Nkadimeng at Manganeng
An excerpt from Mokgomana: The Life of John Kgoana Nkadimeng, by Peter Delius and Daniel Sher (Jacana, 2023), places Manganeng in the foothills of the Leolu Mountains, in the heartland of the old Pedi kingdom, and says King Sekhukhune was buried there after his death in 1882. John Nkadimeng, the trade unionist and ANC leader, was born near there, at Mashite, on 12 June 1927. Wikipedia’s list of Northern Sotho dialects and groups gives the form “Manganeng-Nkadimeng”, among the groups listed after Batau, with Masemola, Matlebjane and Marishane; see our Batau and Masemola pages.
A house of the old chiefs
According to the excerpt, John Nkadimeng’s father, Mahudu, was descended from the royal lineage but “several steps removed” from it, and Nkadimeng himself said in the 1980s: “No, we are the family of the old chiefs.” The biography’s publisher page does not mention chieftaincy, and we have not seen the book; this is all taken from the published excerpt.
The commission’s account
The Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims’ determination on the Bapedi dispute says Mankopodi, the mother of Sekhukhune III, was a daughter of Ramphelane of the house of kgosi Nkadimeng. The respondent in that case argued that the Nkadimeng house is of lesser royal status than the Mphahlele house; the commission did not rule on that point. See the Sekhukhune and Mphahlele pages. The dispute they describe is contested and we are not taking a side.
What we have not found
We have not found a published genealogy of the Nkadimeng chiefs, a confirmed totem, or an account of how the house relates to the paramountcy beyond the points above. We have not read the Delius and Sher book itself.
Izithakazelo (direto) and totem
We have not found a published Nkadimeng praise text or confirmed totem, so we are printing neither. If you belong to the Nkadimeng house and recite the direto, we would like to record them, with your permission and credited to you.
Sources and further reading
- Mukurukuru Media: extract from Mokgomana by Peter Delius and Daniel Sher (published 29 June 2023)
- Jacana Media: Mokgomana, the life of John Kgoana Nkadimeng
- Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims: Determination on the dispute of Bapedi
- Wikipedia: Northern Sotho language
Do you belong to the Nkadimeng house? 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.