With the passing of Nelson Mandela on December 5, 2013, there is renewed interest in examining his life, his struggles, and his accomplishments. This is an opportunity for many who did not follow the story of the arc of his life to learn of the country from which he hailed.
The Rainbow Nation
A rainbow, with its displays of colors nestled side by side, produces a dazzling effect that mesmerizes onlookers. The beauty of a rainbow is that each color is vibrant on its own, yet together they create a stripped array where no one color diminishing the splendor of the others.
South Africa has taken on this moniker because of the ethnic and cultural diversity of its population. First coined by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, this term captures the vision of the country as one which celebrates its diversity and the freedoms enjoyed by its entire population since they held their first democratic elections in 1994. The multiethnicity found in this most southern nation of the African continent is reflected in the country’s constitution which recognizes eleven official languages.
Official Languages of South Africa
While English is the commonly used language of commerce in South Africa, these eleven languages have been officially recognized since the 1997 constitution. Despite its normalized use for commercial purposes, English is only the fifth most used language overall.
| Language | % Spoken | |
| Zulu | IsiZulu | 23.0% |
| Xhosa | IsiXhosa | 18.0% |
| Afrikaans | Afrikaans | 14.5% |
| Pedi | Sepedi | 9.2% |
| English | English | 8.6% |
| Tswana | Setswana | 8.3% |
| Sotho | Sesotho | 7.8% |
| Tshonga | Xitsonga | 4.4% |
| Swati | SiSwati | 2.5% |
| Venda | Tshivenda | 2.2% |
| Ndebele | IsiNdebele | 1.5% |
A Long and Tumultuous History
As captured in the title of Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, South Africa has endured racial oppression, the plundering of their natural resources, and wars throughout their long history. The end of apartheid, after many years of struggle, finally gave the majority a voice in the governing of their nation.
The “road to reconciliation” that followed sought to embrace the diversity of the nation by doing what they could to undo past injustices with efforts like those that were undertaken by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. They focused on three areas that would pave the way forward for the newly constructed society in the aftermath of apartheid: amnesty, reparations, and rehabilitation.
More Languages
The diversity of South Africa goes beyond its 11 official languages. Hundreds of thousands of South Africans speak many other languages that haven’t yet attained official status. It would not be surprising the someday see this already impressive list of official languages grow.