Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, after the capital Harare, with a population of 676,000 (UN Humanitarian Co-ordinator, Zimbabwe, 2005), now estimated on 707,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439km south-west of Harare (), and is the capital of Matabeleland North.

General information

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The name "Bulawayo" comes from the Ndebele word Kwabulawayo meaning 'place of the persecuted one' or 'place of slaughter'. It is also known as the 'City of Kings', 'Skies' or 'Bluez'. The city is on the site of the kraal of Lobengula, king of the Ndebele, who first founded Bulawayo as a settlement in 1871, about 15km south-east of the present city centre. In 1881 the king moved the settlement further north, to an area roughly corresponding with Bulawayo's modern northern suburbs. During the 1893 Matabele War the advance of British troops led the king to burn his capital and flee north, and troops occupied the town, which was declared to be under the rule of the British South Africa Company on 4 November 1894.

During the 1896 Matabele Revolt Bulawayo was besieged by Ndebele forces for several months, and a laager was established there for defensive purposes.

Bulawayo has a history of being the business capital of Zimbabwe and is home to the National Railways of Zimbabwe because of its strategic position near Botswana and South Africa. It's also the nearest large city to Hwange National Park and the Victoria Falls.

The liberation struggle for the independence of Zimbabwe was started in Bulawayo and today it is also home to the strongest opposition to the Mugabe dictatorship. It is a welcoming multicultural city with residents able to speak at least three languages. It is home also to two large football teams which are of two ethnic groups, Highlanders and Zimbabwe Saints.

Bulawayo became a city in 1943. Before the collapse of Zimbabwe's rail infrastructure, Bulawayo was an important transport hub, providing rail links between Botswana, South Africa and Zambia and promoting the city's development as a major industrial centre. The city still contains much of what remains of Zimbabwe's heavy industry and food processing capability. The Matopo National Park and Hwange National Park are nearby.

Bulawayo is home to the Queens Sports Club and Bulawayo Athletic Club, two of the three grounds in Zimbabwe where test match cricket has been played.

Other facilities include:

• National Museum and Archives of Zimbabwe
• Natural History Museum
• National Gallery, Bulawayo
• National University of Science and Technology, NUST
• Bulawayo Polytechnic College

The majority of the population of Bulawayo belong to the Ndebele ethnic and language group, who descend from 19th century Zulu immigrants and are a minority in Zimbabwe.

A resident or native of Bulawayo is known as a Bluezian.

Town twinning

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• Aberdeen, UK

See also

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• Matabeleland North
• Matabeleland South

References

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• Bridger, P., House, M., and others, 1973. Encyclopaedia Rhodesia, College Press, Salisbury, Rhodesia.

External links

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• A map of Bulawayo
• List of colonial settlers and traders in Bulawayo, 1895
• More on contemporary Bulawayo

Cities in Zimbabwe | Provinces of Zimbabwe

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