King Mswati III of Swaziland has announced the change of the country’s name to eSwatini.
Mswati, one of the world’s few absolute monarchs, announced the move on Thursday when he presided over the ceremony to mark the country’s 50 years of independence.
eSwatini is a Swazi language name which means “place of the Swazi”. Unlike other African countries, Swaziland retained its name when it attained independence in 1968 after being colonized by Britain for more than 60 years.
“I would like to announce that Swaziland will now revert to its original name,” King Mswati said, wearing red military uniform at a packed sports stadium in the second city of Manzini.
“African countries on getting independence reverted to their ancient names before they were colonised. So from now on the country will be officially be known as the Kingdom of eSwatini.”
The King has in the past used the name eSwatini in official speeches.
Mswati, who was crowned in 1986 aged 18, rules by decree and has constantly been criticized for his expensive lifestyle despite most of the country’s citizens living in abject poverty.
