Father of the Nation

Father of the Nation is a term used by many countries to describe a political or symbolic leader who was one of the most influential founding fathers of the nation. He may also be a key figure from the nation's history whose perceived heroism and moral authority made him in the public's eyes worthy of respect, indeed often veneration. The Father of the Nation is almost always a highly respected national figure and a source of patriotic inspiration. His image is often elevated to that of a national symbol is commonly featured on banknotes, stamps, and other national memorabilia. Compare the Roman honorific pater patriae. In some countries, a cult of personality may be associated with the Father of the Nation.

Related Topics:
Founding fathers - Patriotic - National symbol - Banknote - Stamp - Pater patriae - Cult of personality

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While many states have held a 'father of the nation' in continuing highering respect since their founding, others have adopted and then abandoned some numerous figures throughout their history. Joseph Stalin was seen by millions during his period of control in the Soviet Union as the national father-figure, an image augmented deliberately by images released of him in the pose of a father or grandfather patting children on their head. Such was his esteem that a wave of suicides was recorded when his death was announced, with people suggesting that life without Stalin to guide them was unthinkable. Within a few years however, when his successors revealed the truth about Stalin's reign of terror, his popularity plummeted and his body was removed from the mausoleum where it had been laid alongside Lenin.

Related Topics:
Joseph Stalin - Soviet Union - Mausoleum - Lenin

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Similarly, Eamon de Valera in Ireland was seen as the father of the nation up to his death in 1975. However in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s his reputation also underwent a re-evaluation, with the public moving away from their unfettered enthusiasm for 'deV' and his achievements and instead focusing interest on leaders like Michael Collins whom de Valera in his lifetime had tried to sideline.

Related Topics:
Eamon de Valera - Ireland - 1975 - 1980s - 1990s - 2000s - Michael Collins

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In India, this unofficial title is given to Mahatma Gandhi.

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Sun Yat-sen is officially the Guófù (國父, Father of the Nation) in the Republic of China (now on Taiwan). The term is not used for Mao Zedong in the People's Republic of China; when it is used in mainland China it (unofficially) refers to Sun instead.

Related Topics:
Sun Yat-sen - Republic of China - Taiwan - Mao Zedong - People's Republic of China - Mainland China

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The deposed King of Afghanistan, Mohammed Zahir Shah has been called "Father of the Nation" by current President Hamid Karzai, in some sense a compromise with those wishing to restore the monarchy. The 2003 draft constitution explicitly awarded this title to Zahir Shah - an unusual step, as titles of this type are rarely constitutionalized in such a manner.

Related Topics:
Afghanistan - Mohammed Zahir Shah - Hamid Karzai - 2003

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Some of the best-known "fathers of the nation" are:

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• Kemal Atatürk (1881?1938) of Turkey
• Simón Bolívar (1783?1830) of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela
• Mahatma Gandhi (1869?1948) of India
• Miguel Hidalgo (1753?1811) of Mexico
• Mohammad Ali Jinnah (1876?1948) of Pakistan
• Kim Il Sung (1912?1994) of North Korea
• Jomo Kenyatta (1891?1978) of Kenya
• Genghis Khan (died 1227) of Mongolia
• Sir John A. Macdonald (1815?1891) of Canada
• Nelson Mandela (born 1918) of post-Apartheid South Africa
• José Martí (1853?1895) of Cuba, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes (1819-1874) is called "Father of the Homeland"
• Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (1920?1975) of Bangladesh
• Kwame Nkrumah (1909?1972) of Ghana
• Sukarno (1901?1970) of Indonesia
• Sun Yat-sen (1866?1925) of China
• Gustav Vasa (1496-1560) of Sweden
• George Washington (1732?1799) of the United States
• William I of Orange-Nassau (the Silent) (1533-1584) of The Netherlands
• Saad Zaghlul (1857?1927) of Egypt
• Lee Kuan Yew (born 1923) of Singapore

Some figures who are not as well known outside their home countries include:

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• Tunku Abdul Rahman (1903?1990) of Malaysia
• José Gervasio Artigas (1764?1850) of Uruguay
• Nnamdi Azikiwe (1904?1996) of Nigeria
• Errol Barrow (1920?1987) of Barbados
• Barthélemy Boganda (1910?1959) of the Central African Republic
• Jean-Jacques Dessalines (1758?1806) of Haiti
• Jón Sigurðsson (1811?1879) of Iceland
• Prince Phetsarath (1890?1959) of Laos
• Norodom Sihanouk (born 1922) of Cambodia
 
Father of the Nation: See also ►