Road and school naming

A basin of history and culture in Lupane District of Matabeleland North Province, Zimbabwe

Abstract

Naming in most African communities is a very crucial concept being celebrated as names are a repository 
of cultural and historical information. Significant events and historical figures are remembered through 
naming. The focus of this paper was 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. Qualitative research methodology was 
employed to study the place names. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were carried out with ten 
purposively sampled elderly informants from the community and local authority personnel who have 
substantive knowledge of the subject under study. Also, document analysis of Ndebele narrative texts was 
used for data gathering. The study developed an argument that it is the past which gives identity to an 
individual or ethnic group. Some of the findings of the study were that 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 revealed 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. The study concluded that, 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, onomastic practice in Lupane District is 
driven and manipulated by the Ndebele people’s historical milieu. An exploration of the origin and 
meanings of place names in this regard enabled the study to establish their symbolic significance.