What’s in a name?
Later the town was named Umhlali, the Zulu name for the Monkey Orange tree, which grew abundantly along the banks of the Umhlali River.
Before Umhlali became a village, it was used by King Shaka as one of his military barracks, one at Umhlali and another at Shakaskraal during the consolidation of his Zulu empire.
The barracks were called Mdumezulu (“where the heavens thunder”). At the time, the Zulu King took up permanent residence at Dukuza (now KwaDukuza) following the death of his mother, Princess Nandi of the Elangeni clan.
She gave Shaka the name ‘Ilembe’ (The Spear) to praise the ‘wisdom and courage’ of her son.
The formal village of Umhlali was later established by British and Scottish Byrne settlers in 1850 as a magisterial post, with Mr CH Williams the first resident magistrate.
For a few years the settlement was known as Williamstown.
Later it was named Umhlali, the Zulu name for the Monkey Orange tree, which grew abundantly along the banks of the Umhlali River.
It also means “the place of waiting”, because travellers would have to wait on the banks before crossing the river on a northward journey.
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