The massacre(or Battle ) at Meyer's Drift is often referred to as the Battle of Intombi. The Zulu Word Intombi is then translated as Young maiden or girl. This however is incorrect, since the actual name of the river is Enthombe, The word comes from the stem -thombo ,which is a young seedling. This could refer to the fertile floodplain of the river, where the early inhabitants of the Enthombe valley used to grow their millet. Another meaning could come from the Zulu name of the Natal Wild Fig Tree, Ficus natalensis, known as umthombe, which grows along the river edge. Lastly it could refer to the ithombe, which is the place inside at the back of the hut, where the goats and calves are kept, and where puberty ceremonies are observed.