Customary law in South Africa

South African customary law refers to a usually uncodified legal system developed and practiced by the indigenous communities of South Africa, defined as an established system of long-standing rules evolved from the way of life and needs of the people, together with precedents applying to special cases retained in the memories of chiefs and their councillors across generations. Most African states follow a pluralistic form of law that includes customary law, religious laws, received law such as common law or civil law, and state legislation, and the South African Constitution recognizes traditional authority and customary law under Section 211. The Constitutional Court ruling in Bhe v Magistrate, Khayelitsha held that customary law is protected by and subject to the Constitution in its own right. Customary law had its sources in the practices, traditions and customs of the people prior to colonialism, remains fluid and changes over time and among different groups, and is often closely tied to ethnicity. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/