Luxury Game Reserve
Naming Naka
A Legacy Written 13.7 Billion Years Ago
Luxury Game Reserve
The horizon is ablaze. Slowly, the sun starts rising over the edge of the earth; red and orange melt into the savanna. Tall grasses shimmer, transformed into thin, fiery ears of gold. Majestic trees tower above them in proud, black silhouettes.
But his eyes aren’t on the sun.
He keeps his gaze fixed on the fading night around the enormous yellow ball. Barely breathing, he searches the regal dark as it softens into a delicate dawn. All he needs to see is a flicker, just the hint of the blessedly familiar light.
With a gasp, his eyes widen. Then, he spins around and sprints to the top of a hill just outside the village. Taking a deep breath, he blows the Phalaphala with all his strength.
The deep droning echoes across the savanna and through the mud huts below. People start pouring out of their doors, their voices replacing the echo of the Sable Horn as it fades. Their faces are lifted to the sky, eyes shining beneath the light of that special star.
Naka was greeting the sun. Winter was coming.
In the Southern Hemisphere, the Naka star is a herald of life and abundance. It sits at the tip of the Carina constellation, which is likely why the Sesotho and Setwana name translates to ‘Horn Star’. As the second brightest star in the sky, its consistent appearance each year has made it an important messenger to many southern African tribes.
Naka’s arrival below the equator signifies the start of summer and the rainy season. After many months of drought and barrenness, this star is often a very welcome sight. From November, the Horn Star’s presence each night promises the possibility of growth and prosperity.
However, its arrival isn’t traditionally the only important occurrence. Equally important is its heliacal rising at the end of its visit to the South. At this time, usually around late May or early June, Naka rises close to the sun just before sunrise. It announces the arrival of winter, and, therefore, the harvest.
Centuries ago, this event was so significant that many tribes had important traditions in place to ensure they didn’t miss it. In Venda tradition, the first person to see the
Horn Star at dawn would blow the Phalaphala, a ceremonial horn often used in important celebrations. Their reward for announcing the good news was an ox. In Sesotho culture, the chiefs would consult with their medicine men the day Naka appeared with the sun. The medicine men then used bone dice to predict the harvest’s abundance. These crops had to sustain the tribes through the winter.
To the /Xam Bushmen, Naka announced a different form of sustenance. When the star is at its highest in the sky, the ants start breeding, and their eggs and alates were an important food source to the Bushmen. This earned Naka another name: the ‘Ant-Egg Star’.
But the Southern Hemisphere isn’t the only place where Naka holds a position of prominence.
In the North, where it’s known as Canopus, it forms part of what used to be the Argo Navis constellation. This constellation represented the Argo, a great Greek ship gifted to the hero Jason during his quest for the Golden Fleece. In the 17th century, the Argo Navis was split into three: Vela (The Sail), Puppis (The Stern), and Carina (The Keel). Canopus forms the tip of the Keel and was likely named after the captain who rescued Helen of Troy after Paris abducted her.
Beyond Greek mythology, Canopus was also important to various Eastern and Middle-Eastern cultures. In Egypt, its low position through the thicker atmosphere gave it a fiercely red glow and earned it the name Kahi Nub or ‘Golden Earth’. Other cultures, such as the Bedouins and Chinese, used it for navigation since they couldn’t see the south celestial pole. The Chinese gave it yet another name: ‘The Old Man of the South’.
This star of many names is 65 times larger than Earth’s sun.
It burns 13,600 times brighter, and its light stretches across 310 lightyears to brighten our night sky today. Therefore, it’s no surprise that it inspired our lodge to honour it by taking its name.
The importance of Canopus stretches across the planet and beyond our universe. It’s one of the few remaining witnesses to cultures, traditions, and people from across the planet that have since faded into legend. It has led many lost travellers home and been the source of many celebrations.
While it’s the second brightest star in the universe, Canopus far outshines any other star in significance to us. Since Naka Lodge is in Limpopo, there was no question that this bushveld haven would take the African name. However, the owners’ Greek heritage links the lodge to the star’s Northern ties as well, bringing the two hemispheres together.
This is why we named Naka Lodge after such a brilliant celestial body. The lodge is as extraordinary as its eponym. Our dream is to reintroduce our guests to the legends and bring history back to life. Canopus has inspired many people for generations. We aspire to pay tribute to those generations by upholding the same values of life, prosperity, and harmony.
At Naka Lodge, we aim to create a serene environment where people can rediscover themselves beneath the ageless stars. With some of the darkest skies in the country, the grandeur of Canopus brings the night to life. While Searching for Canopus, we can lose ourselves in the majesty and mystery of the universe’s oldest residents.
Soak in Naka’s light as it bathes the lodge, the bushveld, and the spaces in between in beauty and history. It allows us the opportunity to reconnect with the past, embrace the present, and prepare for the future. Here, we can be shaped by nature in the radiance of the Southern Hemisphere’s most brilliant star.
