
Phalane (October in Setswana)
[ENG] The Setswana name for October is Phalane. The tenth month of the Gregorian calendar is in fact the second month of the traditional Tswana lunar calendar, whose year starts with the onset on the agricultural season in August/September (Lwetse).
However, this is not as clear-cut as my introduction above makes it seem. Traditional Southern African calendars were based on the moon cycle, as well as annual seasonal rotations. This tended to create complications as a 12-month lunar cycle is bound to fall out of alignment with key season markers, such as mid-winter, mid-summer, beginning of rainy seasons, animal and bird migrations and reproductive cycles, etc. This therefore means the beginning of the planting season will not occur at exactly the same time each solar cycle, as each moon cycle is only 30 days, leaving an accumulation of days which do not fall within the designated months.
After several years, the onset of summer would now appear to be deep in Seetebosigo [June] unless something is done to realign the months. According to some pundits, this is what resulted in the addition of a 13th month (Morule) every five or six years, to correct the alignment of the months with the seasons. The discussion about this 13th month will be included in the Morule [Undecimber] – the 13th Month post.
The Setswana name for October is Phalane which, unlike those July (Phukwi) and August (Phatwe), does not require too deep an understanding of both Setswana vocabulary and natural phenomena, as it is quite self-explanatory – similar to that of September [Lwetse]. “Phalane” is the personification of “phalana”, which means infant impala (phala) antelope. The month derives its name from the birth cycle of these antelopes, as it is during this time that the veld is teeming with baby impalas (diphalana).
One might mention here that in South African Setswana, October is called Diphalane – which is just the plural of Phalane. This is perhaps the only significant difference in the naming of Setswana months in Botswana and South Africa, except perhaps also that there also appears to be variations in the spellings of the word for January: Ferikgong, Firikgong, Herikgong, Hirikgong. We will cross that bridge in three months’ time, though.
During a “normal” year, Phalane is the hottest month of the year, on averages, as although the summer solstice comes in December, at that time the rains are in full fledge, generally making the land cooler. Phalane has minimal rains – just enough to turn the grasses green and provide foliar food for browser herbivores. Apart from that there are long dry and hot spells characterising this month.
Letsema is sometimes initiated in this month. This is when tribal chieftains officiate the start of the ploughing season and tribesmen would collectively start the agricultural production of that year by planting the chieftain’s fields as a community project. As soon as this was done, people would then be expected to go to their own fields and start ploughing for that year’s production period.

[TSN] Kgwedi ya bosome ya ngwaga wa moalo wa “Gregorian Calendar” ke ya bobedi ya ngwaga ka moalo wa Setswana sa Maloba. Ngwaga o wa Setswana sa pele o ne o simolola ka kgwedi ya Lwetse fa go ipaakanyediwa temo. Marara a kgang e a okediwa ke go re jaaka dikgwedi tsa Setswana di ne di balwa ka motsamao wa ngwedi, e ne e re morago ga dingwaga di le mmalwa, dikgwedi di bo di sa tlhole di lebagane sentle le dipaka tsa ngwaga. Go tila se, gatwe go ne ga tlhangwa kgwedi ya bo lesome-le-boraro, e e bidiwang Morule, e e neng e kgona go tlodisa dingwaga di le mmalwa e sa balwe. Polelwana ka kgwedi e re ka e bona fa tsebeng ya Morule [Undecimber] – the 13th Month .
Leina “Phalane” lone ga le tshwane le a Phukwi le Phatwe a a tlhokang gore motho a bo a na le kitso e e tseneletseng ka khumo ya mafoko a Setswana ga mmogo le ditsamaiso tsa tlholego. Lone le tlhamaletse fela jaaka la Lwetse, ka le lone le tlhaloganyesega motlhofo. Leina Phalane ke mothofatso wa lefoko “phalana”, le le rayang ngwana wa phala. Kgwedi e e biditswe jaana ka ntlha ya gore mo sebakeng se sa ngwaga, naga e a bo e tletse diphalana, ka e le nako ya diphala ya tsalo.
Motho o ka nankola fa gore ka mokwalo wa Aforika Borwa wa Setswana, ba bitsa kgwedi e ba re “Diphalane” – mo e leng ntsifatso ya “Phalane”. Motho o ka itemogela gape gore se ke sone fela pharologanyo e e bonalang thata gareng ga maina a dikgwedi a Setswana sa Botswana le sa Aforika Borwa, ntleng ga gore tlhomaganyo ya ditlhaka e na le go farologana fa go kwalwa Ferikgong, Firikgong, Herikgong, kgotsa Hirikgong.
Mo ngwageng o o seng wa leuba, Phalane o tshabelelwa ke go nna kgwedi e e di fetang tsotlhe ka go nna bolelo. Ntswa malatsi a Sedimonthole a tshwanetse go nna one a a bolelo, go bo pula e na nako eo go fokotsa mogote. Pula ga e ne thata ka Phalane, mme e kgona go phaila go le gonnye, mme go lekanetse go tlhogisa ditlhaga le matlhare a a ka jewang ke leruo.
Letsema le kgona go bolodiwa ka kgwedi e. Mo dingwageng dingweng, kgosi o ne a bitsa letsema, go simolodisa temo ya ngwana oo. Morafe o ne o simolola ka go tshologela letsema la kgosi, ba lema ditshimo tsa gagwe, mme e reng ba fetsa, ba bo ba ya go simolola go itemela.