Data: Wikidata (CC0 1.0); Wikipedia (English) (CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.
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