BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//events.la.psu.edu//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20201101T020000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYMONTH=11;BYDAY=1SU END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20200308T020000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYMONTH=3;BYDAY=2SU END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT UID:3859-1f80a935b7af71375a4e54e6cd7705aa@events.la.psu.edu DTSTAMP:20260608T211252Z DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20221104T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20221104T180000 SUMMARY:WGSS Fall 2022 Speaker Series: Natasha Erlank DESCRIPTION:\n&ldquo\;From Polygamy to \;Masihlalisane: The Changing Lives of Multiple-Partner (Heterosexual) Relationships in South Africa& rdquo\;\n\nDr. Natasha Erlank will examine the historical evolution of d ifferent types of multiple-partner conjugality for Black South Africans. While polygamy (preferred locally to polygyny) was common amongst diffe rent precolonial chiefdoms\, and was practiced by most reasonably well-o ff families\, by the early twentieth century it was becoming less freque nt. While many Christian missionaries attributed the attrition of the pr actice to conversion\, declining economic opportunities were more respon sible for this status. During the period until roughly 1948\, for variou s reasons including Christianity and migrant labor\, multiple styles of conjugality or living together emerged in Black South African society.\n \nThese included what is often described as masihlalisane \;or vat-e n-sit. Multiple conjugality was becoming more serial than parallel\, at least in practice. This situation became even more pronounced during the period of grand apartheid. Today\, there is renewed interest in a so-ca lled more traditional style of polygamy\, so much so that it has become the subject of several reality television shows\, including the aptly na med uThando Nes'\;thembu (Love and Polygamy) and Mnakwethu. This &quo t\;new"\; polygamy\, however\, owes more to a curious dialogue with Christianity than to an understanding of what great-great-grandparents p racticed. \;\n\nThis paper draws on Dr. Erlank&rsquo\;s recently pu blished book\, \;Convening \;Black Intimacy: Christianity\, Gend er and Tradition in Early Twentieth Century South Africa \;(Ohio Uni versity Press 2022).\n\nFor more details: https://events.la.psu.edu/even t/wgss_natasha-erlank/ X-ALT-DESC;FMTTYPE=text/html:

“From Polygamy to Masihlalisane: The Changing Lives of Multiple-Partner ( Heterosexual) Relationships in South Africa”

Dr. Natasha Erlank will examine the historical evolution of different types of mult iple-partner conjugality for Black South Africans. While polygamy (prefe rred locally to polygyny) was common amongst different precolonial chief doms, and was practiced by most reasonably well-off families, by the ear ly twentieth century it was becoming less frequent. While many Christian missionaries attributed the attrition of the practice to conversion, de clining economic opportunities were more responsible for this status. Du ring the period until roughly 1948, for various reasons including Christ ianity and migrant labor, multiple styles of conjugality or living toget her emerged in Black South African society.

These included what is often described as masihlalisane or vat-en-sit. Multiple conjugali ty was becoming more serial than parallel, at least in practice. This si tuation became even more pronounced during the period of grand apartheid . Today, there is renewed interest in a so-called more traditional style of polygamy, so much so that it has become the subject of several reali ty television shows, including the aptly named uThando Nes'thembu (Love and Polygamy) and Mnakwethu. This "new&quo t; polygamy, however, owes more to a curious dialogue with Christianity than to an understanding of what great-great-grandparents practiced. &nb sp;

This paper draws on Dr. Erlank’s recently published book , Convening Black Intimacy: Christianity, Gender and Tradit ion in Early Twentieth Century South Africa (Ohio University Pr ess 2022).

For more details: https://events.la.psu.edu/event/wgss_natasha-e rlank/

LOCATION:335 Willard Building END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR