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Wozekhaya

Mutupo · Tshivenda

Singo

Also spelled Masingo, Vhasenzi, MaKhwinde, vha-ila-mbudzi, Thovhele clan.

  • PeopleVhavenda
  • Mutupo goat (taboo animal); the mutupo name Sin — Stayt records the ruling sib's nickname as those who taboo the goat, and says Mp
  • Grouping The conquering dynasty of Dzata; Rozvi (Karanga) origin from north of the Limpopo
  • Surnames recorded Singo, Mphephu, Ramabulana, Sinthumule, Kutama, Tshivhase, Rambuda, Makuya, Ravhura, Tshisevhe, Mandiwana, Ratombo
  • Places recorded Dzata, Nzhelele, Soutpansberg, Ramabulana, Tshivhase, Mphaphuli, Dzimauli, Rambuda, Makonde, Ravhura, Tshisevhe

Written down by families and by the people who recorded them.

About This Record

What Was Written Down

Modern scholarship summarised in the Venda Kingdom article (Loubser, Huffman, Beach) treats the Singo as dynastic members of the Rozvi state who crossed the Limpopo between about 1680 and 1700 after a succession dispute, accompanied by Lovedu and by the Mwenye who became the Lemba, and settled Dzata; their first ruler is remembered as Dambanyika (Vele Lambeu, Dyambeu), and his son Phophi took the title Thohoyandou, credited with subduing the whole Soutpansberg. Traditions of the sacred drum Ngoma Lungundu, of Dambanyika's entombment in a cave at Tshiendeulu, and of Thohoyandou's disappearance are told with variations by Stayt, Luonde and Wikipedia. Stayt calls the sib MaKhwinde, records Vele Lambeho placing his sons Popi, Tshisebe, Raluswyelo (Tshivhase) and Bele at Nzhelele, Makonde, Phiphidi and Vuba, and lists the independent MaKhwinde chiefs of 1931 as Mbulahene Mphephu, Senthumule, . Recorded from the sources named on this entry; the wording here is Sibaya's own.

Families Tell This Differently

Families who carry this name tell parts of it differently. Each way it has been told is below.

Where This Comes From

Written down by
  • Luonde.co.za - Brief History; Ngomalungundu (community heritage site), accessed 2026-09-05, luonde.co.za — https://luonde.co.za/brief-history/ and https://luonde.co.za/brief-history/ngomalungundu
  • Tshimangadzo Nemaheni (University of Mpumalanga), The Vhambedzi origin and the expansion of Zimbabwe stone building tradition south of the Vhembe River, 2021, New Contree vol. 86, article 27, DOI 10.4102/nc.v86i0.27 — https://newcontree.org.za/index.php/nc/article/view/27
  • Nthambeleni Charles Ṋetshisaulu (University of Venda), The Role Played by Nicknames and Totems in the Development of Tshivenḓa Surnames, 2025 — https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/EHASS20256715.pdf
  • Hugh A. Stayt, The Bavenda, 1931 — https://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/59437
  • Wikipedia contributors, Venda Kingdom (Wikipedia article), accessed 2026-09-05, Wikimedia Foundation — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venda_Kingdom

Recorded Alongside

  • Dzivhani Also recorded among the Vhavenda.
  • Kwinḓa Also recorded among the Vhavenda.
  • Lambani Also recorded among the Vhavenda.
  • Luvhimbi Also recorded among the Vhavenda.
  • Makuya Also recorded among the Vhavenda.
  • Manenzhe Also recorded among the Vhavenda.

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