The Bakwena or Bakoena ("those who venerate the

crocodile Crocodiles (family (biology), family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large, semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term "crocodile" is sometimes used more loosely to include ...

") are a large Sotho-Tswana clan in

Southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost region of Africa. No definition is agreed upon, but some groupings include the United Nations geoscheme for Africa, United Nations geoscheme, the intergovernmental Southern African Development Community, and ...

of the southern Bantu group. They can be found in different parts of southern Africa such as

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and

Eswatini Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where i ...

. "Kwena" is a Sotho/Tswana/Sepedi word meaning "

", the crocodile is also their totem ( seboko).

Genealogy and history

Earliest ancestor of the Kwena clan, Kwena, was a grandson of Masilo I, the King of Bahurutse clan around 1360 CE. Kwena and his followers settled at Tebang, now called

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

. Around 1500 CE, Bakwena started spreading in the region, from the Lekwa River to Kalahari (Botswana) until settling at Ntsoanatsatsi (mythical origin land of the Sotho-Tswana people) with the Bafokeng around 1580 CE.

Early leaders

* Kwena (dates unknown) * Phokotsea (dates unknown) * Kgabo I (late 17th century) * Tebele (late 17th or early 18th century)

Basotho line

* first leader was Kgosi Nape. * Napo begot and was succeeded by his son Motebang * Motebang begot and was succeeded by his son Molemo * Molemo begot and was succeeded by his son Tsoloane le Tsolo * Tsholoane begot and was succeeded by his son Monaheng * Monaheng begot and was succeeded by his son Motloang * Motloang begot and was succeeded by his son Peete * Doc Mokoteli begot and was succeeded by his son Mokhachane * Mokhachane begot and was succeeded by his son Moshoeshoe and it continues to the royal line of Lesotho.

Batswana line

Kgabo II led a small group of Bakwena and crossed the Madikwe River and founded a tribe on the lands of the Bakgatla tribe (whose totem was the blue monkey) which they drove away, modern day Botswana. As the result of a split, several tribes like the Ngwato and Ngwaketse. * Kgabo II (until c. 1740) * Motshodi (c. 1740 – c. 1770) *

Motswasele I Motswasele I (died ) was ''kgosi'' of the Kwena tribe from c. 1770 until his death c. 1790. He was preceded by his grandfather Motshodi and succeeded by his son Seitlhamo. Life Motswasele was born in the early 18th century, between 1715 and 17 ...

(c. 1770 – c. 1785) * Seitlhamo (late 18th century) * Legwale (late 18th century) * Maleke (early 19th century; regent) * Tshosa (early 19th century; regent) * Motswasele II (c. 1807–1821) * Sechele I (c. 1829–1892) * Sebele I (1892–1911) * Sechele II (1911–1918) * Sebele II (1918–1931) * Kgari Sechele II (1931–1962) * Neale Sechele (1963–1970) * Bonewamang Padi Sechele (1970–1978; appointed as the Tribal Authority) * Mack Sechele (1978–1986; regent) * Moithali Sechele II (1986–1996; regent) * Kgosikwena Sebele (1996–2002; regent) * Kgari Sechele III (2002–present)

Notes

References

* * * * Sotho-Tswana peoples in South Africa {{Africa-ethno-group-stub