Heritage Day in SA

Heritage, what does it mean? Something that comes or belongs to one from birth.

Heritage Day was a newly created South African public holiday in 1996. A day on which South Africans are encouraged to celebrate their cultural traditions in a wider context of the great diversity of cultures, beliefs and traditions that make up the nation of South Africa.

“It is a day on which all South Africans stand together, celebrate their culture and heritage. We can be proud of the evolution we experienced and know that our vision has to now broaden through all spectrums of life,” Editor of Lenasia Rising Sun, Reshanaa Roopnarain said.

In the Kwa – Zulu Natal province, September 24, was formerly known as Shaka Day, in memory of the legendary Zulu king, King Shaka Zulu.

When September 24 was declared as Heritage Day, former President Nelson Mandela stated, “When our first democratically-elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation.”

In the vein of celebrating shared culture rather than focusing on cultural divisions, a recent initiative by the Braai4Heritage calls upon all South Africans to celebrate their common roots by having a Braai(barbecue) on Heritage day. The idea has had some high profile converts, the most notable being that of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who in 2007 was made the National Spokesperson for BraaiDay.