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Baphalane Clan — History & Meaning
Tswana clan · Setswana
Totem Phalane (red duiker), the animal from which the clan takes its name. (Their parent group, the Bakwena, has the kwena/crocodile.)
History & origin
The Baphalane are a subgroup of the Bakwena, itself a major Tswana division. They broke away from the Bakwena in the late 18th century and adopted the phalane (red duiker) as their distinguishing totem, taking the name Baphalane. Between roughly 1790 and 1820 they lived at Mmapela in Ndebele territory, and in about 1820 moved to Thokwe on the western bank of the Odi (Crocodile) River. The best-documented branch, the BaPhalane ba Ramokoka, settled in the Rustenburg district of the former Transvaal (now North West Province); they were on friendly terms with the Boers during the colonial period. Today the Baphalane ba Ramokoka number on the order of 120,000 across several villages, with their capital at Ramokokastad, and are well known for a long-running land claim.
Associated surnames
Surnames that share this clan: Ramokoka, Bakwena (parent group).
We publish the full diboko (clan praises) only once we can verify them against documented tradition — for this clan they are still being confirmed. If you can share an authoritative version, corrections are warmly welcomed.