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News - Date: 31 October 2003
MAKHADO (LOUIS TRICHARDT) – The Venda nation had their own links with the Far East many years before Jan van Riebeeck. This is the view of Professor Doctor Victor Ralushai, Consultant for Venda History.
Prof Ralushai was one of the speakers at the Tourism Information Centre on October 24 when the Nokia pantechnicon truck pulled into town to showcase the town's greatness as part of the Nokia Great South African Journey.
Ralushai, a former professor at the University of Venda, is currently busy with fieldwork at the Mapungubwe Ruins. These ruins are at the confluents of the Limpopo and Shashe Rivers. The Ford Foundation of New York funds him.
"Mapungubwe is the oldest settlement of the Bantu," explains Prof Ralushai. "This can be said because of archaeological finds of artefacts which are of Bantu origin. Indian and Chinese artefacts were found at Mapungubwe. The Northern Province has so many archaeological sites that we can no longer say it was the most isolated area in South Africa, unless if one looks at it Euro-centrically. We can now convincingly state that Mapungubwe was in contact with the Far East and that was many years before Jan van Riebeeck."
As historian, Prof Ralushai was asked to expound on the Dzata Ruins. An interesting fact is that Dzata is the only Venda settlement on a flat area, which showed that there was no threat of war at the time. The Vendas found the Vangona tribe in the area, but since they were not strong enough, they agreed to be ruled by the immigrant Venda tribe. The rulers of the Dzata kingdom were from the Singo clan, the then dominant Venda clan. Following a succession dispute, the Dzata kingdom collapsed. The leader, Thohoyandou, mysteriously disappeared and no one knows to this day what had happened to him. Thereafter, the Vendas built on high areas because of constant tribal wars.
Prof Ralushai said that the Dzata kingdom is normally dated at 1700, a dating to which he does not agree.
"Recent carbon datings, such as at the ruins of Thulamela in the Kruger National Park, the Tshaluwimbi or Tshilavuru ruins or Tshitakatshamakoreni ruins at Mianzwi and other sites, indicate that the dating should be much earlier. The 1700 date was given by non-archaeologists. The date should be about the 15th century."
Dr Edwin Harnisch, from the Archaeology Department at the University of Venda, is currently conducting research at Dzata. Dzata is being rebuilt for two main reasons. The first is to give the history to the youth and the second is to utilise Dzata as a tourist attraction.
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