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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 .
[8] [9] It was ultimately retained as the national anthem, though "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika", a Xhosa language song that was used by the anti-apartheid movement, was also introduced and adopted as a second national anthem of equal standing. [10] "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" was composed by a Methodist school teacher named Enoch Sontonga in 1897.
In 1973, having used "Nkosi Sikeleli Africa" for over 9 years, it was decided that new lyrics set to the tune of "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" would be needed for Zambia's national anthem. A national competition was held for the new words. However, none of the entries were deemed good enough to be used in full for the anthem.
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.
"Mungu ibariki Afrika" used the tune to "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" with a Swahili translation of the words. It is not known who composed the lyrics, but it is known that it was Samuel Mqhayi and Enoch Sontonga who created the early versions used by the African National Congress. [2]
Mqhayi added seven stanzas to Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika which was originally written by Enoch Sontonga in 1927. [6] His autobiography is titled UMqhayi waseNtab'ozuko (Mqhayi of Mount Glory). [7] He wrote Utopia, UDon Jadu in 1929. [8] Mqhayi was known as ‘Imbongi yakwaGompo’ (the poet of Gompo) and later ‘Imbongi yesizwe’ (the poet of the ...
The Dubes are credited with making the song "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" popular. [3] It became part of the South African national anthem after Ohlange Institute's choir used it. The choir played it at the South African Native National Congress meeting in 1912. It was sung after the closing prayer, and in 1925 would be adopted as the official ...
Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, the composer of the French national anthem "La Marseillaise", sings it for the first time. The anthem is one of the earliest to be adopted by a modern state, in 1795. Most nation states have an anthem, defined as "a song, as of praise, devotion, or patriotism"; most anthems are either marches or hymns in style. A song or hymn can become a national anthem under ...