Tag: Harare

Why the Name: Bulawayo ?

On By Dr. Y.In Great Moments, Great People10 Comments
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Map of Zimbabwe

I always loved the sound of the name Bulawayo, the second largest city in Zimbabwe, after the capital Harare, and the largest city in the country’s province of Matabeleland. BU-LA-WA-YO… Doesn’t it roll on your tongue? Doesn’t it sound like thunder ? … like something big must have happened there? Well, …

Flag of Zimbabwe
Flag of Zimbabwe

Bulawayo was founded by the Ndebele king, Lobengula, son of Mzilikazi, when he settled in Zimbabwe in the 1840s, after the Ndebele’s people great trek from northern Kwazulu, in South Africa. The name Bulawayo comes from the Ndebele word bulala which translates to “the one to be killed.” It is said that at the time of the city’s founding, there was a civil war due to a kingship succession dispute. The dispute was between Mbiko ka Madlenya Masuku, a trusted confident of King Mzilikazi and leader of the Zwangendaba regiment, and Prince Lobengula who he (Mbiko Masuku) thought was not a legitimate heir because Lobengula was the son of the king born to a Swazi mother, of a lesser rank.

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King Lobengula of Matabeleland

At the time Lobengula, was a prince fighting to ascend the throne of his father Mzilikazi. It was common at the time for people to refer to Bulawayo as “KoBulawayo UmntwaneNkosi“, “a place where they are fighting or rising against the prince” or the “the place where the prince shall be slain“. The city of Bulawayo coincidentally has the same name as the capital of the great Zulu warrior king Shaka ka Senzangakhona in Kwazulu, where Mzilikazi and his Khumalo clan and other Nguni people came from.

In the 1860s, the city was highly coveted by Europeans, because of its land, wealth, and strategic location. Cecil Rhodes tried different tactics to trick King Lobengula. Lobengula once described Britain as a chameleon and himself as the fly. The fact that Lobengula was a force to reckon with is not to be ignored. Cecil Rhodes himself confided to Rothschild saying, “I have always been afraid of the difficulty of dealing with the Matabele King. He is the only block to central Africa, as, once we have his territory, the rest is easy … the rest is simply a village system with separate headmen …” So trickery was the only resort for Rhodes in order to get Lobengula. Thus, the treacherous Rudd Concession – 30 October 1888 (British Colonial Treaties in Africa: The Ruud Concession in Zimbabwe 30 Oct 1888).

Zimbabwe_Cecil Rhodes
Cecil Rhodes

During the 1893 Matabele War, British South Africa Company (BSAC) troops invaded and forced King Lobengula to evacuate, after first detonating munitions and setting fire to the town. BSAC troops and white settlers occupied the ruins. On 4 November 1893, Leander Starr Jameson declared Bulawayo a settlement under the rule of the British South Africa Company. Cecil Rhodes ordered the new settlement to be founded on the ruins of Lobengula’s royal kraal,a typical action by a conquering power. This is where the State House stands today.

Zimbabwe_Bulawayo principal street in 1905
The principal street of Bulawayo in 1905

Historically Bulawayo has been the principal industrial centre of Zimbabwe (former Southern Rhodesia – after Cecil Rhodes); its factories produce cars and car products, building materials, electronic products, textiles, furniture, and food products. Bulawayo is also the hub of Zimbabwe’s rail network and the headquarters of the National Railways of Zimbabwe. Thus its nickname: “City of Kings” and also “kontuthu ziyathunqa” – meaning “smoke arising” in Ndebele, because of its large industrial base, and the large cooling towers of its coal-powered electricity generating plant situated in the city center which once used to exhaust steam and smoke. Today, as the rest of Zimbabwe, it slowly pushes through the steam.

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Bulawayo in 1976 (Wikipedia)

Bulawayo is seen as the door of tourism to the Matabeleland province, as its capital. Matabeleland boosts of Victoria Falls, Matopo National Park, Hwange National Park, Khami Ruins and a bigger share of Lake Kariba. As a side note, the infamous Cecil Rhodes‘ grave is said to be at World’s View, a hilltop located approximately 35 km (22 mi) south of Bulawayo, which is part today of Matobo National Park.

Well, if you visit the city of Kings, remember King Lobengula, remember his fire, and his fight for his people’s freedom from western domination… remember the greatness of the Ndebele king, and remember the fire that burns dormant in the people of Bulawayo, fanned by their ancestors. Enjoy the video below on Bulawayo.

Why the Name: Harare ?

On By Dr. Y.In Great Trivia10 Comments
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A street of Harare, then Salisbury, in 1930

Many cities around the globe have had their names changed during colonization times (by Europeans colonizers) and were made to carry names foreign to the local people, as denoted in Bombay (Mumbai), Léopoldville (Kinshasa), and Canton (Guangdong) to name just a few. Ever since independence, many of these cities and countries have been renamed to reflect the local culture. Harare is one such city. Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe (which used to be Rhodesia during colonial times), used to be named Salisbury.

So what’s in a name? Well, a name is everything, and characterizes who you are, and your connection to the place. So why shouldn’t Bombay remain Bombay…. Why the need to change it back to Mumbai after over a century as Bombay? Well simply because Mumbai or Guangdong is the way the local people call it, and these cities and their names should be seen through their eyes and not those of a foreigner who oftentimes loathes the local people, and sees them as inferior.

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Harare’s skyline today (Wikipedia)

Back to Harare… During the time that the British with the infamous Barbarian Cecil Rhodes ‘colonized’ the place, it was known as Fort Salisbury. The city was founded in 1890 by the Pioneer Column, a small military force in the service of the British South Africa Company, and named Fort Salisbury after the British Prime Minister Lord Salisbury. It retained the name Salisbury until 1982, when it was renamed Harare on the second anniversary of Zimbabwean independence.

zimbabwe_mapSo Harare, the most populous, and capital city of Zimbabwe owes its present-day name to a local Shona chief by the name of Ne-Harawa, whose name meant “He who does not sleep.” The name of the city was changed to Harare on 18 April 1982, taking its name from the village near Harare Kopje of the Shona chief Ne-Harawa. Prior to independence, “Harare” was the name of the black residential area (indigenous area where the Black locals where allowed to live) now known as Mbare. It used to also be known as the Sunshine City.

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A Conical tower at Great Zimbabwe

Situated at an elevation of 1,483 metres (4,865 feet) above sea level, Harare’s climate falls into the subtropical highland category. Administratively, Harare is a metropolitan province. It is Zimbabwe’s leading financial, commercial, and communications centre, and a trade centre for tobacco, maize, cotton, and citrus fruits. Manufactured goods include textiles, steel and chemicals, and gold is mined in the area.

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National Heroes Acre (ZimbabweTourism.org)

My Dad visited Harare in the early 90s and loved every part of it. So if you ever visit Harare, remember that its name is for “He who does not sleep”, and enjoy its streets full of Msasa trees which color neighborhoods wine red in late August, and other streets filled with Jacaranda and Flamboyant trees. If you love colonial architecture, you will have your fill. If you are in search of African arts, visit the National Gallery (a side note, if you ever visit the Atlanta airport, one of the transition corridors is filled with Zimbabwean Shona sculptures); for flora lovers, the botanic garden is full of species only found there. The Mukuvisi Woodlands reserve is not too far, and you can visit the Shona village of Chapungu Kraal, as well as check out the Epworth rocks, the National Archives, and the Heroes Cemetery.