Zibi in the sources
Zibi was the name of the heir of the Hlubi chief Sidinane. Soga records him ruling a section of the Hlubi in the Matatiele district in 1895, and, with Ludidi, as one of the Hlubi chiefs who asked the Cape Government for protection in 1872.
What the sources say
The heir of Sidinane. Soga writes that Matiwane, fearing that the Hlubi would cleave to their own chief, had Sidinane put to death, and adds: “There is something of mystery surrounding Zibi, the heir of Sidinane, and the place where he was secreted until he reached man’s estate. We find Zibi in 1895 ruling a section of the Hlubis in the Matatiele district of Griqualand East. His heir was Bushula” (p. 417).
1872. In the account of the Cape’s expansion into Griqualand East, Soga lists the chiefs who applied for protection as Makaula, Mhlontlo, “Ludidi and Zibi, chiefs of the Hlubis” and Lebenya (p. 344). Mditshwa, he adds, did not ask for protection.
Where to read more. See Radebe, another Hlubi page.
Cautions
Zibi is a personal name in these passages, not a clan with its own origin story. We do not claim that all families called Zibi descend from this chief. Soga was a Xhosa-born mission doctor and historian who wrote in 1930 from informants and older colonial histories; his tables are partly garbled in the machine-read text.
Izithakazelo and totem
We found no Zibi praise poem in the sources read. If your family belongs to this Hlubi house, we would like to record its praises, credited to you.
Sources and further reading
Do you belong to the Zibi? Tell us your izithakazelo and what elders say about the family’s history, and we will add it, credited to you. Share what you know or WhatsApp 065 138 8213.