Mkhabela in the Swazi record
Wikipedia’s Bemdzabuko article lists the Mkhabela among the notable bemdzabuko clans, the “original” Swazi who arrived with the Dlamini kings; its Emakhandzambili article does not name them. We found no history of the clan itself.
What the sources say
The name appears once in the OCR text of Philip Bonner’s Kings, Commoners and Concessionaires, in a note: Bonner cites an interview with informants named Mandanda Mthetwa and a Mkhabela, at Sigodzi on 23 April 1970 (PDF pp. 269, 305), for an oral-tradition variant about how a Swazi force came to be sent against the Sifundza chief Shewula. That makes a Mkhabela one of the informants for that episode, not a subject of it; see our Sifundza page.
D. Hugh Gillis’s The Kingdom of Swaziland does not mention the Mkhabela in the OCR text.
Cautions
We found no Mkhabela chief, origin story, praise text or totem. The surname Mkhabela is common, and we claim no link between surname-holders and the founding clan. We read Bonner and Gillis only through machine OCR of scanned copies, so names and page numbers may contain errors.
Izithakazelo and totem
We are printing no Mkhabela praises or totem because none has been confirmed. If you belong to the Mkhabela and recite your izithakazelo, we would like to record them, with your permission and credited to you.
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Bemdzabuko (needs more citations; cites Matsebula 1988 and T. Thwala 2013)
- Philip Bonner: Kings, Commoners and Concessionaires (SAHO scan, read by OCR)
Do you belong to the Mkhabela? 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.