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" Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" (Xhosa pronunciation: [ŋkʼɔsi sikʼɛlɛl‿iafrikʼa], lit. ' Lord Bless Africa ' ) is a Christian hymn composed in 1897 by Enoch Sontonga , a Xhosa clergyman at a Methodist mission school near Johannesburg .
The South African government adopted both songs as dual national anthems in 1994, when they were performed at Nelson Mandela's inauguration. [11] For the 1995 Rugby World Cup, Morné du Plessis suggested that the Springboks learn all the words of "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika", and "they did so with great feeling", according to their instructor Anne ...
Enoch Mankayi Sontonga (c. 1873 – 18 April 1905) was a South African composer, who is best known for writing the Xhosa hymn "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" (English: "God Bless Africa"), which, in abbreviated version, has been sung as the first half of the national anthem of South Africa since 1994.
Today, "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" is part of the national anthem of South Africa. The formerly illegal lyrics—"Nkosi sikelela, thina lusapho lwayo"—are now often sung when "Weeping" is recorded or performed. In 1999, "Weeping" was voted "All-time favorite South African Song" by the readers of the South African Rock Encyclopedia. [4]
South Africa, where the song comes from, uses only some of the words, Zambia uses only the tune and other countries have now abandoned its use. [2] "Mungu ibariki Afrika" was inspired by the African National Congress's (ANC) use of "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" ("God Bless Africa") as its party song after its use at Ohlange High School. The ANC ...
Since 1997, the South African national anthem has been a hybrid song combining new English lyrics with extracts of "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" and the former state anthem "Die Stem van Suid-Afrika". For North and South Korea, the folk song Arirang is considered a shared anthem for both countries.
The 7- and 12-inch single versions ended instead with an excerpt from "Nkosi Sikelel iAfrika", a song which would later become South Africa's National Anthem. [30] [25] The German version of the song began and ended with "Nkosi Sikelel iAfrika". [25]
Although Boom Shaka was seen as apolitical in comparison to music of the apartheid era, they were still able to stir controversy in other ways. In 1997, the group caused controversy by creating and performing a kwaito version of the South African national anthem "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" at the South African Music Awards. Reactions to the ...