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Nkwana Clan — History & Meaning
Pedi clan · Sepedi
Totem Crocodile (Kwena / Nkwena). The Bankwana belong to the Bakwena crocodile-totem grouping.
History & origin
Bankwana is a Northern Sotho/Bapedi clan within the Bakwena (crocodile) totemic stream of the Sotho-Tswana peoples. Like other Bakwena offshoots, the lineage traces to the dispersal of crocodile-totem groups across the interior plateau and into present-day Limpopo and Mpumalanga, where they became part of the cluster of communities under and around the Pedi paramountcy in the Sekhukhune region. The surname Nkwana/Nkoana are variant renderings of the same root and are often treated as kindred. They are documented among the recognised traditional communities of the Sekhukhuneland area.
Associated surnames
Surnames that share this clan: Nkoana, Kwena, Koena.
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.