A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

A joint Zimbabwe–Malawi heritage nomination names Zezuru, Korekore, Karanga, Ndau and Manyika among Shona mbira communities, located in Mashonaland, Masvingo, Manicaland and the Midlands.

The UNESCO listing describes making and playing finger-plucked lamellophones in social and ceremonial settings, with teaching and use changing over time. The nomination identifies makers, performers and educators, and notes that Tonga, Venda and Kalanga also practise mbira, so the tradition is shared rather than exclusively Shona.

Zimbabwe's Museum of Human Sciences presents nineteenth-century Shona life through research-based homestead displays and stresses diversity and adaptation to change. These displays model the past; the nomination shows present learning through family apprenticeship alongside formal tuition.

Mbira making and performanceFamily apprenticeship and formal tuitionInternal communities including Zezuru, Korekore, Karanga, Ndau and Manyika
01

History & identity

No origin date or descent narrative is established in the selected sources.

02

Sources & representation

UNESCO nomination file 01541 (PDF pp. 2, 5–6), UNESCO element page, and NMMZ ethnography gallery text.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Art of crafting and playing Mbira/Sansi: joint nomination file 01541

    · n.d.

    Selected bibliography; community/state nomination file.

  2. 02
  3. 03

    Northern Region, Harare

    · n.d.

    Selected bibliography; national museum gallery description.

Language & cultural connections

Source-supported language and cultural connections have not yet been compiled for this profile.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. UNESCO nomination file (PDF)Art of crafting and playing Mbira/Sansi: joint nomination file 01541Research access: 2026-10-06
  2. UNESCO intangible heritage listingArt of crafting and playing Mbira/Sansi, the finger-plucking traditional musical instrument in Malawi and Zimbabwe - UNESCO Intangible Cultural HeritageResearch access: 2026-10-06
  3. National museum web pageNorthern Region, Harare - NMMZ - National Museums & Monuments of ZimbabweResearch access: 2026-10-06

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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