kingdom · Central and Southern Africa
Kingdom of Maravi
Origins
According to tradition, the Phiri clan migrated from the Luba lands of the Congo basin and settled south-west of Lake Malawi in the late 15th century. Their leader took the title Kalonga and set up his capital at Mankhamba, near the lake. Related chiefs spread out to found the Kingdom of Undi and the Kingdom of Lundu.
Rule and society
The Kalonga ruled a loose confederacy of chiefs bound by kinship and tribute. Wealth came from iron working, cloth and especially ivory, sold to the Portuguese and Swahili on the Zambezi. Religion centred on the rain shrines of the high god Chisumphi and on the Nyau masked societies. Kalonga Masula in the early 17th century extended Maravi power towards the coast and in 1608 sent warriors to help the Portuguese support the Mutapa ruler against rebels.
Decline and legacy
After Masula's death the confederacy loosened, and by the early 18th century the Kalonga, Undi and Lundu ruled separately. Ngoni and Yao incursions in the 19th century completed the break-up. The name Maravi survives in modern Malawi.
Lineage
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kingdom of Maravi. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-maravi
- MLA
- “Kingdom of Maravi.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-maravi. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Kingdom of Maravi.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-maravi.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kingdom of Maravi’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-maravi (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻