Mkuze, also named Mkhuze or uMkhuze is a small town in Northern KwaZulu-Natal,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. It is located approximately 350 km from the city of

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

. It is along the

N2 road This is a list of roads designated N2. Roads entries are sorted in alphabetical order by country. * N2 (Bangladesh), connects Dhaka and Tamabil via Sylhet * N2 road (Belgium), connects Brussels and Maastricht * National Road 2 (Democratic Repub ...

en route to

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ...

, Eswatini and

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

; between the

Mkuze River Mkuze, also named Mkhuze or uMkhuze is a small town in Northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is located approximately 350 km from the city of Durban. It is along the N2 road en route to Johannesburg, Eswatini and Mozambique; between the ...

and Intaba Yemikhovu (Ghost Mountain). Mkuze is some distance from other small towns such as

Hluhluwe Hluhluwe ( ; ) is a small town in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is situated between iSimangaliso Wetland Park and Hluhluwe–iMfolozi Park on the banks of the Hluhluwe River. Hluhluwe is situated on the elephant coast, an area known fo ...

(50 km),

Nongoma Nongoma is a town in Zululand, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is the seat of the Nongoma Local Municipality. It is situated 300 km north of Durban and 56 km from Ulundi; it is surrounded by the Ngome Forest. It is a busy market town ...

(76 km), Pongola (65 km), and Jozini (25 km). Mkuze is the seat of Umkhanyakude District Municipality.

Population and culture

About 50,000 people reside in the small town of Mkuze. As part of the KwaZulu-Natal province, the two official languages of Mkuze (which means "Chorus master" in

isiZulu Zulu (), or isiZulu as an endonym, is a Southern Bantu language of the Nguni branch spoken in Southern Africa. It is the language of the Zulu people, with about 12 million native speakers, who primarily inhabit the province of KwaZulu-Natal of ...

) are Zulu and English.

Mkuze (uMkhuze) Game Reserve

Mkuze Game Reserve has a large variety of natural habitats: from the eastern slopes of the

Lebombo Mountains The Lebombo Mountains, also called Lubombo Mountains ( pt, Montes Libombos), are an , narrow range of mountains in Southern Africa. They stretch from Hluhluwe in KwaZulu-Natal in the south to Punda Maria in the Limpopo Province in South Africa in ...

along its eastern boundary, to broad stretches of acacia savannah, swamps and a variety of woodlands and riverine forest. A rare type of sand forest also occurs in the reserve. It is renowned among ornithologists, with more than 420 different bird species on record. The

curves along the Mkuze Game Reserve's northern and eastern borders with a stretch of fig forest along its banks.

Fish eagle A sea eagle or fish eagle (also called erne or ern, mostly in reference to the white-tailed eagle) is any of the birds of prey in the genus ''Haliaeetus'' in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. Taxonomy and evolution The genus ''Haliaeetus'' ...

s swoop over the pans, snatching prey spotted from their perches in the fever trees.

Ghost Mountain

Mkuze is overlooked by Ghost Mountain, previously a historic battle field. This mountain is said to be the tombs of the previous Chiefs of the mountain and, according to legend, it has been the scene of a number of bloody fights. It is said that Intaba Yemikhovu is where the King Dingaan was killed by the King

Shaka Shaka kaSenzangakhona ( – 22 September 1828), also known as Shaka Zulu () and Sigidi kaSenzangakhona, was the king of the Zulu Kingdom from 1816 to 1828. One of the most influential monarchs of the Zulu, he ordered wide-reaching reforms that ...

's son Mhlophekazi who was known as Mbophe's son, even though it is believed he died near Tugela river. With its dramatic silhouette, in the shape of an old woman or witch head, it is not difficult to understand why the mountain is said to be haunted and to be the theatre of paranormal activities.

Economy

Mkuze is a farming community with concentrated

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus '' Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalk ...

crops as well as isolated forest plantations. In the 1980s cotton farming was a source of employment to villages around the town. With cotton processing firms ceasing to operate, some of these farms have been converted to

cattle farming A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...

. The Mkuze Game Reserve, Ghost Mountain Inn, and Engen Service Station (with a Wimpy) are the flagships of Mkuze.Mduduzi Myeni, deputy principal of Ezimbidleni Primary Mkuze is on the freight railway line which runs from Eswatini to

. Its airfield is approximated to be 2.5 km long. Mkuze Taxi Association provides transportation to Johannesburg, Durban,

Empangeni Empangeni is a city in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is approximately 157 kilometres north of Durban, in hilly countryside, overlooking a flat coastal plain and the major harbour town of Richards Bay 16 kilometres away. The N2 freeway runs east ...

and many other destinations. Villagers commute mainly by vans (or bakkies) to and from town. There are several game parks such as the Thanda Private Game Reserve, Nsubane Pongola Transfrontier Conservation Area and the

Phinda Resource Reserve Phinda Private Game Reserve (), formerly known as Phinda Resource Reserve, is a private game reserve situated in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, between the Mkuze Game Reserve and the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park. Designated in 1991, Phinda is ...

close to Mkuze. Visitors to Mkuze can also find accommodation at Banghoek, Msunduze, Baobab (Bayala) and Inyala Game Lodge.

Communities

There are not many townhouses or other accommodation available in Mkuze. Communities that Mkuze supports includes villages at Ubombo, Enkukhwini, Tshaneni, Mhlekazi, Enhlohlela, Ezimbidleni (of which the furthest is approximately 35 km), as well as the surrounding farms. Umlingo Village is a low cost housing development in town. The most popular senior secondary schools around the town includes Mmemezi High (Mhlekazi), Mdolomba (Ezimbidleni), Mangwazana (Ubombo), Madlaka High (Tshaneni), Sandlasenkosi (Tshaneni) and Mthwazi High which is in town. Popular primary schools includes Tshaneni (Tshaneni), Sambulo (Tshaneni), Ezimbidleni (Ezimbidleni), Mhlekazi (Mhlekazi), Bhekimkhonto (Mhlekazi South of Mpungamlilo), Velakukhanya (Ezimbidleni West or Ehlanzeni), and Mkuze Primary School is the only multi-racial school in town. The Mkuze Country Club provides examination facilities for long distance education institutions such as the

University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA), known colloquially as Unisa, is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, U ...

(Unisa).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mkuze, Kwazulu-Natal Populated places in the Jozini Local Municipality