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Maalo. (tshiVenda). A raised clay floor.

MAANJIEHUIS. From the Dutch, meaning "small mat house". Name applied during the latter half of the nineteenth century to Khoikhoi hemispherical mat dwellings.

MADANAKAI. (Indian). Kannada word for a type of bracket figure found on temples of Karnataka.
Maguvha. (tshiVenda). The perimeter walls of a domestic unit.

MAHADVARA. (Indian). Great door; a monumental entrance.

MAHAMANDAPA. (Indian). A large mandapa, usually with many pillars, preceding the central shrine area.

MAHASTUPA. (Indian). A great or large stupa.

MAHAVIHARA. (Indian). Great vihara, a large Buddhist monastic establishment, usually having a number of smaller monastic units.Mahlomo. (sePedi). A timber rafter, also used to denote the whole roof frame

MAKHOLO. (tshiVenda). Generic Venda term used to denote all forms of wall decoration, painted or sculpted.

MANDALA. (Indian). A circular diagram; a type of yantra. A Mandala can serve as the basis for the ground plan of a building, as an aid to visualization during meditation, as a magical or symbolic offering, and in other capacities. Used in all Indic religions.

MANDAPA. (Indian). The hall or porch-like area, usually pillared, in a religious structure. A mandapa may be attached to the shrine area directly, or may precede a transitional space, such as an antechamber, before the shrine, or may be completely detached from the portion of the temple that contains the shrine. It may also be entirely enclosed, partially enclosed, or open without walls.
MANDIR. (Indian). A type of temple.

MANSARDDAK. (Afrikaans). See under MANSARD ROOF.

MANSARD ROOF. Named after Francois Mansard, it is a roof with a double slope, the lower part being longer and steeper than the upper. In the USA a gambrel roof is incorrectly referred to as a mansard roof. (Afrikaans: mansarddak).

MANSE. A parsonage house, often part of a Presbyterian or a Methodist church complex. (Afrikaans: pastorie).

Maribele. (seTswana). The eaves or roof overhang. MARSEILLEPAN. (Afrikaans). See under MARSEILLE’S TILE.

MARSEILLES TILE. Flat, overlapping and corrugated clay roof tiles, originally imported from Marseilles, popular during the early years of the twentieth century. (Afrikaans: Marseillepan).

MASONRY. Stone, and the craft of stone wall building, including the preparation and the fixing of the stones. (Afrikaans: klipmesselwerk).

MASTAKA. (Indian). The “head” or crowning elements of a Hindu temple tower.

MATABELE. Shona adaptation of the noun amaNdebele. This was the name given by the Sotho/Tswana to the amaKhumalo, a Nguni group who, under the leadership of Mzilikazi, moved out of northern Zululand in 1822 and eventually settled down in western Zimbabwe in 1837. The word stems from the Tswana root tebele meaning a plunderer or a stranger. The Matabele should not be mistaken with other Ndebele groups of the central highveld region.

MATHA. (Indian). An Indian monastery or cloister.

Mathudi. (sePedi). A verandah.

MAT SHELTERS. Temporary shelters used by KhoiSan migrant pastoralists and hunter gatherers in the central Cape region. They consisted of a grass mat arched into a barrel vault and pegged down at either end by two sticks. A second mat was placed upright in a semi-circle behind the mat vault, thus creating a wind break. Under certain circumstances either mat could be used independently of the other to provide an overnight shelter for travellers.

MATTING. The use of grass or reed matting in the process of dwelling construction in southern Africa appears to have bean limited to KhoiSan and Nguni groups. The former are known to have used reed matting as well as animal skins as part of a dismountable and reusable system of transportable shelters. The latter used grass matting in conjunction with thatching as part of a more permanent technology of grass hut building. (Afrikaans: dekgrasmatwerk).
Mavhona. (tshiVenda). The gap between the drum wall and the roof structure above. This is usually retained for ventilation purposes.
Mavu. (tshiVenda). ). Clay wall plaster, often used together with cow-dung.
Mbalelo. (tshiVenda). The saplings used to either bind the grass thatch at the apex, or to connect horizontally the inner core of upright posts inside a wall.

MEERVOUDIGE WOONEENHEID. (Afrikaans). See under DOMESTIC UNIT.

MEDHI. (Indian). The berm of a stupa.

MFECANE. Nguni term meaning literally "the scattering of a people". It refers to a period of internecine warfare which took place in southern Africa between 1822 and 1837. See also DIFAQANE.

MFENGU. Collective name for the Nguni-speaking groups, mostly originating from the Zululand area, who fled into the southern Transkei and Ciskei regions between 1822 and 1837. The name, meaning beggars or, perhaps more kindly, homeless wanderers, was applied to them by the Xhosa upon whose lands they eventually settled. They are also more popularly known as the Fingo, this being an anglicisation of the noun amaMfengu.

MIHRAB. (Muslim). A niche located in the wall of a mosque, showing the direction of Mekka towards which Muslims direct their prayers. It also serves as an acoustic device which allows the muezzin to project his voice to all parts of the building.

MIDDELSTYL. (Afrikaans). See under CENTRE POST.

MINARET. (Muslim). Tower built in or near a mosque complex, from which the muezzin calls the faithful to prayer.

MINBAR. (Muslim). A raised pulpit accessed via a short set of steps, sometimes with a canopy over.

Modi. (sePedi). Thongs binding the grass apex.

Mogaolo. (sePedi). Internal shelf or seat.

Mojako. (sePedi). Doorway.

Mokatako. (seTswana). Small raised verandah, or verandah seat running the outside perimeter of the dwelling.

Mophako. (seTswana). Used to denote a roof timber spanning from one verandah post to the next, supporting the roof structure.

MORTICE. Common term in carpentry used to signify the socket in a piece of timber made to receive a tenon. See also TENON. (Afrikaans: tapgat).

MOREWOOD'S TILES. Roof tiles comprised of small sheets of iron, fluted at both ends, similar in appearance to zinc roofing.

MOSQUE. (Muslim). The mosque is fundamentally an enclosure for religious devotion, and the focal point for the brotherhood of Islam.

Moteko. (seTswana). The thatched roof cover.

Moto. (sePedi). Generic term for a wall.

Motoana. (sePedi). Seat on an external wall.

MOULDING. A continuous projection or groove used as decoration or as a means of throwing off water drips. (Afrikaans: lys).

MPONDO. Nguni-speaking group originating from the coastal region of the north-eastern Transkei. They are more correctly known as the amaMpondo but have also been known to white settlers as the Pondos.

MPONDOMISE. Nguni-speaking group inhabiting the Qumbu district of central Transkei. They are more correctly known as the amaMpondomise.

MUDI. (tshiVenda). Term used to denote the homestead of a commoner.

Muhamgammowa. (tshiVenda). A doorway, or door opening.

MUKHA MANDAPA. (Indian). The front hall or porch of a temple.

MULLION. Also called a Monial, Munnion or a Muntin. Division between the lights of a window or screen. (Afrikaans: tussenstyl).

MUSANDA. (tshiVenda). Term used to denote the homestead or settlement of a chief.

Mutende. (tshiVenda). The inner residential space of a dwelling.

Mutovhori. (tshiVenda). The timber finial, which acts as the focal point for the roof structure.

MUURKAS. (Afrikaans). From the Dutch, meaning a wall chest. Term used to denote a built-in wall cupboard in a Cape Dutch dwelling.

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