Over a four-hundred-year period in central Mozambique and eastern Zimbabwe, the Ndau actively crafted their own identity and gave it meaning. Amid the continuities and changes of centuries, the Ndau forged a sense of identity that has come to resemble a mixed pot. Today Ndauness is present throughout the region, but it is neither prominent nor particularly striking to the casual observer. A closer look at the present reveals influential legacies from the past that linger in this corner of southeast Africa. The multiple meanings inherent in cultural rememberings of Ndau history demonstrate the intricate nature of histories and identities. Elders preserve historical memories and use them either to support or to suppress ethnic identification. The Ndau have reconstructed memories and oral traditions to address contemporary realities, and the recent war between Renamo and the government in Mozambique has strongly influenced histories and relationships on both sides of the border. My investigation of Ndau history since the sixteenth century reveals that neither the pressures of colonialism nor the politics of nationalism created a sense of being Ndau. Evidence shows that Ndauness, while not reflecting a deep primordial allegiance, was shaped as an ongoing practice in the precolonial period.