Tag: Magoleng wa Selepe

Happy 2025 !

On By Dr. Y.In Great Moments10 Comments

Dear Readers, 2025 is upon us!

May 2025 be a book you will author. Write your chapters of joy, love, and extraordinary adventures in it!

The top 6 posts of the year 2024 are listed below with two old-time favorites, “Love Poem for my Country” by Sandile Dikeni took first place as the most read post of the year, while another favorite poem “My Name” by Magoleng wa Selepe took second place. The surprise of the year was the post “The Lebombo Bone: The Oldest Mathematical Artifact in the World,” which reinforces the rich archaeological and scientific parts of the African continent which is the cradle of humanity. Other surprises were the songs ‘Asimbonanga‘ on freedom from apartheid by South African Johnny Clegg, and ‘Yamore‘ on love by the Malian great Salif Keïta and Cape-Verdean diva Cesaria Evora. We wish you a full and amazing new year, rich in blessings and greatness. Like the vibrant petals of this flower, may your year be vibrant, bringing in new fruits! As always, like Agostinho Neto said, “A luta continua … a vitória é certa!”

  1. ‘Love Poem for my Country’ by Sandile Dikeni
  2. ‘My Name’ by Magoleng wa Selepe
  3.  The Lebombo Bone: The Oldest Mathematical Artifact in the World
  4. ‘Asimbonanga’ by Johnny Clegg
  5. “Yamore” by Salif Keita and Cesaria Evora
  6. ‘A ma Mère / To my Mother’ by Camara Laye

‘My Name’ by Magoleng wa Selepe

On By Dr. Y.In Great Art, Great Literature, Great MomentsLeave a comment
Colonization in Africa
Village school in French West Africa (AOF) 1900s – French assimilationism (Louis Sonolet, Source: http://exhibitions.nypl.org)

The poem ‘My Name‘ by Magoleng wa Selepe has touched many strong chords. It is the truth, and still rings true today. During colonial times, our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents were stripped of their names and identity: to go to school, they had to have a European name, and very often their own names were distorted because the European colonizer could not spell it properly. Depending on the origin of the colonizer, whether it was France, Great Britain, Germany, or Portugal, one ended up with a French, British, German, or Portuguese name. Enjoy !!!

Dr. Y.'s avatarAfrican Heritage

African Savanna

I just thought about what happened to our fathers, mothers, grandmothers, and grandfathers during colonial times: to go to school African children were forced by European missionaries to adopt a christian name such as John, Peter (Jean, Pierre), etc… as opposed to their good old African name Nomzimo, Makeba, Ndoumbe, Keïta, etc.  Thus many Africans who would have just worn the name ‘Ndoumbe Mpondo‘ or ‘Binlin Dadié‘ or ‘Um Nyobé‘ had to adopt a European name such as John + their own name, such that they became: John Ndoumbe Mpondo or Bernard Binlin Dadié or Ruben Um Nyobé.  To this day, the tradition has remained… most Africans would have three or four names: their family name, and their given name, plus the European first name and in some cases a European middle name as well.  The poem below entitled…

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Happy 2015!

On By Dr. Y.In Great MomentsLeave a comment

Fireworks
Fireworks

Precious readers, may the year 2015 be the year of all great conquests, achievements, success, and greatness. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all those who visited my blog, and to all future visitors. 2014 was a beautiful year: the number of subscribers on Afrolegends.com has tripled, the number of visitors on the blog has doubled, the article Burkina Faso was cited by TIME Magazine online, while the article La SAPE was cited by The Guardian, and many articles were reblogged on multiple sites. For 2015, I wish you wonders without borders, peace, grace, and love.

Happy 2015 (Illustration by Osee Tueam, for Dr. Y, Afrolegends.com)
Happy 2015 (Illustration by Osee Tueam, for Dr. Y, Afrolegends.com)

Here were the top posts of 2014. Keep trusting, reading, sharing, and liking.

1. Samori Toure: African leader and Resistant to French Imperialism
2. ‘Love Poem for My Country’ by Sandile Dikeni
3. ‘My Name’ by Magoleng wa Selepe
4. ‘Femme Noire/Black Woman’ by Leopold Sedar Senghor
5. The Ishango Bone: Craddle of Ancient Mathematics

‘My Name’ by Magoleng wa Selepe

On By Dr. Y.In Great Art, Great Civilizations59 Comments

African Savanna
African Savanna

I just thought about what happened to our fathers, mothers, grandmothers, and grandfathers during colonial times: to go to school African children were forced by European missionaries to adopt a christian name such as John, Peter (Jean, Pierre), etc… as opposed to their good old African name Nomzimo, Makeba, Ndoumbe, Keïta, etc.  Thus many Africans who would have just worn the name ‘Ndoumbe Mpondo‘ or ‘Binlin Dadié‘ or ‘Um Nyobé‘ had to adopt a European name such as John + their own name, such that they became: John Ndoumbe Mpondo or Bernard Binlin Dadié or Ruben Um Nyobé.  To this day, the tradition has remained… most Africans would have three or four names: their family name, and their given name, plus the European first name and in some cases a European middle name as well.  The poem below entitled ‘My name‘ by the South African poet Magoleng wa Selepe captures this very well.

My Name

Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa

Look what they have done to my name……..

the wonderful name of my great-great-grandmother

Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa

The burly bureaucrat was surprised

What he heard was music to his ears

‘Wat is daai, se nou weer?’

‘I am from Chief Daluxo Velayigodle of emalu podweni

And my name is Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa.’

Messia, help me !

My name is simple

And yet so meaningful

But to this man it is trash…..

He gives me a name

Convenient enough to answer his whim…..

I end up being

Maria…..

I…………..

Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa

by Magoleng wa Selepe