Mfecane

An early painting of the first migration of the Fengu, one of the affected peoples of the Mfecane

The Mfecane, also known by the Sesotho names Difaqane or Lifaqane (all meaning "crushing," "scattering," "forced dispersal," or "forced migration"),[1] was a historical period of heightened military conflict and migration associated with state formation and expansion in Southern Africa. The exact range of dates that comprise the Mfecane varies between sources. At its broadest, the period lasted from the late eighteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century, but scholars often focus on an intensive period from the 1810s to the 1840s.[2]

Traditional estimates for the death toll range from 1 million to 2 million;[3][4][5] however, these numbers are controversial, and some recent scholars revise the mortality figure significantly downward and attribute the root causes to complex political, economic, and environmental developments.[6][7][8][9] The Mfecane is significant in that it saw the formation of new states, institutions, and ethnic identities in southeastern Africa.

The Mfecane's historiography itself is also historically significant, with different versions having been employed to serve a range of political purposes since its inception as a historical concept.[10][11][12] The concept first emerged in the 1830s and blamed the disruption on the actions of King Shaka, who was alleged to have waged near-genocidal wars that depopulated the land and sparked a chain reaction of violence as fleeing groups sought to conquer new lands.[10][13] Since the latter half of the 20th century, this interpretation has fallen out of favor among scholars due to a lack of historical evidence.[14][15]

  1. ^ "General South African History Timeline: 1800s". South African History Online. Archived from the original on 21 April 2019. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  2. ^ Epprecht, Marc (June 1994). "The Mfecane as Teaching Aid: History, Politics, and Pedagogy in Southern Africa". Journal of Historical Sociology. 7 (2): 113–130. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6443.1994.tb00164.x.
  3. ^ Hanson, Victor (18 December 2007). Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise to Western Power. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-42518-8.
  4. ^ Walter, Eugene Victor (1969). Terror and resistance: a study of political violence, with case studies of some primitive African communities. Oxford University Press.
  5. ^ Wright, John; Cobbing, Julian (12 September 1988). "The Mfecane: Beginning the inquest". Wits Institutional Repository African Studies Institute – Seminar Papers. Archived from the original on 24 December 2019. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
  6. ^ Epprecht, Marc (June 1994). "The Mfecane as Teaching Aid: History, Politics and Pedagogy in Southern Africa". Journal of Historical Sociology. 7 (2): 113–130. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6443.1994.tb00164.x.
  7. ^ Omer-Cooper, J.D. (June 1993). "Has the Mfecane a future? a response to the Cobbing critique". Journal of Southern African Studies. 19 (2): 273–294. doi:10.1080/03057079308708360.
  8. ^ Saunders, Christopher (1 December 1991). "Conference report: Mfecane afterthoughts". Social Dynamics. 17 (2): 171–177. doi:10.1080/02533959108458518. ISSN 0253-3952.
  9. ^ Eldredge, Elizabeth A. (1992). "Sources of Conflict in Southern Africa, C. 1800-30: The 'Mfecane' Reconsidered". The Journal of African History. 33 (1): 1–35. doi:10.1017/S0021853700031832. ISSN 0021-8537. JSTOR 182273. S2CID 153554467. Archived from the original on 3 February 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  10. ^ a b Epprecht, Marc (June 1994). "The Mfecane as Teaching Aid: History, Politics and Pedagogy in Southern Africa". Journal of Historical Sociology. 7 (2): 114. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6443.1994.tb00164.x.
  11. ^ Wright, John (1989). "Political Mythology and the Making of Natal's Mfecane". Canadian Journal of African Studies. 23 (2): 286. doi:10.2307/485525. hdl:10539/10253. JSTOR 485525. Archived from the original on 3 February 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  12. ^ Etherington, Norman (2004). "A False Emptiness: How Historians May Have Been Misled by Early Nineteenth Century Maps of South-Eastern Africa". Imago Mundi. 56 (1): 68. doi:10.1080/0308569032000172969. JSTOR 40233902. S2CID 128461624.
  13. ^ Wright, John (1989). "Political Mythology and the Making of Natal's Mfecane". Canadian Journal of African Studies. 23 (2): 286. doi:10.2307/485525. hdl:10539/10253. JSTOR 485525.
  14. ^ Epprecht, Marc (June 1994). "The Mfecane as Teaching Aid: History, Politics, and Pedagogy in Southern Africa". Journal of Historical Sociology. 7 (2): 115. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6443.1994.tb00164.x.
  15. ^ Wright, John (1989). "Political Mythology and the Making of Natal's Mfecane". Canadian Journal of African Studies. 23 (2): 287. doi:10.2307/485525. hdl:10539/10253. JSTOR 485525. Archived from the original on 3 February 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.