20 September, 2011 – A statement by Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela on behalf of the Mandela family was released on Saturday 17 September, 2011 and announces the birth earlier this month of Nelson Mandela’s 12th great-grandchild.
Please click on the image to view a bigger display
The statement reads:
Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela and Nkosikazi Nobubele Anais Mandela of Mvezo are proud to announce the birth of the new heir of the Royal House of Mandela.
His Royal Highness Nkosi Qheya II Zanethemba Mandela was born in Johannesburg on 1 September, 2011. The two-week-old infant travelled to Qunu on Thursday to meet his great-grandfather, Nkosi Dalibhunga, the former President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. Following AbaThembu tradition, the child’s names were chosen by the family elder, Nkosi Dalibhunga.
Qheya was the birth name of His Royal Majesty King Gangelizwe of the AbaThembu, the son of HRH Prince Mtirara, whose brother, HRH Prince Mandela, was the former president’s grandfather. Mtirara and Mandela were sons of His Royal Majesty King Ngubengcuka who ruled from 1790-1832.
Zanethemba translates into English as “Bringing Hope”. The name was chosen as a symbol of the continuity of the family. As the first-born son of Nkosi Dalibhunga’s male heir, the child represents a continuation of the Mandela family and the journey undertaken by their forefathers.
According to custom, Nkosi Qheya’s mother’s family presided over the birth, and the infant spent his first days on Earth with his mother’s family before travelling to Qunu to be introduced to the Mandelas.
Soon after arriving in Qunu, Nkosi Zwelivelile paid a visit to the Mandela graveyard to inform his great-grandfather, Nkosi Mphakanyiswa Gadla Mandela, and other ancestors, of the new arrival. The following day, Nkosi Qheya was introduced to his great-grandfather, Nkosi Dalibhunga, the former president.
The youngster will be introduced to the broader Mandela family in Qunu when he is one month old, and thereafter to the community of Mvezo Komkhulu, seat of the Royal House of Mandela.
This statement was released for Mvezo Komkhulu by Oryx Media.