Khami and the Venda in the Mapungubwe Landscape

Archaeological research at Khami Ruins National Monument reveals significant differences between the 15th–16th century Khami occupation and the later Venda period. Unlike the 19th-century Venda capitals, which housed around 350 people in dense chiefdoms, the earlier Khami phase supported thousands living on cattle posts and agricultural villages under more consistent rainfall. The study also documents a gradual cultural shift, with the Venda-speaking Machete chiefdom acculturating into Sotho-speaking groups by the time Mapungubwe was discovered in the 1930s. This work sheds light on the dynamic social and environmental changes in the Mapungubwe landscape, combining archaeological evidence with historical analysis to reconstruct past settlement patterns and cultural transitions.

Huffman, T. N., & du Piesanie, J. (2011). Khami and the Venda in the Mapungubwe Landscape. Journal of African Archaeology, 9(2), 189–206. https://doi.org/10.3213/2191-5784-10197