lobola

/ lɔːˈbɔːlə, ləˈbəʊ- /

noun

1. (in southern Africa) an African custom by which a bridegroom's family makes a payment in cattle or cash to the bride's family shortly before the marriage

Word History and Origins

Origin of lobola¹

from Nguni ukulobola to give the bride price

Example Sentences

The bride-price, known as lobola, had already been paid in cattle - a prized asset in Zulu culture.

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In the case of the second wife, the academic said lobola had been paid in January 2022, but royal insiders suggest the king felt "those who went to pay didn't have the authority to do so" - plus this union has not been marked with a public ceremony.

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Unlike the king's other wives, her lobola, or bride price, of about 300 cattle was paid for by the Zulu nation, following a collection within communities.

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To which my mother replied, “But I desperately want to leave this beast of a man. But with his lobola gone I can’t do it. That worthless thing you call your husband shouldn’t have sold Jackson’s scrawny cattle and left you penniless.”

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“Despite all, he’s still your father, you know. Anyway, he asked for lobola only because he had to get back what he spent raising you. And you know it would have been taboo for him to let you or any of your sisters go without asking for lobola.’

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