nelson mandela

English - English

Definition of nelson mandela in English English dictionary: {i} (born 1918) South African black political leader involved in the fight against apartheid who was sentenced in 1964 to life imprisonment for his involvement in planning armed action and remained in prison until 1990, first black president of South Africa (1994-1999), winner of the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize; the leader of South Africa's ANC party since 1994, and the first black President of South Africa. Mandela was in prison from 1964 to 1990 for his opposition to the country's white government. In 1993 he shared the Nobel Prize for Peace with President F. W. de Klerk after they had worked together to end the system of apartheid (1918- ). born July 18, 1918, Umtata, Cape of Good Hope, S.Af. South African black nationalist leader and statesman. The son of a Xhosa chief, Mandela studied law at the University of Witwatersrand and in 1944 joined the African National Congress (ANC). After the Sharpeville massacre (1960), he abandoned his nonviolent stance and helped found the "Spear of the Nation," the ANC's military wing. Arrested in 1962, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. He retained wide support among South Africa's black population and became an international cause célèbre. Released by Pres. F.W. de Klerk in 1990, he replaced Oliver Tambo as president of the ANC in 1991. In 1993 Mandela and de Klerk were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to end apartheid and bring about the transition to nonracial democracy. In 1994 he was elected president in the country's first universal suffrage elections; by the time he stepped down in 1999, Mandela was the most universally respected figure of postcolonial Africa

nelson mandela