iNgwenyama (, pl. ''tiNgewnyama'', also ''Ingwenyama'' or ''Inkosi'') is the title of the male

monarch A monarch () is a head of stateWebster's II New College Dictionary. "Monarch". Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest ...

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 ...

. In English, the title is sometimes translated as King of Eswatini. The iNgwenyama reigns together with the Ndlovukazi, a spiritual leadership position held by the iNgwenyama's mother or another female royal of high status.Kuper, Hilda (1980

947 Year 947 (Roman numerals, CMXLVII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – A Principality of Hungary, Hungarian army led by Grand Prince Taksony of Hungary, Taksony campaign ...

. ''An African Aristocracy. Rank Among the Swazi'' acsimile reprint Africana Publishing Company for the International African Institute. The current king is

Mswati III Mswati III (born Makhosetive Dlamini; 19 April 1968) is the ''Ngwenyama'' (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family. He heads an absolute monarchy, as he has veto power over all branches of government and is constitutionally immune fr ...

, who has reigned since 1986. The annual budget allocated to the King and the royal household amounts to $61 million.

Etymology

''Ingwenyama'' means "Lion" in Swazi but in an honorific sense (akin to Arabic equivalent word, ''

sayyid ''Sayyid'' is an honorific title of Hasanid and Husaynid lineage, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and Ali's sons Hasan ibn Ali, Hasan and Husayn ibn Ali, Husayn. The title may also refer ...

''), as opposed to ''libhubesi'', used to refer to lions in the literal sense. The title is sometimes written ''Ingwenyama'', ''iNgwenyama'', or ''ingweinyama'', with the prefix ''i-'' (plural ''ti-'', tiNgweniyama), meaning "the king".

Powers

Economic

The iNgweinyama owns all

mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid substance with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2011): Mi ...

s in Eswatini except for those owned by private corporations. The other aspects of mining are also controlled by the iNgwenyama.

Administrative

The iNgwenyama can appoint 20 (out of a maximum of 31) senators in the

Senate of Eswatini The Senate of Eswatini is the Upper house, upper chamber of the country's Bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Swaziland, Parliament. The Senate may debate or pass a bill, with the exception of a "money bill", which must first be introduced in ...

and 10 (out of a maximum of 76) members of the

House of Assembly of Eswatini The House of Assembly of Eswatini is the lower chamber of the country's bicameral Parliament. The Assembly may debate and pass bills, although as the country is an absolute monarchy, the role of the legislature is mostly advisory. History The ...

. The iNgwenyama is also the head of the judicial system and the Chairman of the

Swazi National Council Swazi may refer to: * Swazi people, a people of southeastern Africa * Swazi language * Eswatini Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked count ...

. Local officials that are responsible for the governance of Eswatini are either appointed by the iNgwenyama, or their superiors are.

Cultural

Other powers of the iNgwenyama include allocating land, initiating national gatherings, disbursing wealth, organizing social events, and taking part in rituals. The iNgwenyama has royal praise singers called

griot A griot (; ; Manding languages, Manding: or (in N'Ko script, N'Ko: , or in French spelling); also spelt Djali; or / ; ) is a West African historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet, and/or musician. Griots are masters of communicatin ...

s. The griots appear at public events and sing about the virtues of the Ngwenyama. Any offence against the Ngwenyama or

Ndlovukati Ndlovukati (, pl. ''tiNdlovukati''; also spelled Indlovukazi) is the siSwati language, siSwati title for the female monarch of Eswatini. The title is given preferentially to the mother of the reigning List of Kings of Swaziland, king (styled the ...

or their property is considered a heinous crime. It is illegal to wear the ruler's clothes, use their medicines, or be within a certain distance of them. Adultery with the Ndlovukati is treason, and the Ngwenyama can exile any citizen for any reason.

Religious importance

During the

Incwala Incwala () is the main ritual of kingship in the Eswatini, Kingdom of Eswatini. This is a national event that takes place during the summer solstice. The main participant in incwala is the King of Eswatini; when there is no king there is no incw ...

, the Ngwenyama splits the sacred water to the east and west to signal the end of the last year. On the second day of the Incwala, youths gather special branches and place them in a special sanctuary. The Ngwenyama then sings with his subjects in the sanctuary, thus reaffirming their loyalty. Later the Ngwenyama lights a fire. The purpose of the festival is to secure the prosperity of the Kingdom of Eswatini. The Ngwenyama is also sometimes believed to be the cause of violent

rain Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...

History

Sobhuza II Sobhuza II (; also known as Nkhotfotjeni, Mona; 22 July 1899 – 21 August 1982) was ''Ngwenyama'' (King) of Swaziland (now Eswatini) for 82 years and 254 days, the longest verifiable reign of any monarch in recorded history. Sobhuza was bo ...

played an important role in the modernization of Eswatini. In the past, the royalist

Imbokodvo National Movement The Imbokodvo National Movement (INM) was a political party in Swaziland (in 2018 renamed to Eswatini) that existed from 1964 until 1973, when political parties were banned. The party was formed by the Swazi National Council, which was the adviso ...

consistently won the vast majority of seats while political parties were legal, thus gaining total control over the government. iNgwenyama

compromised the traditional tinkundla system, replacing parts of the system with modern Eswatini institutions.

Succession

The iNgwenyama is traditionally succeeded by one of his male sons. The heir is chosen based on the virtue of his mother.

References

{{Authority control Swazi monarchy Politics of Eswatini Swazi words and phrases Titles of national or ethnic leadership