Danangombe

    Not to be confused with Danangombe Hill near Mutare

Danangombe (formerly Dhlo-Dhlo or Ndlo Dlo, alternative spellings Dananombe and Danan'ombe) is a Zimbabwean archaeological site, about eighty kilometres from Gweru, in the direction of Bulawayo and about 35 kilometres south of the highway. It is not often visited due to the poor quality roads in the area. The remains on the site resemble those of Khami. Nearby are the smaller ruins at Naletale, that were occupied at the same time. The original name used by the Kalanga people is unknown as Dhlo-Dhlo (the name in Sindebele) was applied to the site later and it is unclear whether the name of Danangombe retains elements of the original name.

Danan(g)ombe (together with Khami and Naletale) was one of the centres of the Rozvi culture, which had succeeded the Torwa.

Layout

The site consists of a ruined town dating from the 17th or 18th centuries AD, and therefore probably occupied just after the abandonment of the site at Khami. The town plan follows a similar layout to Khami but is on a smaller scale. It is therefore a deliberate attempt to sustain the society and culture that had been established at Khami. The most extensive foundations are on the highest ground and it appears that all the dwellings were constructed using walls of wood-reinforced mud, as all traces of these have been lost. The site was destroyed in the 1830s when the Matabele arrived in the area. See Mapungubwe, Great Zimbabwe, and Khami.

Sources and external links

• Zimbabwe Khami Ruins from Bulawayo1872
• Zimbabwe History from Africanet
• Zimbabwe Information from Solomons Guide
• K. Chikuse Effects of Ndebele raids on Shona power (proving the synonymity of Dhlodhlo and Danangombe)