Rolihlahla

Rolihlahla is a Xhosa given name that is commonly translated as “pulling branches,” with the broader connotation of a troublemaker or someone who causes unrest in some contexts. It is best known as the birth name of Nelson Mandela, a prominent South African anti-apartheid leader and statesman.

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on 18 July 1918 in Mvezo, a village in the Thembu kingdom of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. He was the son of Gadla Henry Mphakanyiswa and Nosekeni. On his first day of school, a teacher gave him the Christian name “Nelson,” and he would later become widely known by this name, though his birth name remained Rolihlahla Mandela. He studied law at the University of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand before pursuing a legal career.

Mandela rose as a key figure in the African National Congress (ANC) and helped form its Youth League in 1944. He played a central role in the anti-apartheid movement, including leadership of the armed wing Umkhonto we Sizwe in 1961. After being imprisoned for 27 years—most notably on Robben Island—he was released in 1990 and led negotiations to end apartheid. Mandela became South Africa’s first black president in 1994, serving one term until 1999, and in 1993 he shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Frederik Willem de Klerk.

The name Rolihlahla thus identifies a cultural heritage within Xhosa-speaking communities and is most prominently associated with Mandela’s birth name and legacy.