Thwala in the Swazi record
Thwala appears in Wikipedia’s Bemdzabuko article among the notable founding clans, where the list gives the spelling Thwala; its Swazi people article lists a clan spelled Tfwala among the 17 founding clans. We have not found a source that says outright that the two entries are the same clan, and our Tfwala page takes up the spelling question and the one well-known person, Queen Mother Ntfombi Tfwala, whom some sources write as Ntombi Thwala.
What the sources say
The Bemdzabuko article cites J. S. M. Matsebula’s History of Swaziland (1988) and Thabani Thwala’s 2013 University of the Witwatersrand MA thesis “The Politics of Placing Princes in Historical and Contemporary Swaziland” for its list; we have read neither. Our OCR reading of Bonner’s and Gillis’s histories of the Swazi kingdom found no mention of the Thwala or Tfwala under either spelling.
Cautions
We found no Thwala chief, chiefdom, origin story, praise text or totem. The surname Thwala is common in South Africa, including among Zulu speakers, and we claim no link between surname-holders and the Swazi founding clan.
Izithakazelo and totem
We are printing no Thwala praises or totem because none has been confirmed. If you belong to the Thwala 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)
- Wikipedia: Swazi people (list of the 17 founding clans)
- Wikipedia: Ntfombi of Eswatini
Do you belong to the Thwala? 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.