The Pedis speak North Sotho. They live primarily in South Africa, but also in Botswana and Zimbabwe.Before being conquered by Europeans, Pedis were cattle herders and farmers. Using simple hoes, women grew sorghum, pumpkins, and legumes on fields allocated to them once they were married. Bigger farming projects required entire villages to work together. Village chiefs made sure they had a rainmaker who they thought ensured adequate water for their crops and livestock.Changes came when they developed the animal-drawn plow and the cultivation of maize. More changes came when Pedi men had to live away from their families for long periods of time as wage laborers. Women maintained farms, and there was plenty of work for the men when they returned. Eventually, the situation led to rebellion, which European colonizers squelched in the 1950s.
Many try to retain subsistence farming, which has led to widespread poverty. Finding that unsustainable, men try to find jobs in mines or factories while their wives work as domestic help. In recent years, there have been rising levels of education and expectations, combined with a sharp drop in employment rates.
They have numerous Christian denominations. Pedis blend biblical teachings with pre-Christian beliefs. They believe in diviners who they think have the power to communicate with ancestral spirits to benefit the living. Because they believe in ancestral spirits, funerals are important in their culture. Funerals are elaborate. They often involve slaughtering cattle to feed guests. When one dies, they graduate from being an elder to being an ancestor. Those who die with regrets become ghosts who haunt the living during the night. This is one more reason they take great care of these spirits.
Pedis need more education and employment opportunities. They will not climb out of poverty unless they have higher education and valuable urban training.Divorce is common. Women often raise children alone, leading to poverty. Pedis are developing new patterns where brothers and sisters live and work together, or the women get help from matrilineally linked relatives.
Pray for hundreds to be raised up with a defiant faith in Christ, one that will not be shaken, no matter what comes their way.Pray for God to bring about his purpose for the North Sotho Pedis.Pray for North Sotho Pedi Christians to have love, joy, peace, and patience as they tell others about the King of kings.Pray for a mighty Holy Spirit revival to flood through South Africa, blessing southern Africa in every way.
Scripture Prayers for the Pedi, North Sotho in Zimbabwe.
https://www.101lasttribes.com/tribes/pedi.htmlhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedi_people
| Profile Source: Joshua Project |
