Famous Zimbabwean People

Nick Price is a Zimbabwean golfer who was considered the best player in the world in the mid-1990s; he was ranked number one as per the Official World Golf Ranking. He has won three major championships including two PGA Championships. In 2003, Nick Price was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Canaan Banana was a Zimbabwean politician, theologian, and Methodist minister. In 1980, Banana became the first president of Zimbabwe, a position which he held until 1987. Ten years later, he made the headlines when he was involved in a highly publicized trial after being accused of being a homosexual. He served six months in prison after being convicted of sodomy.

Ian Smith was a politician who served as the prime minister of Rhodesia (today known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to 1979. Born to British immigrants in  the Southern Rhodesian Midlands, he was a controversial figure who personified “White Rhodesia.” While his detractors denounced him as "an unrepentant racist," his supporters hailed him as "a political visionary.” 

Alexander McCall Smith is a British-Zimbabwean writer best known for his The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of novels. A lawyer by qualification, he is a respected expert on medical law and bioethics. His books have sold over 40 million copies worldwide and have been translated into 46 languages. Also an amateur bassoonist, he co-founded The Really Terrible Orchestra.  

Zimbabwean politician Joshua Nkomo was founder and leader of ZAPU. He was incarcerated for a decade by white minority government of Rhodesia and following his release, ZAPU along with Robert Mugabe's ZANU contributed to the fall of that government. The two parties later merged to become ZANU–PF. Nkomo served as first Second Vice-President of Zimbabwe with Mugabe as President.

Abel Tendekayi Muzorewa was a Zimbabwean politician best remembered for his service as the Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia from 1 June 1979 to 18 April 1980. He also served as a bishop at the United Methodist Church (UMC).

Auxillia Mnangagwa is a Zimbabwean politician best known for her service in the Ministry of Manpower and Development. She achieved popularity when she became the Second Lady of Zimbabwe in 2014. Auxillia Mnangagwa is currently serving as the First Lady of her country. 

Ndabaningi Sithole was a Zimbabwean political leader best remembered for founding a militant organization called the Zimbabwe African National Union, which fought against the government of Rhodesia during the 1960s and 1970s. Ndabaningi Sithole was also one of the most prolific authors in Rhodesia; he published 12 books including a novel titled The Polygamist.

Robert Mugabe was a Zimbabwean revolutionary. He played a major role in the Rhodesian Bush War, which eventually led to the Lancaster House Agreement, resulting in the creation of the Republic of Zimbabwe. Subsequently, Mugabe served as the first prime minister of Zimbabwe and later as its president. A controversial figure, Mugabe is also often criticized for his tyrannical ways.

Roy Welensky was a Northern Rhodesian political leader who served as the Prime Minister of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland from 2 November 1956 to 31 December 1963. Roy Welensky also worked as a locomotive enginedriver.

Liberal Rhodesian politician Garfield Todd served as the prime minister of Southern Rhodesia. Born in New Zealand, he later moved to Southern Rhodesia as a Protestant missionary and also opened a clinic there. He lost his political power after his ministers opposed his policy of appeasing Black voters.

Sally Hayfron was the First Lady of Zimbabwe from 31 December 1987 to 27 January 1992. Commonly referred to as Amai (Mother) in Zimbabwe, Mugabe was the wife of Robert Mugabe, a revolutionary and one of the most influential politicians in the history of Zimbabwe. A trained teacher, Sally Hayfron established herself as a campaigner and political activist.

A well-known South African socialite and businesswoman, Hazel Crane once smuggled diamonds and worked at a strip club. She had also been a nurse. She was gunned down while traveling in her car to testify against Israeli mafia boss Lior Saat. Her interesting life later became public through her post-humous memoir.