Beyond Remittances: the Redistribution of Cash in Swazi Society

There are unwritten rules for the distribution of money in all societies, notably about from and to whom it is appropriate to give and receive money, and when. These rules differ from one society to another, and we err in assuming otherwise. This article examines some reported practices in the redis...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of modern African studies 1984-12, Vol.22 (4), p.595-615
Main Author: Russell, Margo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Africa
Brothers
Cash
Children
Economic policy
Fathers
Homesteads
Income Distribution
Money
Mothers
Parents
Swaziland
Wages
Wives
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Summary:There are unwritten rules for the distribution of money in all societies, notably about from and to whom it is appropriate to give and receive money, and when. These rules differ from one society to another, and we err in assuming otherwise. This article examines some reported practices in the redistribution of earnings and other cash in Swaziland. It arises out of a reading of transcriptions of 118 recorded interviews, 49 with wage-earners conducted at their place of work, and 69 with earners or their dependents in the rural areas. These wide-ranging interviews covered many topics besides the giving and receiving of sums of money between kinsmen. From this evidence I attempt to spell out the detailed nature of these rules. To ignore or to be ignorant of their strength and complexity is to fail to recognise a powerful mechanism for redistribution, which goes some way to modify alleged inequalities between town and country, and between one homestead and another within Swaziland. Similar rules probably affect income distribution elsewhere in Africa.
ISSN:0022-278X
1469-7777
DOI:10.1017/S0022278X00056251