Motshodi or Mochudi was kgosi of the Kwena tribe. He was preceded by his father Kgabo II and succeeded by his grandson Motswasele I.
Motshodi | |
|---|---|
| Died | Phuthadikobo (later Motshodi) |
| Title | Kgosi of the Bakwena |
| Predecessor | Kgabo II |
| Successor | Motswasele I |
| Children | Legojane |
| Father | Kgabo II |
Motshodi was the son of Kgabo II, kgosi of the Bakwena.[1][2][3] Motshodi succeeded his father as kgosi, with historian Isaac Schapera saying this happened c. 1740.[2] According to Schapera, Motshodi led the Bakwena to Odi (now the Kgatleng District), Mosweu, and Phuthadikobo.[2] The Bangwaketse and Bangwato may have split from the Bakwena during Motshodi's reign.[2][4] Schapera suggests that the Bangwaketse split while they were in Mosweu and the Bangwato split toward the end of Motshodi's reign.[2] It is disputed as to whether Kgabo II or Motshodi led the Bakwena into present-day Botswana.[1][4]
Motshodi's son and heir, Legojane, died within Motshodi's lifetime. Motshodi reportedly lived well into old age, and Legojane's son Motswasele assisted Motshodi in his later years.[5] According to Schapera, Motshodi died at Phuthadikobo c. 1770 and was buried under a mopipi tree, and the location was renamed from Puthadikobo to Motshodi in his honour.[6] Motshodi was succeeded as kgosi by Motswasele.[1][5]
According to history professor Leonard Ngcongco, Kgabo and Motshodi lived in the seventeenth century rather than the eighteenth.[7] Because Motshodi was succeeded by his grandson, some Motswana genealogies have confused Motshodi as the elder brother of Legojane rather than his father.[8] Motshodi has also been written as Mochudi. According to Schapera, Motshodi was regarded by future generations as "a good chief".[5]
Notes
edit- ^ a b c Williamson 1977, p. 8.
- ^ a b c d e Schapera 1980, p. 83.
- ^ Okihiro 1976, p. 51.
- ^ a b Otlogetswe 2015, p. 265.
- ^ a b c Schapera 1980, p. 84.
- ^ Schapera 1980, pp. 83–84.
- ^ Ngcongco 1979, p. 37.
- ^ Okihiro 1976, pp. 49–51.
References
edit- Ngcongco, Leonard D. (1979). "Origins of the Tswana". Pula: Botswana Journal of African Studies. 1 (2): 21–46. ISSN 0256-2316.
- Okihiro, Gary Y. (1976). "Genealogical Research in Molepolole: A Report on Methodology". Botswana Notes and Records. 8: 47–62. ISSN 0525-5090. JSTOR 40979457.
- Otlogetswe, Thapelo J. (2015). "Treatment of Spelling Variants in Setswana Monolingual Dictionaries". Lexikos. 25. doi:10.5788/25-1-1299.
- Schapera, Isaac (1980). "Notes on the Early History of the Kwena (Bakwena-bagaSechele)". Botswana Notes and Records. 12: 83–87. ISSN 0525-5090. JSTOR 40980796.
- Williamson, David (1977). Burke's Royal Families of the World. Vol. II: Africa & the Middle East. Burke's Peerage. ISBN 978-0-85011-029-6.