King’s KZN renaming call sparks debate

EXPERT OPINION

- SABELO NSELE [e-mail]

EXPERT opinion is divided over the proposed renaming of KwaZulu-Natal, announced last week by King Misuzulu kaZwelithini during the 147th commemoration of the Battle of Isandlwana.

The Zulu monarch has called for the province to be renamed KwaZulu, dropping the “Natal” component; a campaign that has drawn support from the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC).

Cultural expert Professor Sihawu Ngubane of the University of KwaZulu-Natal said renaming the province to KwaZulu is a sound idea in principle, but stressed that the proper parliamentary process must be followed.

“The name Natal is a colonial name that belongs to the oppressors. The National Assembly should deal with the matter,” said Ngubane.

He added that other provinces named purely on geographic descriptors, such as the Western and Eastern Cape and North West, should also be given proper names.