The Swazi are a BantuNguni-speaking people in southeastern Africa, chiefly in Swaziland and South Africa. The term bakaNgwane (Ngwane's people) is still used as an alternative to emaSwati, to refer to the Swazi people. They originated in South-east Africa in the 15th century, moved into southern Mozambique, and then into present-day Swaziland (sometimes called kaNgwane or Eswatini), a small, land-locked country, bordered by South Africa and by Mozambique. The first king of modern Swaziland was Ngwane III (1745-1780). In the 1840s, a substantial portion of Swazi territory was ceded to the Transvaal Boers, instead the remaining territory of Swaziland, and their king, Mswati II, were recognized by both the Transvaal and by Britain. The Pretoria Convention for the Settlement of the Transvaal in 1881 recognized the independence of Swaziland and defined its boundaries. Britain claimed authority over Swaziland in 1903, and independence was regained in 1968. Today, the number of Swazis in South Africa is slight larger than that of Swazis in Swaziland, which is approximately 1.1 million people.
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