Isibaya’s weird and wonderful names explained

Mpiyakhe – Mpiyakhe Zungu is the leader of the Zungu family and his name loosely translated means “his war”. This makes sense because he has always wanted to make peace in the valley when his enemies have wanted war.

Mgijimi – When Mpiyakhe was turned into a zombie he was named Mgijimi which means “runner”. This is also apt because, as Ndlovu’s zombie, he was commanded to do errands.

Mbodla – Mbodla means a stray male cat. The type you would find in an alley and really avoid. On Isibaya, Mbodla is chief Bhekifa’s hit man.
Bhekifa – One of the new characters who has been installed as chief in the valley, Bhekifa means “inheritance” or “look out for your inheritance”. This is also no coincidence as Bhekifa inherited the throne of the Mabovu clan in valley after the former chief died.

S’bindi – Bhekifa’s cousin S’bindi made one appearance in the show and that was when he was killed. S’bindi means liver, or to have a lot of courage.

S’khaleni – Literally it means “in the space” but we reckon his name was inspired by DJ Cleo Eskhaleni.

Blade  – This name is pretty self-explanatory. Blade is the chief’s right-hand man and he makes sure that business is taken care of swiftly and efficiently with the precision of a sharp blade.

Zwelibanzi – Zwelibanzi loosely translated means there is a lot of land or the world is endless. This seems to be true for the son of the chief who has been overseas and has come back to a new world that is full of possibilities for him.

Ntandane – This name means an orphan. Ntandane lost the love of his life in a shooting and his world has been quite lonely since then – except when he’s with S’khaleni and Mawaya.

Mehl’emamba – This young man used to work with a witch doctor, Sunday Nkabinde, and his name Mehl’emamba means mamba eyes or snake eyes. Although he doesn’t really have snake-like eyes his character is eerie and lingers around.