Impi is a Nguni word meaning war or combat and by association any body of men gathered for war, for example impi ya masosha is a term denoting an army. Impi were formed from regiments (amabutho) from large militarised homesteads (amakhanda). In English impi is often used to refer to a Zulu regiment, which is called an ibutho in Zulu, or the army of the Zulu Kingdom.
