Wedza

Wedza (or Hwedza) is a district in the province of Mashonaland East, Zimbabwe. It is located about 50 kilometres (31 mi) south of Marondera, and 127 kilometres (79 mi) south of Harare. The area was sparsely inhabited by the Mbire people of the Soko Clan as early inhabitants who mined iron in the Hwedza hills during the 9th-12th centuries which means "a place of wealth". A village of Wedza was established in 1910 by Colonial administration. Gold, beryl, nickel and tungsten were mined in the hills around the village but deposits were too small to make any mining viable.

The word Wedza literally translates to "The lighting of the sun",or " Twilight and myth has it that the word is derived from the location of the ancient town, which was found on the other side of a deep forest.Pre-Colonial era Wedza was called Mbire. It was a very important area because of the iron which was mined in the Wedza mountain. The iron was important for both wealth and ceremonial purposes. The iron was fashioned into hoes, axes and other farming implements which people especially young man in need of a wife required. A hoe especially was central part of the marriage ceremony. A young man could not obtain a wife if he could not present his future mother -in-law with one during the roora ceremony.

Hwedza is well connected to other towns by tarred roads. Rusunzwe and Gandamasungo, the famous Wedza mountain range, are some of the most outstanding geographical features in Wedza. Hwedza is between and its boundaries are the Save River on the west and Ruzave (Ruzawi) river on the east. Other rivers include Nyamidzi, Mhare, Nyamhembe and Chineyi. Hwedza is climatically divided into two halves, upper Hwedza from St Barnabas Chisasike to Hwedza center onwards which is cooler and has average to high rainfall; and lower Hwedza which is from Mukamba through Goneso and Zviyambe East and West small scale farming area (formerly known as purchase areas) which experiences warmer to hot temperatures and lower rainfall. Even the crops grown in the two parts differ significantly, cotton and sorghum/millet do better in lower Hwedza, while in upper Hwedza the same crops would not yield much.

Hwedza is also known for mazhanje/mashuku (a wild fruit harvested between late October into early December).

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