seshweshwe, noun

/seˈʃwe(ː)ʃwe/
Forms:
isishweshwe, seseshweShow more Also isishweshwe, seseshwe, seshoeshoe, sheshwe, sishweshwe, and with initial capital.
Plurals:
seshweshwes, or unchanged.
Origin:
Southern Sotho, isiXhosa, isiZuluShow more Southern Sotho, noun prefix se- + -shweshwe (or -shoeshoe), ‘of the people of Moshoeshoe (Moshesh)’. Forms with the noun prefix isi- probably result from the writers’ mistaken perception of the word as isiXhosa or isiZulu.
A short skirt made of German print (see German), and decorated with several rows of pin-tucks, worn especially by Sotho women. Also attributive.
1973 Daily Dispatch 16 June 8The Xhosa skirts or shweshes, worn by the women in the Ciskei and Transkei.
1973 Drum 8 Sept. 38Muriel decided to modify the traditional Isishweshwe dresses and made them into maxi and midi dresses.
1974 Drum 8 Aug. 7Mrs S— took to knitting jerseys, pullovers and baby clothes as well as [making] ‘sishweshwe’ — traditional Sotho dresses — to narrow the gap between income and financial need.
1982 S. Afr. Panorama Apr. 38Long, voluminous cotton fabrics in red and blue Shangaan fashions with crowning turbans, vied with Sheshwe (Basotho) skirts inherited from 19th century German missionaries, a mode that has become an institution.
1986 Learn & Teach No.2, 14She began to make ‘Seshoeshoe’ dresses at home.
1994 [see Weekly Mail & Guardian quot. at German].
A short skirt made of German print (see German), and decorated with several rows of pin-tucks, worn especially by Sotho women. Also attributive.
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19731986

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Sesotho and Sesotho sa Leboa
IsiXhosa
sersant, nounn.Sesotho, nounn.
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