Desmond Tutu

Tutu in 2006, photo by Starfrenzy/Bigstock.com

Birth Name: Desmond Mpilo Tutu

Date of Birth: 7 October, 1931

Place of Birth: Klerksdorp, North West Province, South Africa

Date of Death: 26 December, 2021

Place of Death: Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Ethnicity:
*amaFengu Xhosa (father)
*Tswana (mother)

Desmond Tutu was a South African Anglican bishop and theologian. He was known for his work as an anti-Apartheid and human rights activist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1984.

Desmond was the son of mother, Aletta Dorothea Mavoertsek Mathlare, a Motswana from Boksburg, Gauteng, and father, Zacheriah Zililo Tutu, a Xhosa of the amaFengu branch from Gcuwa, Eastern Cape. The family spoke isiXhosa at home.

Tutu married Nomalizo Leah Shenxane in 1955. They had four children, including priest, author, and activist Mpho Tutu van Furth. His granddaughter is actress Natasha Thahane.