Heritage Day (English), I langa lwama siko e sintu (isiZulu), imini yoku khumbula noku hlonipha amasiko nezithethe zakwantu (isiXhosa) and Erfenisdag (Afrikaans) is a public holiday that falls on September 24.
It is a day when all South Africans celebrate their rich heritage.
The South African government said ‘Heritage Day recognises and celebrates the cultural wealth of our nation’ while the South African website, Public Holidays said ‘Heritage Day is a reminder of the nation’s cultural diversity and a chance to express national unity’.
Heritage Day is also known as National Braai Day. On September 5, 2007, Nobel Peace Prize winner Emeritus Archbishop Doctor Desmond Tutu was appointed as patron of the National Braai Day initiative.
The official website braai.com describes National Braai Day further as a call to all South Africans to unite around fires, share our heritage and wave our flag on 24 September every year.
“Across race, language, region and religion, we all share one common heritage. It is called many things – chisa nyama, braai and ukosa to name a few. Although the ingredients may differ, the one thing that never changes is that when we have something to celebrate we light fires and prepare great feasts. National Braai Day is a noble cause, which will contribute to strengthening South Africa as a nation through this act of nation-building and social cohesion,” a declaration on the website reads.
What will you be up to on Heritage Day? Let us know via email by sending your photos and a short description to randfonteinherald@caxton.co.za.
• Sources: publicholidays.net.za, www.gov.za, www.braai.com.
