Legendary author laid to rest

Dr Titus Maumela, one of most published Tshivenda writers, was laid to rest in the Maumela cemetery at Mangodi over the weekend.

The funeral service, attended by family, friends and many community members, took place at the local Presbyterian Church in Vhufuli outside Thohoyandou.

Everyone hailed Dr Maumela as a loving, strict person whose legacy should be carried on.

On behalf of the family, Judge Tshifhiwa Maumela of the North Gauteng High Court said they were proud of his achievements. "He wrote his books for the whole nation and therefore we are happy to share his legacy with the entire nation,” said the judge. According to him, Dr Maumela led the nation to value its culture, language and tradition.

He said he taught the family the meaning of family in the African sense and not merely in the European sense. “All of us in the country need to protect his legacy,” said Judge Maumela.

Dr Maumela was inaugurated president of Mudzi in 2011. He wrote the first Tshivenda novel, Elelwani, which was later adapted into a film. He died on Christmas Day at the age of 91 after a long illness.

During his lifetime, he wrote a total of 62 books. They consist of 18 novels, eight dramas, eight short stories, one essay, three folk tales, and 13 grammar books as well as 11 unpublished works.

In 1998, the University of Venda awarded him an honorary doctorate for the promotion of the Tshivenda language.

He belonged to the Mphaphuli dynasty, now led by Thovhele Gole Mphaphuli, and was the great-great-grandson of  Chief Makwarela Mphaphuli.

He was the first-born son of Mphephu Frans Maumela Mphaphuli and his wife Masindi Muthathe Sidogi Maumela.

Date:09 January 2015

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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