Figure 1.--This South African boy had his portrait taken on his first day of school. The portrait is undted, but looks to be from the 1950s--notice the wide lapels. He may have attended a private school, but many state schools also required uniforms. He wears a traditional British school uniform, but does not wear socks with his school sandals.

South African parents like parents in other countries often take photographs on their children's first day of school. We do not know of any special ceremony or practice at school associated with the beginning of school in South Adrica. Most South African school traditions are based on British schools. We do have some first day portraits which provide useful view of school uniforms and clothing over time. South African children seem to begin school at about 6 years of age. These first day portraits over time provide an interesting view of changing school trends.

The 19th Century

We have very little information on South African school trends during the 19th century.

The 20th Century

We know much more about South African school trends in the 20th century.

The 21st Century

The trend toward casual schoolwear that we noticed in the late 20th century, continued in the early 21st century. This trend was most pronounced at the schools without uniforms. Here the younger children essentially wore play clothes to school. We also see the trend at schools with uniforms. A few schools still had tradituoinal BVritish-style uniforms including caps, ties, and blazers. Much more common were schools with casual style uniforms. The girls still wore dresses, but the boys often wore open-collar polo-styled shirts and shorts. Quite a few scghools allowed the children to come to school barefoot.

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Created: 2:19 PM 1/24/2007
Last updated: 3:52 AM 7/14/2008