Indigenous soil classification in four villages of eastern South Africa

Ethnopedology has significantly contributed to understanding local perceptions of soil, and its uses and management, and has complemented technical (scientific) surveys. This study focused on indigenous soil classification of the Zulu and Xhosa ethnic groups of eastern South Africa. The study area comprised four villages, viz Khokhwane (104 ha) and Potshini (577 ha) in KwaZulu-Natal Province and Ntshiqo (629 ha) and Zalaze (80 ha) in Eastern Cape Province. Ethnographic methods were used to elicit general local knowledge of soils and ethnopedologic techniques to gain in-depth understanding of soil and theories associated with local taxonomy. Knowledgeable farmers were chosen (upon recommendation and/or based on interest and detail given during interviews) to produce participatory soil maps. These local maps were later compared with scientific soil mapping at 1:10000 scale using a free survey method. Local classification criteria reflected a detailed understanding of soil behaviour, use potential based on long-term observations, and experience with key soil morphological properties such as texture, consistence and colour. Local soil terminology was mostly different for all four villages as well as across ethnic groups. However, some differences between ethnic groups (e.g. Zulu-isibomvu and Xhosa-obomvu; Zulu-ubumba and Xhosa-udongwe) were mainly linguistic and did not indicate inherent differences in soil properties. Terrain features were important for both indigenous and scientific soil classification. Consequently, soil maps produced by local farmers in areas with distinct geomorphic units were generally closely correlated with scientific maps. Although on a floodplain the correlation was poor, the flexibility of the local classification was demonstrated as farmers manipulated the classification criteria to capture changes with distance away from the river. Farmers classified soils at higher levels than the two-tier system of the South African classification and so these could be incorporated as higher categories in the current South African classification system. Irrespective of the level of correlation between scientific and local maps, farmers' local classifications contained detailed pedological information that can contribute to the development of classifications systems that are both user-friendly and relevant for local needs.