Tribe of mothers: a ritualistic Basotho birth village
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Date
2023
Authors
Botha, Stephan
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Free State
Abstract
Global maternal death rates continue to be an alarming issue. This thesis focuses on the reasons for death surrounding childbirth that relate to the lack of understanding of native Basotho beliefs. The proposed project aims to remove the boundaries between Western medicinal practices and traditional ways of childbearing as a means to transition the indigenous tribes of South Africa into the contemporary age without sacrificing their ancestral beliefs and by doing so creates an opportunity for the growth of African Identity. The research question is centred on how the rituals involved in Basotho cultural practices, specifically childbirth, can lead to an architectural design that amalgamates a relationship between site and building that emulates the phenomenon of mother and child that are two separate entities but also simultaneously one. The research will be based on studies of sacred sites used for various Basotho rituals, precedent studies of contemporary ritual buildings and architectural theories relating to ritual, hermeneutics and liminality. The result of the project will serve as inspiration for the incorporation of cultural practices in contemporary institutional buildings and how the architectural applications thereof can result in spaces that endorse spirituality. Through doing this the proposed project will aim to assist in the transition of indigenous beliefs and communities into the contemporary age, consisting of a maternity waiting village, a cultural clinic with a training centre and a visitors' centre accompanied by clay workshops for the accommodated mothers, and multifunctional spaces where rituals pertaining to Basotho cultural practices can take place.
Description
Dissertation (M.Arch. (Architecture))--University of the Free State, 2023