Lesotho

‘Lesotho’ is a patriotic song about homesickness; it could almost have been a national anthem. Bearing in mind that it appeared in a volume published in 1947, just after Basotho troops had fought alongside the Allies in World War II the ‘Lesotho’ longed for in the song is an independent homeland of the future. As the composer’s brother, historian J.M. Mohapeloa puts it, the song is about where Basotho came from and where they were going, and their need “to know the value of the nation, respect it and ensure that other nations respect it too. If a particular country was a colony of another country, that country wanted freedom or independence”.