Sikholiwe Dube* and Nhlanhla Sibanda
Naming in most African communities is a very crucial concept being celebrated: As names is a repository of cultural and historical information. Significant events and historical figures are remembered through naming. The focus of this paper is to unfold the perception that names attached to roads and schools (primary and secondary alike) in Lupane district of Matabeleland North Province in Zimbabwe, shed light on the preservation of history of the Ndebele people. The paper develops the argument that it is the past which gives identity to an individual or ethnic group. The landmark names in Lupane district extend the community’s commemoration of notable heroes and their achievements. Historical evidence has fostered the indelible mark of the names in Matabeleland, thereby serving as forms of linguistic as well as, historical records for posterity. In the same vein, the study attempts to reveal that significant events and people in Lupane district have been remembered through place naming evident in the schools and roads, among other observable landmarks consciously tagged by the community and the responsible local authority. Signposting such as road names and schools naming expresses the worldview of the Ndebele people in Lupane thereby asserting ownership of their space and authority to contribute to the construction of national narratives. As such, this onomastic practice in Lupane district is driven and manipulated by the Ndebele people’s historical milieu. A thorough exploration of the origin and meanings of place names in this regard will enable the study to establish their symbolic significance. Qualitative research methodology will be employed to study the place names and interviews will be carried out with resource persons from the community and local authority who have substantive knowledge about the subject under study.
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