Will Mangaung mark the birth, decay and death of the ANC?

In the renaming of towns since 1994, Mangaung is probably the most fitting new name. Meaning “a place of cheetahs”, the name predates the colonial period. Natives referred to the place as Mangaung and continued even after Boers imposed the name, Bloemfontein, which is derived from Dutch, meaning “a fountain of flowers”. 

Unlike other new names that are hardly used in everyday life, and come across as an imposition, the official recognition of Mangaung was a truly restorative act. And the town was the best celebratory spot for the ANC’s 111 birthday on 8 January. 

Mangaung was most fitting for this celebratory moment because of its contradictory history in the life of the ANC. It is a place of both birth and near death of the ANC. The central location of the town made it the favourite to host the founding of the organisation in 1912, when it was known as the South African Native National Congress. It also helped that Mangaung was, and remains, a fairly multilingual town.