National anthem of South Africa

National anthem of South Africa
National Anthem of South Africa
Flag of South Africa.svg
The National Flag of South Africa.

National anthem of
 South Africa

Also known as Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika (First segment)
English: God Bless Africa
Die Stem van Suid-Afrika (Second segment)
English: The Call of South Africa
Lyrics Enoch Sontonga, 1897
C.J. Langenhoven, 1918
Music Enoch Sontonga, 1897
Martin Linius de Villiers, 1921
Adopted 1997
Music sample
National Anthem of South Africa

Since 1997, the South African national anthem has been a hybrid song combining new English lyrics with extracts of the hymn "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" and the former anthem "Die Stem van Suid-Afrika" (The Call of South Africa). The fact that it shifts and ends in a different key, a feature it shares with the Italian national anthem,[1] makes it compositionally unusual. The lyrics employ the five most widely spoken of South Africa's eleven official languages - Xhosa (first stanza, first two lines), Zulu (first stanza, last two lines), Sesotho (second stanza), Afrikaans (third stanza) and English (final stanza).

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika was composed in 1897 by Enoch Sontonga, a Methodist school teacher. It was originally sung as a church hymn but later became an act of political defiance against the apartheid government. Die Stem van Suid-Afrika is a poem written by C.J. Langenhoven in 1918 and was set to music by the Reverend Marthinus Lourens de Villiers in 1921.[2] Die Stem was the co-national anthem[3] with God Save the King/Queen from 1936 to 1957, when it became the sole national anthem until 1995. The South African government under Nelson Mandela adopted both songs as national anthems from 1995 until they were merged in 1997 to form the current anthem.

Contents

Lyrics

Language Lyrics English translation
Xhosa Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika
Maluphakanyisw' uphondo lwayo,
God bless Africa
Raise high its glory
Zulu Yizwa imithandazo yethu,
Nkosi sikelela, thina lusapho lwayo.
Hear our prayers
God bless us, her children
Sotho Morena boloka setjhaba sa heso,
O fedise dintwa le matshwenyeho,
O se boloke, O se boloke setjhaba sa heso,
Setjhaba sa, South Afrika — South Afrika.
God, we ask You to protect our nation
Intervene and end all conflicts
Protect us, protect our nation,
our nation, South Africa — South Africa.
Afrikaans Uit die blou van onse hemel,
Uit die diepte van ons see,
Oor ons ewige gebergtes,
Waar die kranse antwoord gee,
From the blue of our heaven,
From the depth of our sea,
Over our everlasting mountains,
Where the echoing cliffs resound,
English Sounds the call to come together,
And united we shall stand,
Let us live and strive for freedom
In South Africa our land.

References

  1. ^ http://nationalanthems.me/south-africa-die-stem-van-suid-afrika-nkosi-sikelel-iafrika/
  2. ^ "SA National Anthem History". http://www.info.gov.za/aboutgovt/symbols/anthem.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-21. 
  3. ^ www.thepresidency.gov national Anthem

See also

Notes

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • National symbols of South Africa — Since unification in 1910, South Africa has used a range of national symbols to identify the country: coats of arms, official seals, flags, national anthems, and floral, bird, animal, and other emblems. Contents 1 Coats of arms 2 Seals 3 Flags… …   Wikipedia

  • National Anthem of South Ossetia — The National Anthem of South Ossetia (Ossetic: Республикæ Хуссар Ирыстоны Паддзахадон Гимн, Respublikæ Hussar Irystony Paddzahadon Gimn) was adopted on May 5, 1995. The lyrics were written by Totraz Kokaev (Тотраз Кокаев), and the music was… …   Wikipedia

  • National anthem — For the Radiohead song, see The National Anthem. Patriotic song redirects here. For songs known by the title Patriotic Song and similar, see The Patriotic Song. Instrumental performance of the Russian national anthem at the 2010 Moscow Victory… …   Wikipedia

  • South Africa — <p></p> <p></p> Introduction ::South Africa <p></p> Background: <p></p> Dutch traders landed at the southern tip of modern day South Africa in 1652 and established a stopover point on the spice… …   The World Factbook

  • South Africa — This article is about the modern country. For other uses, see South Africa (disambiguation). Republic of South Africa …   Wikipedia

  • National anthem of the Transvaal — Volkslied van Transvaal English: The national anthem of the Transvaal anthem of South African Republic The national anthem of the Transvaal (Afrikaans and …   Wikipedia

  • National anthem of the Orange Free State — Vrystaatse Volkslied English: The national anthem of the Orange Free State anthem of Orange Free State Adop …   Wikipedia

  • National Party (South Africa) — National Party of South Africa Nasionale Party van Suid Afrika The National Party s final logo The National Party s Flag …   Wikipedia

  • South Africa — Republic of, a country in S Africa; member of the Commonwealth of Nations until 1961. 42,327,458; 472,000 sq. mi. (1,222,480 sq. km). Capitals: Pretoria and Cape Town. Formerly, Union of South Africa. * * * South Africa Introduction South Africa… …   Universalium

  • Chapter One of the Constitution of South Africa — Chapter 1 of the Constitution of South Africa, entitled Founding Provisions and containing six sections, enshrines in the constitution key national principles, defines the country s flag and national anthem, and specifies the official languages… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”