They became patriarchs of the founding fathers of Bakgatla which also gave birth to Northern Basotho which in turn gave birth to different Northern clans with their dialects like BaPedi, Batlokwa, Babirwa, etc., and others ended up in intermarriage with other tribes they moved next to and mingled with like Swatis, Vendas, Tsongas, and Ngunis.

In some places, these Northern Basotho's Sotho was diluted by the influence of the tribes they found in the area, they moved into and lived alongside.

Some of the Northern Basotho have a common denominator of "apa" (meaning talk) with Vendas; I mean, Balovedu, BaGubu, and Babirwa of Bobirwa in the southern part of Botswana near the Zimbabwean border along the Shashe river and with its dialect spoken on the other side of the border of Botswana in Zimbabwe.

There are more than 40 Babirwa surnames in South Africa, which include Sebone, Malema, Makhura, Makwati, Makhurane, Maphala, Nare, Tau, Tlou-Serope, Mmamadi, Legong (Lehong), Mangale, Taueatswala, Molefe, Mogano, Jibula (Tjibula) (Muhanu), Machete, Lehomo, Raphahlelo, Raseokgo (Sebola), Phooko, Ramalepe, Boikanyo, Selema, Morerwa (Murerwa), Makgatho, Maruatona, Monekwe (Monengwe), Madema Morebeng (Phosa) and many more.

Villages include Mathathane, Motlhabaneng, Tsetsebjwe, Kobojango, Bobonong, Molalatau, Tobane, Mabolwe, Semolale, Lepokole, Zanzibar, Moletemane, Sefophe and Lentswelemoriti.

[2] A study showed a substantial reduction in natural land cover between 1970 and 2010, combined with a significant increase in population.

[4] In 2011, it was reported that the government had approved the establishment of service centers in Tsetsebjwe, Mathathane, and Gobojango, as well as other large infrastructure development projects such as road improvements, bridges, and electrification.

This may have been caused by drought, which forced livestock to travel long distances to find grazing and water, making them vulnerable to rustlers.

When Babirwa moved into the area that is today known as Gwanda, it was inhabited by Jahunda (Kalanga dialect) speaking people and a group of Ndebele who moved southward from the northern side of precolonial Matabeleland South Province which they invaded under their leader Mzilikazi, who came from Transvaal, South Africa, by way of Southern Botswana, running away from the Boers in Transvaal after running away from Shaka in Natal.

There is a thin line between Sebirwa, SeGubu, Setlhokwa, Selobedu, and other Northern Sotho dialects that use "apa" (talk) and "boswa" for "pap" (maize porridge stable food) because these languages are related languages with Venda words as common denominators, and speakers of these share surnames like Malema, Mafela, Moedi, Mahomela, and Mokoena.

That is why today, some Sothos use Ndlovu, Nyathi, Sibanda, Moyo, Dube, and Mdlongwa surnames instead of their surnames, which patriarchs still use even though it is not in their identity document, but many Northern Sotho patriarchs still use their South African surnames like Maphala, Malema, Sephuma, Mafela, Phalantwa, Molwantwa, Sephuma, Sephodi, Makgalema, Moedi, Sehata,Tjibula, Makushu, Mahumela, Madumetja, Makhura, Makwati, Maimela, Manamela, Pheta, Mokone, Mokwena, Marishane.

Sebirwa or Birwa, the language spoken by the Babirwa people, is a dialect of Northern Sotho, along with Bididi, Lobedu, Kgaga, Hananwa, Pedi, Phalaborwa, Pulana, Tshwapong, Kutswe, Phahladira, Pai, Kopa, Kubu, etc.