Toponymic commemoration is not for one sex

The gender politics of place renaming in Harare

Bibliographic Data

ID6030488
AuthorsZvinashe Mamvura (0000-0002-7856-918X, ,, corresponding author), Itai Muwati (,), Davie E Mutasa (0000-0002-3375-6125, ,)
Year2018
Volume16
Issue4
Pages429-443
Publication date2018-10-02
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrican Identities (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1472-5843 • E-ISSN: 1472-5851
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14725843.2018.1474086
OpenAlexW2804116613
LanguageEN
Citations received17
References cited14

This article adds to discussions on gender and collective memory. During the war, the nationalist movement was generally gender inclusive. This collective discourse was driven by the need for forming a united front against colonialism. However, this inclusive aspect ceased to exist in the post-independence because post-colonial policies were sexist. After the attainment of independence, the government made attempts to commemorate the war through an extensive place renaming process, among other efforts. Through analysing the place renaming process, this article interrogates the government’s commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment when it consciously ignores other fronts in which women are marginalised. However, the place renaming process in Zimbabwe shows a nation which is imagined and invented along patriarchal discourses. This article analyses the renaming of the built environment, paying particular attention to streets and buildings in Harare because much of the renaming was done on these two components of the humanly constructed environment. The role of place names as components of the cityscape merits scholarly interrogation because they are neither politically neutral nor innocent. Place names, being part of a political regime’s assemblage of symbols of power, usually further the interests of the politically powerful in the society

Cityscape · Colonialism · Democracy · Government (linguistics · Independence (probability theory · Nationalism · Political science · Politics · Power (physics · Sociology · African history and culture studies · African Sexualities and LGBTQ+ Issues · African studies and sociopolitical issues · Gender Studies · Law

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