Eswatini beehive huts

Eswatini is a beautiful kingdom located in the southern part of Africa that is bordered on all sides by the Republic of South Africa and Mozambique. The kingdom was formed in the 19th century by the Bantu tribes inhabiting the area. Officially known as the Kingdom of Eswatini, the country, also previously known as Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Its borders are shared with Mozambique to the northeast and South Africa to the north, west, south, and southeast. Despite being one of Africa's smallest countries, Eswatini is a land of breathtaking beauty and cultural richness.

One of the most striking features of Eswatini's cultural heritage is the traditional beehive huts, which are dome-shaped structures that served as their primary vernacular dwellings. These huts, known as iQukwane, are constructed by first building a frame around a circular profile, with wooden poles bent inward toward the center. The frame is then covered by weaving a thatch of dried grasses, resulting in a dome-shaped structure. A grid of ropes is added from the apex point to the hut's surface, supporting the woven thatch and contributing to the unique architectural character that defines the identity of these vernacular homes.

The process of building these huts is a community effort, where men collect the outer sticks and place them in a circle on the ground, while the women bind and thatch the structure using braided split reeds and grass. A central tree trunk acts as a support, and the door is made low so that any foe has to stoop before entering. The floor is made of a cow-dung and anthill mixture, which sets rock hard and can be polished to a mirror-like finish using a polishing stone. The same material is used to form a raised hearth near the central pole.

These huts are very stable, warm in winter and cool in summer, with smoke from the fire escaping out the door or through the thatch that has the effect of constantly fumigating the hut. The round shape of the hut is a significant feature in many African cultures, known by various names among different tribes. For instance, in Angola, it is called Mbukushu, in Botswana, it is Dumela, in Ethiopia, it is Dorze, and so on. As a simple architectural form, it reflects the natural circular rhythm of indigenous cultures, where social gatherings and councils were held in circles around a focal point.

By preserving the traditional architecture of the Eswatini people, the trend of the disappearance of vernacular architecture has been halted, and the essence of the Eswatini cultural identity has been kept for posterity.