History - Introduction
The city was founded by the Ndebele king,
uMzilikazi kaMatshobana around 1840. In 1897, the new town of Bulawayo
acquired the status of municipality, Col. Harry White became the first
mayor, and in 1943, Bulawayo became a city. Bulawayo is also known as
the 'City of Kings', 'Bullies', 'Skies', or 'Bulliesberg'.
The name Bulawayo comes from the Sindebele word KoBulawayo meaning 'a
place where they are killed' and is imported from Nguniland which is a
place once occupied by the Khumalo people. Bulawayo has long been and is
still regarded as the second business capital of Zimbabwe after Harare
and is home to the National Railways of Zimbabwe because of its
strategic position near Botswana and South Africa. Bulawayo is the
second largest city in Zimbabwe. It is the nearest large city to Hwange
National Park, Matopo National Park and Victoria Falls.
