[imagesource: Twitter / @RoyalFamily]

King Charles III welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa to Buckingham Palace on Tuesday in his first state banquet speech in honour of Uncle Cyril.

“South Africa, like the Commonwealth, has always been a part of my life,” the royal said, after totally butchering Ramaphosa’s name and a few words of welcome in various South African languages.

In perfect English, Charles called him “Ramafosa” instead of ” ram-uh-PO-suh” and then attempted to greet him in isiZulu, Sesotho, isiXhosa, and Tshivenda.

CapeTalk reported that the name mistake is common among native English speakers, but that didn’t stop Saffas from laughing at the King’s expense.

The fact that Cupcake (one of Ramaphosa’s local nicknames) gleefully said ‘Wow!’ to every greeting really topped off the moment.

It is hard to distinguish if Ramaphosa was mocking the King or if he was genuinely impressed:

He’s so happy pic.twitter.com/gv4lBcNkrh

— Mary-Jane Explores (@maryjaneexplore) November 23, 2022

If only Ramaphosa advised Charles on how to pronounce his name as they were making their way to the table together:

President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa arrives at Buckingham Palace to formally bid farewell to the King.

President Ramaphosa returns to South Africa on Wednesday evening after a two-day state visit to the UK. pic.twitter.com/nap7SybBaV

— The Royal Family Channel (@RoyalFamilyITNP) November 23, 2022

In and out, nogal.

IOL notes that for the rest of the speech, the King said it was a “special” moment to host Ramaphosa on his first state visit and even wished him a belated happy birthday.

King Charles hosted his first State Visit of his reign – South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa.

The Prince and Princess of Wales attended the banquet at Buckingham Palace alongside The King and Queen Consort Camilla. pic.twitter.com/AyKKB417Wc

— The Royal Family Channel (@RoyalFamilyITNP) November 23, 2022

Charles also mentioned the story of how Madiba affectionately called his mother “Motlalepula”, which means “to come with rain”, and then joked about his country’s dreary weather.

He briefly alluded to his country’s problematic colonial past with SA, saying that “there are elements of that history which provoke profound sorrow, and it is essential that we seek to understand them”.

Getting our president’s name right might have been a good place to start.

[sources:capetalk&iol]