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Ugqozi        (oogqosee)             Zulu

Thenjiwe Magwaza Zulu has the biggest number of mother tongue speakers in South Africa. It is one indigenous language that is spoken by most Black South Africa natives who are not necessarily Zulu and serves as the Black people’s lingua franca.  
 
Ugqozi is an infused and encouraged thought or feeling into a person. An action or expressed emotion is bound to accompany or follow this kind of feeling such as, dancing, singing, praising, ululating, prancing about, clapping of hands, etc.  The word is different from the English expression - as whatever action or emotion that is expressed will be repeated and reiterated by others. Given that the Zulu are a communal people – ugqozi is, in most cases, expressed in the presence of other people.  
   

What causes ugqozi  are Zulu traditional actions, performances or visuals. These include kinds of dance, singing (songs, hymns, kings’ praises, family praises, soccer stars’ praises) and wearing or seeing a person who is clad in a traditional costume. Songs, hymns, dance performances, praises and dress may evoke reiterative singing, chanting and actions in people (both performers and onlookers). The inspiration theme is viewed as one feeling that identifies and unifies the Zulu as well as an expression of emotion that should not be hidden. A person who fails to express ugqozi feeling could be asked whether she is indeed a proper Zulu.
 
Having spent my entire schooling years in boarding institutions, away from home and in non-Zulu settings, I missed out on learning and experiencing my native cultural rituals and practices peculiar to the Zulu at an earlier age. My first memory of inspiration  was when my husband’s marriage negotiation delegation came to my parents’ house seeking my hand in marriage. The delegation sang my clan praises before and as they entered the house. I experienced an emotional feeling that was extremely good and for the first time felt very proud to be a member of my family and clan.
 

Ugqozi is originally a Zulu word but has borrowed the click sound [gq] from Southern African San languages (most of which have died). All above synonyms that have click sounds have borrowed such sounds from San languages.

Synonyms: Ugqozi is a very important kind of feeling that is enriched with at least a minimum of eleven synonyms: