# Africanization

Africanization or Africanisation (lit., making something African) has been applied in various contexts, notably in geographic and personal naming and in the composition of the civil service via processes such as indigenization.

## Africanization of names

Africanization has referred to the modification of placenames and personal names to reflect an "African" identity. In some cases, changes are not only of transliteration but of the European name.
In many cases during the colonial period, African placenames were Anglicized or Francized.

### Place names
#### Country names

Various African countries have undergone name changes during the previous century as the result of consolidations and secessions, territories gaining sovereignty, and regime changes.
| Previous name | Year | Current name |
| Dahomey, Republic of | 1975 | Benin, Republic of |
| Bechuanaland Protectorate | 1966 | Botswana, Republic of |
| Upper Volta | 1984 | Burkina Faso |
| Ubangi-Shari | 1958 | Central African Republic |
| Zaire, Republic of | 1997 | Congo, Democratic Republic of the |
| Middle Congo | 1960 | Congo, Republic of the |
| French Somaliland / Afars and Issas | 1977 | Djibouti, Republic of |
| Spanish Guinea | 1968 | Equatorial Guinea, Republic of |
| Swaziland, Kingdom of | 2018 | Eswatini, Kingdom of |
| Gold Coast | 1957 | Ghana, Republic of |
| French Guinea | 1958 | Guinea, Republic of |
| Portuguese Guinea | 1974 | Guinea-Bissau, Republic of |
| Basutoland, Territory of | 1966 | Lesotho, Kingdom of |
| Nyasaland Protectorate | 1964 | Malawi, Republic of |
| French Sudan | 1960 | Mali, Republic of |
| South-West Africa | 1990 | Namibia, Republic of |
| Ruanda-Urundi | 1962 | Rwanda, Republic of / Burundi, Republic of |
| Zanzibar / Tanganyika | 1964 | Tanzania, United Republic of |
| Northern Rhodesia | 1964 | Zambia, Republic of |
| Southern Rhodesia | 1980 | Zimbabwe, Republic of |

#### Other place names

* Fernando Po island changed to Bioko Island
* Léopoldville changed to Kinshasa
* Salisbury changed to Harare
* Lourenço Marques changed to Maputo
* Nova Lisboa changed to Huambo
* Fort Lamy changed to N'Djaména
* Tananarive changed to Antananarivo
* Bathurst changed to Banjul
* Santa Isabel/Port Clarence changed to Malabo
* Élisabethville changed to Lubumbashi
* Stanleyville changed to Kisangani
* Luluabourg changed to Kananga
* Ponthierville changed to Ubundu
* Novo Redondo changed to Sumbe
* Moçâmedes changed to Namibe, but changed back to Moçâmedes in 2016
* Abercorn changed to Mbala
* Broken Hill changed to Kabwe
* Fort Jameson changed to Chipata
* Hartley changed to Chegutu
* Fort Victoria changed to Masvingo
* Many places whose names were of European origin in South Africa have undergone Africanization since 1994; see South African Geographical Names Council.
* Port Elizabeth changed to Gqeberha in 2021.

### Personal names

* Joseph-Désiré Mobutu changed to Mobutu Sese Seko
* François Tombalbaye changed to N'Garta Tombalbaye
* Étienne Eyadéma changed to Gnassingbé Eyadéma
* Francisco Macías Nguema changed to Masie Nguema Biyogo Ñegue Ndong
Sometimes, the name change can be used to reflect a change of faith, most prominently seen in the case of Islam. (See Islamic name.)
Examples:
* Albert-Bernard Bongo changed to Omar Bongo
* Dawda Jawara changed to David Jawara in 1953
* Jean-Bédel Bokassa changed to Salah Eddine Ahmed Bokassa

## Africanization of civil services

In some countries after following their independence, "Africanization" was the name given to racial policies and affirmative action, which were intended to increase the number of indigenous Africans in the civil service.

## Localization in African languages

The term Africanization, abbreviated as the numeronym "A12n," has been applied to discussion of internationalization and localization of software and content in African languages.