Knobkerries

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Knobkerries, also spelled knopkierie or knobkerry, are African clubs used mainly in Southern and Eastern Africa. Typically they have a large knob at one end and can be used for throwing at animals in hunting. This knob is carved out of a treetrunk and the shaft is simply the branch that protruded from the tree at that point. Knobkerries were an indispensable weapon of war, particularly among southern Nguni tribes such as the Zulu and the Xhosa. The name may derive from a settler word 'knob' or 'knop' and the Afrikaans word for cane or walking stick. Knobkerries are still widely carried, especially in rural areas. During the apartheid era in South Africa they were often carried by protesters and sometimes by the police opposing them.

The weapon is employed at close quarters, or as a missile, and in time of peace may serve as a walking-stick. The head, or knob, is often ornately carved with faces or shapes that have symbolic meaning. The knobkierie itself serves this function in the crest of the 2000 new federal coat of Arms of South Africa.

The name has been extended to similar weapons used by the natives of Australia, the Pacific islands and other places.