Ubuntu is a philosophy from ancient African meaning 'human kindness'. It's often translated as ‘humanity towards others’.
The translation of Ubuntu is: "I am what I am, because of who we all are"
Ubuntu is also a way of living, and a way of thinking.
Ubuntu is about having an impact on each other in ways that expands and deepens our understanding of why we’re all here on the planet and our responsibility to one another.
Nelson Mandela describes it thus:
“A traveler through a country would stop at a village and he didn’t have to ask for food or for water. Once he stops, the people give him food, entertain him. That is one aspect of Ubuntu, but it will have various aspects. Ubuntu does not mean that people should not enrich themselves. The question therefore is: Are you going to do so in order to enable the community around you to be able to improve?”
Archbishop Desmond Tutu defines it this way:
“One of the sayings in our country is Ubuntu — the essence of being human. Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that you can’t exist as a human being in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness. You can’t be human all by yourself, and when you have this quality — Ubuntu — you are known for your generosity. We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole World. When you do well, it spreads out; it is for the whole of humanity.”
