Biography

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I think wikipedia should add more context in the way that they decided the next king and scenarios when the kings son was killed. 138.199.118.82 (talk) 20:40, 19 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Yes 197.184.177.43 (talk) 14:56, 23 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

For the cited source for the invention of modification/creation of spear and pg #

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Was doing some independant research, figured finding the source link and pg numb. would help improve the page. Please someone with more knowledge than I incorporate this into the page. Thanks for your time :)

Link to Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/zulukings0000robe_n0e0/page/42/mode/2up?view=theater

pg number: 43 2001:56A:F8CE:2800:34CD:F068:E443:6BD3 (talk) 01:56, 30 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Requested Move: Shaka → King Shaka Zulu

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I propose renaming this article for clarity. The current title “Shaka” is ambiguous: in Zulu it means “the,” and modern global usage (especially in Hawai‘i and the U.S.) most often associates “Shaka” with the Hawaiian shaka hand gesture, not the Zulu king. Renaming to "King Shaka Zulu" would be more precise and historically accurate. The shorter title could instead serve as a disambiguation page, pointing to both the Zulu king and the Hawaiian gesture. This would reduce confusion, improve search relevance, and align with Wikipedia’s guidelines on WP:PRECISE and WP:DISAMBIG. Ranak Jahan (talk) 04:48, 8 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]

We do not normally include a royal title for kings.
I would support a move to Shaka Zulu. SergeWoodzing (talk) 08:34, 20 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]
"modern global usage (especially in Hawai‘i and the U.S.)" Citation needed. This 51 year old American has never heard of the word shaka being applied to any hand gesture. I have, however, heard of this king. --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 14:41, 22 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]
See Shaka sign, a gesture you may know as the "hang loose" hand gesture. It's extremely prevalent in Hawaii, less so on the mainland. Of course this is also why we use sources, and not our own experience, to make such decisions. So the real question is what name is he best known by in English-language sources. Beeblebrox Beebletalks 19:13, 22 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]
That is important, as usual, but it is also very important that the word "shaka" isn't even a name in his native language, meaning only "the". SergeWoodzing (talk) 01:48, 23 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]
We aren't writing in his native language. We are writing in English. If "Shaka" is the most common word used as a name for him in English, that is what we should use. --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 11:33, 24 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]
You did notice that I asked for a citation, right? --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 11:34, 24 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks all for the feedback. I’m withdrawing “King Shaka Zulu” per WP:NCROY (we generally don’t include “King” in titles) and proposing instead a move from Shaka → Shaka Zulu with Shaka as a disambiguation page.
Evidence for the target name “Shaka Zulu” (examples to cite):
1. Encyclopædia Britannica: article title “Shaka Zulu”.
2. Oxford Reference / OUP: entries titled “Shaka Zulu.”
3. South African History Online: page title “Shaka Zulu.”
These help on COMMONNAME and support the comment favoring “Shaka Zulu.”
Proposed outcome: Move Shaka → Shaka Zulu. Ranak Jahan (talk) 11:03, 25 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]