Chaka is the most famous novel by the writer Thomas Mofolo of Lesotho. Written in Sotho, it is a mythic retelling of the story of the rise and fall of the Zulu emperor-king Shaka. It was named one of the twelve best works of African literature of the 20th century by a panel organized by Ali Mazrui. The book has been translated into English on two separate occasions. Originally translated by F. H. Dutton, it was first published in 1931 by Oxford University Press. In 1981 it was published in Heinemann's African Writers Series.