Dr Ntokozo Vundla Documents Food as a Carrier of Cultural Identity and Memory

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Food is never just food. It carries memory, identity and belonging. In moments of loss or gathering, what is prepared and shared often holds meanings that go far beyond nourishment.

This understanding sits at the centre of Dr Ntokozo Vundla’s doctoral research in anthropology at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). A lecturer at the University of Zululand, his thesis, ‘Exploring Meaning-Making of Funeral Food(s) amongst the Ngoni Tribe-AmaZulu in eMacambini: A Contribution to Indigenous Knowledge and Decoloniality,’ examines how funeral food practices function as cultural, moral and spiritual systems of meaning.

“I come from a rural background that shaped both my academic interests and my sense of responsibility toward community knowledge,” he explains.

His academic path was not straightforward. During his undergraduate years, he experienced academic exclusion and stepped away from formal study. He later returned with renewed focus, achieving summa cum laude at honours level and completing his master’s with high distinction. “It was not an easy period, but I came back with a different level of focus.”

Raised by his grandmother after his mother passed away in 2013, he says her sacrifices continue to guide him. He is also a father of five, and describes his work as grounded in lived responsibility and continuity.

Supervised by Dr Lungile Zondi, his research began in eMacambini, where he first noticed that funerals followed a distinct rhythm around food. “People did not just cook. There were processes, sequences and meaning attached to it,” he recalls.

Much of this understanding came through observation. Elderly women prepared food in silence and with discipline. “That silence was not empty - it carried meaning. Knowledge was being expressed through action.”

One funeral stands out. Food preparation was delayed until rituals were completed. “I later understood it was about cultural order. Everything had to happen in sequence for it to carry meaning.” 

Food, he adds, was not judged by taste but by correctness. “It was not about preference; it was about respect.”

His research shows that food at funerals is more than nourishment. It connects the living, the ancestors and the community in shared meaning, especially in moments of grief. 

“Food brings people together, but it also reminds people that they are connected to one another.”

That connection extends into the spiritual world. He observed food being set aside for ancestors. At first, Vundla saw it as symbolic, but over time, he observed it as presence within belief systems. Food became not only social practice, but spiritual communication.

These insights support his argument that Zulu funeral food carries moral, spiritual and philosophical meaning. Certain foods are prepared under strict cultural conditions, reflecting discipline, respect, and shared accountability. 

“People believe that if the process is not followed properly, it disturbs balance, it is about care and order.”

His work is grounded in decolonial theory, which he describes as recognising knowledge within communities. “It means taking local knowledge seriously and listening closely to what people do.”

From this emerged his Ukuncelisa amathole Theory, shaped by how elders pass on knowledge through care and participation. He describes it as nourishment - knowledge that grows gradually over time, like being raised into understanding rather than simply taught.

“During preparation, there is often quiet. That quiet, shows respect and shared understanding.”

Vundla’s study foregrounds Indigenous knowledge systems and the lived intellectual traditions of Zulu people in eMacambini. Knowledge, he argues, is embedded in people, practice and memory, not separated from everyday life.

Within Zulu funeral rituals, Vundla said, food becomes a carrier of history, ethics and spirituality, passed on through participation and responsibility. “It is knowledge that lives with people and through people.”

“Ultimately, these practices go beyond ritual. They preserve meaning, care and continuity, holding communities together in grief and reminding them of where they come from.”

Words: Rakshika Sibran

Photograph: Sethu Dlamini