The San – Tjwao people of Zimbabwe

The Tjwao/Tshwao people are found mainly in Tsholotsho, south-western Zimbabwe. They are part of the bigger San and Khoi groups that have traversed Southern Africa dating back to the stone and iron ages.

The specific areas where they are found are Tsholotsho (Maganwini, Sinkente, Phumula and Dombo Masili) and Bulilima-Mangwe area of Siwowo. They are also known as Basarwa/Basagwa. The Ndebele people call them abaThwa.

The Tjwao people were primarily hunter-gatherers. They occupied most of the land that was later designated as game reserves with the advent of colonialism. As a result, they were forcibly moved out of areas like the current Hwange National Park.  The laws banning the hunting of animals also forced them to turn to subsistence farming which they were ill equipped to engage in as they did not possess any cattle rearing or farming skills.

The Tjwao language is under risk of extinction as slightly above 10 people over 60 years speak the language fluently out of a modest population of about 3 000 people who speak the diluted language. It is believed that the Doma people found in the Kanyemba region in the north of Zimbabwe are part of the original San communities like the Tjwao, that have occupied this land for thousands of years.

Evidence of San presence in modern Zimbabwe dating back to thousands of years is found in the rock paintings in mountains and caves all over the country, with the best views at Matobo hills in south-western Zimbabwe. The Matobo Hills in south-western Zimbabwe, have over 3 000 sites of rock paintings adorning its many rock shelters which have earned it a place on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2003.

Efforts are being made to preserve the Tjwao language with its formal documentation having begun in 2012. Organisations like Tsoro O Tso Trust are championing the rights and developmental discourse for the Tjwao communities.
The name Tsholotsho is a corruption of the original Tjwao name Tsoro o tso meaning “head of an elephant”.

The area had a large elephant population hunted by the Tjwao people. The elephant is part of the emblem of the Tsholotsho Rural District Council.
Over the years, the Tjwao have intermarried with and/or been assimilated by their neighboring Kalanga, Nyubi, Birwa and Ndebele communities and some no longer identify with their original Tjwao identity.

The government of Zimbabwe in late 2021 began issuing birth certificates and national IDs to the majority undocumented Tjwao people who have been stateless for decades.
Furthermore, in late 2021, the Zimbabwe government has made efforts to include the San or Tjwao citizens to enlist into the Zimbabwe National Army, Republic Police, Prisons and Correctional Services and other public entities including schools and universities. (source: @RealMzalaTom)