Changing names
Dear Editor, I HAVE seen a lot of posts demanding renaming of residential areas and towns and roads.
This exercise was done nationwide in 1964 to 1970. In Lusaka, Chelston is actually Chakunkula, the name which a school in the area is named after, Fairview is Maluba. Northmead is Mutambe while Olympia is Chiwalamabwe.
Livingstone was supposed to be renamed and was supposed to be called Maraamba or Linda after a local headman. A strong campaign by the local people refused to change the name and successfully ensured it stayed Livingstone.
The Victoria Falls are officially Mosi O Tunya. However, there is some dissent locally because even Mosi O Tunya is not Toka Leya but actually Lozi!
The Toka Leya name is actually Shungu Mutitima and the Mosi O Tunya came from the Lozi guides who took David Livingstone to the great falls. Chuma, a Lozi man was to stay faithful to David Livingstone even up to death.
But a while raft of towns changed names Garneton became Itimpi (It was a separate town until Kitwe convinced the government to absorb it in 1971).
Chelston became Chakunkula (It was a separate town until Lusaka annexed it in the late 1960s)
Bancroft became Chililabombwe, Fort Jameson became Chipata, Fort Rosebery became Mansa and Abercon became Mbala.
As for roads basically, every road in every town and city was renamed. Anyone getting a 1960s map can attest to this.
Some of the roads are named after people who died after Independence. Omelo Mumba was a UNIP official who was murdered in inter party violence after Independence. Maina Soko was a lady gunned down by the rebel Rhodesian Army as she paddled down the Zambezi River.
Sometimes old names were kept because the colonialists were considered to have positive qualities.
Sir Alfred Beit from his massive fortune built roads, hospitals, bridges and even government buildings all over Zambia and Zimbabwe.
His Trust to this day from that fortune has scholarships, runs hospitals etc. For instance the old Kafue and Chirundu bridges were built by him. Hence the Beit Roads one finds tucked away in corners.
Others were kept for idiosyncratic reasons Birdcage Walk has a counterpart in London. It is said the Zambian town planner behind renaming roads kept the name because it reminded him of his time in London.
Sometimes the strange foreign names have a reason. Los Angeles, Addis Ababa, Dunshanbe and Kamloops are sister cities of Lusaka. Los Angeles and Kamloops both donated traffic lights, street lights and stocked libraries in Lusaka.
So before we call for renaming etc let us do some research.
BRIAN MULENGA.