Mbare, Harare
Coordinates: 17°51′34″S 31°02′49″E / 17.85944°S 31.04694°E
Mbare is a high-density, southern suburb of Harare, Zimbabwe.
It was the first high-density suburb (township), being established in 1907. At that time, it was located near the city cemetery, sewage works, and abattoir. It was originally called Harare (pronounced Ha-rah-reh) Township, a name later on used for the capital city itself. Harare is a corruption of Havarari, meaning 'They never sleep' and this was the name given to the Zezuru Chief of this northeastern part of Zimbabwe, a Chief Harava.
Mbare (formerly Harare) started to expand in about 1907 when the white settlers built a town called Salisbury, and thus created an influx of people coming from Mozambique, Zambia, and Malawi looking for employment. The phenomenon gave rise to urban development, but real growth was accelerated when Mbare moved from where Cold Storage Commission is today to its present location. The first council houses built were popularly known as Kaytor ("Old bricks"). The colonial term for these kinds of suburbs was the locations, very similar to housing projects in the USA. The area was largely populated by migrant workers while the local workforce preferred to maintain their rural homes (reserved places) and came to the city seasonally. During the 1940s there was a big shortage of workers as described in D.Sean Bott's Labour in colonial Zimbabwe. The council built Matapi flats and hostels to accommodate local male workers. They would work for a few days at a time and then return to their families in the rural areas. Today those flats are occupied by married couples.
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