The Pedi are of Tswana origin and are descendants of the Kgatla () a Tswana speaking clan that migrated to , present-day Limpopo around the 1700s. The Pedi heartland is known as Sekhukhuneland, and is situated between the Olifants and Steelpoort River also known as the Lepelle and the Tubatse. The Pedi were the first of Sotho-Tswana peoples to be called Basotho, the name is derived from Swazi word which referred to their clothing style, the Pedi took the name with pride and other similar groups began to refer to themselves as Sothos