National Anthems of Africa Trivia Quiz

Answer: Senegal

'Le Lion rouge' ('The Red Lion') is the national anthem of Senegal, adopted in 1960. Its lyrics were written by the poet Léopold Sédar Senghor, who became Senegal's first president when independence was declared later that year. The composer of the music, Herbert Pepper, also wrote the national anthem of the Central African Republic.

The opening lines translate into English as "Everyone strum your koras, strike the balafons". This evokes two traditional Senegalese musical instruments. The kora is a 21-stringed instrument with a gourd body and a long neck, while the balafon is a type of xylophone that uses gourds as resonators.

Answer: Botswana

The Setswana lyrics translate into English as:
"Blessed be this noble land
Gift to us from God's strong hand
Heritage our fathers left to us
May it always be at peace."

The music and words both came from Kgalemang Tumediso Motsete, who also submitted another song (whose name translates to 'Botswana, a Beautiful Country') to the competition to select the new anthem. 'Fatshe leno la rona' came in first, and 'Botswana Fatshe le Lentle' came second out of the seven finalists.

Answer: Mauritius

The poet Jean-Georges Prosper won a 1968 competition to choose the words for the new anthem. They were then set to music by the Mauritian composer Philippe Gentil. 'Motherland' was performed for the first time during the ceremony to announce independence. The ceremony started with the British flag being lowered as 'God Save the Queen' was played, then 'Motherland' was played as the new flag was hoisted. This was followed by the obligatory gunfire in salute.

Because Mauritian Creole (a French-based creole language) is the most common language used in daily life, and French is also widely spoken, the national anthem also has French lyrics that can be used. They start somewhat differently, with the first line specifically including one of the French names for the country: "Gloire à toi, Île Maurice".

Answer: Kenya

The first verse of 'Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu' (literally 'Oh God Our Strength') is translated into English as:
"O God of all creation
Bless this our land and nation
Justice be our shield and defender
May we dwell in unity
Peace and liberty
Plenty be found within our borders."

The lyrics were written in 1963 by a committee of five, using a traditional Bantu tune sung to children. They were originally written in Kiswahili, to make a point of the upcoming independence from the United Kingdom; an English version was subsequently produced. Part of the deliberation over selecting the most appropriate traditional music was finding something that would work well with both languages.

Answer: Seychelles

The title and lyrics are the Seychellois Creole version. There is also a French version, and the first verse is translated into English as:
"Seychelles, our only motherland
Where we live in harmony
Happiness, love and peace
We give thanks to God."

The 1993 Constitution of Seychelles called for the selection of a number of national emblems, including a new national anthem. The entry with words and music by David André and Georges Payet won. Each of them had made an individual submission, but the committee suggested that, since each of them had produced something promising, they might come up with the ideal anthem if they worked together. Apparently they did, and the anthem was performed for the first time on 18 June 1996.

This was the third anthem to be adopted following the declaration of independence from the United Kingdom. From 1976 until 1978 it was the French language 'En Avant' ('Forward'), which was replaced by the Seychellois Creole 'Fyer Seselwa' ('Be Proud Seychellois').

Answer: Sierra Leone

'High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free' has three verses, each ending with the phrase "Land that we love, our Sierra Leone." As Sierra Leone gained dominion status in 1961 (which was to lead to it becoming a republic in 1971), a new anthem was needed, and an open competition was held.

The winning entry has words by Clifford Nelson Fyle and music from John Akar. In 1991, the Constitution of Sierra Leone made it an explicit expectation that every citizen would respect the national anthem (implicitly by memorizing it and singing it patriotically).

Answer: Eswatini

The first verse of the Swazi national anthem is rendered in English as:
"O Lord our God, bestower of the blessings of the Swazi;
We give Thee thanks for all our good fortune;
We offer thanks and praise for our King
And for our fair land, its hills and rivers."

The process of selecting the new national anthem when what was then known as Swaziland (renamed in 2018 to Eswatini) gained independence from the United Kingdom was complex. In 1967, the anthem committee first asked for local writers to produce lyrics in siSwati, while also advertising in the United Kingdom for musicians who would be interested in providing the musical setting. Eventually they provided the musical applicants with two sets of lyrics, announcing that submissions could use either one, and musicians could make two submissions, one for each set of words; the winner was to be chosen from those finished pieces. Four submissions made the short list and were recorded to be used by the Cabinet to make the final selection. However, it was then decided that a live performance would give a better idea of suitability, so a school choir performed all four, and the winner was chosen. Its words were written by Andrease Enoke Fanyana Simelane, set to music by David Kenneth Rycroft

Answer: Tanzania

'Mungu Ibariki Africa', which uses a Swahili translation of the hymn written in 1897 by Enoch Sontonga, was adopted by Tanganyika on independence in 1961, and selected for use when that nation and Zanzibar combined to form Tanzania in 1964. The lyrics in the question can be translated as:
"God bless Africa
Bless its leaders
Wisdom, unity and peace
These are our shields
Africa and its people."

Enoch Sontonga, a Methodist Xhosa clergyman, was working at a mission school near Johannesburg when he wrote what is now the first verse and the chorus of 'Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika' as a hymn to use with Xhosa students. Its use spread to other school choirs, including one co-founded by the first president of the South African Native National Congress (later to be known as the African National congress, or ANC). He selected it to be sung at the closing of a 1912 Congress meeting; by 1925 it had become their official closing anthem.

Answer: Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe was one of the countries that adapted 'Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika' as their national anthem to replace 'God Save the Queen' on achieving independence. In 1994, however, it was decided to replace the South African song with a uniquely Zimbabwean anthem. The song selected had Shona lyrics written by Professor Solomon Mutswairo and music written by Fred Changundega. It was also officially translated into Ndebele and English. Its name is alternatively 'Simudzai Mureza wedu WeZimbabwe' (the Shona first line), 'Kalibusiswe Ilizwe leZimbabwe' (the final line of each verse in Ndebele); these translate into English respectively as 'Raise Our Flag of Zimbabwe' and 'Blessed be the Land of Zimbabwe'.

The first verse of the official English version is:
"O lift high, high, our flag of Zimbabwe
Born of the fire of the revolution
And of the precious blood of our heroes.
Let's defend it against all foes;
Blessed be the land of Zimbabwe."

There is a more poetic and popular version, too:
"O lift high the banner, the flag of Zimbabwe,
The symbol of freedom proclaiming victory;
We praise our heroes' sacrifice,
And vow to keep our land from foes;
And may the Almighty protect and bless our land."

And then, because of the array of native tongues spoken by the citizens of Zimbabwe, there are also official translations into Chewa, Chirbawe, Kalanga, Koisan, Nambya, Shangani, Sothio, Tonga, Tswana, Venda and Xhosa.

Answer: Zambia

Zambia adopted 'Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika' as its national anthem on independence in 1964, but it was decided to adapt the lyrics to be specifically Zambian, rather than African. The competition that was held failed to produce a clear winner, so pieces of several entries were combined to produce 'Stand and Sing of Zambia, Proud and Free', which became the new national anthem in 1974. The words are credited to G. Ellis, E.S. Musonda, J.M.S. Lichilana, I. Lowe, J. Sajiwandani, and R.J. Seal, without specifying who wrote what.

While the English words are recognized in the Zambian constitution as the official ones, there are also translations used in the Bemba, Chewa and Tonga languages.