South Ndebele people

This article is about the South Ndebele people, for other uses for the terms Ndebele or Matabele, please see Ndebele.

Ndebele

The women of Loopspruit Cultural Village, near Bronkhorstspruit, in front of a traditionally-painted Ndebele dwelling.
Total population
703,906 (2001 Census)
Regions with significant populations
Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Gauteng provinces in  South Africa
Languages
Southern Ndebele language
Religion
Christian, Animist
Related ethnic groups
Nguni

The South Ndebele people are an African tribe located in South Africa. They are also called the Southern Transvaal Ndebele, and are centered around Bronkhorstspruit.

The Northern Transvaal Ndebele have largely adopted the language and culture of their Sotho and Tswana neighbours. Their spoken language is sometimes mistakenly grouped under the Northern Sotho group of dialects, and is becoming extinct^{[citation needed]}. The new generation mostly speaks Northern Sotho^{[citation needed]}.

History

The Ndebele are part of the larger Nguni ethnic group. They are thought to have travelled from Natal to the Transvaal region, led by a chief called Musi and settling near Pretoria in about 1600. In the mid-seventeenth century, the nation split over a succession dispute between his two sons, Manala and Ndzundza.

In 1882, following friction with Voortrekker settlers over land and other resources, the Boer leader Piet Joubert led a campaign against the Ndebele leader Nyabela. Nyabela was imprisoned, finally being released in the late 1890s, and many of his people were indentured to white farmers.

During the apartheid era, Nyabela's successor as leader, Cornelius, was forcibly moved with his people to a tribal "homeland" called KwaNdebele, which was given nominal self-government.

People with the last name Ndebele are considered royal.^{[citation needed]}

Ndebele people are the smallest tribe in Southern Africa and their language is very different compared to the Zimbabwe Ndebele's so the difference has to be noted so as others do not confuse the two.

Further reading

• Ndebele: The art of an African tribe, 1986. Margaret Courtney-Clarke, London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-28387-7

External links

• History of the Ndebele (Matabele) people of zimbabwe