Masombuka in the sources
Masombuka is named as a son of the Ndebele king Musi. The Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims lists eight sons of the Ndebele king Musi: Manala, Ndzundza, Masombuka, Dlomo, Skosana, Mhwaduba, Mphaphuli and Mthombeni. South African History Online lists five (Manala, Masombuka, Ndzundza, Mathombeni and Dhlomu). The sources agree on the first-born sons of the two main houses, Manala and Ndzundza, and differ on the rest.
What the sources say
The Commission says Masombuka and his followers later joined the Ndzundza. Wikipedia agrees: it calls him also Sikhosana, “to begin”, the first-born son of Musi’s third wife, who fled east with Ndzundza and his brother Mthombeni after Musi’s death and settled east of the Olifants River, and it lists Masombuka among the surnames of the Ndzundza. South African History Online instead says that Masombuka left briefly but later rejoined Manala. The two accounts place him on opposite sides of the Manala and Ndzundza split.
The Commission lists Masombuka and Skosana as two separate sons. If Wikipedia’s alias Sikhosana is the same name as Skosana, the sources are describing one man under two names, but none of them says so directly. See our Skosana, Ndzundza and Manala pages.
Cautions
The sources contradict each other on which house he joined; we take no side. We found no Masombuka praise text or totem.
Izithakazelo and totem
We are printing no Masombuka praises or totem because none has been confirmed. If you belong to the Masombuka and recite your izithakazelo, we would like to record them, with your permission and credited to you.
Sources and further reading
- Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims: Determination on the position of the paramount chief of Ndzundza-Mabhoko (section 5.1, Musi and his sons)
- South African History Online: The Ndebele in history (no named author; published 2011)
- Wikipedia: Southern Ndebele people (tagged as needing more inline citations)
Do you belong to the Masombuka? Tell us your praises and what elders say about the history, and we will add it, credited to you. Share what you know or WhatsApp 065 138 8213.