Republic of Upper Volta Republic of Upper Volta The Republic of Upper Volta (), now Burkina Faso, was a landlocked West African country established on December 11, 1958, as a self-governing colony within the French Community. Before attaining autonomy it had been French Upper Volta and part of the French Union. On August 5, 1960, it attained full independence from France. Thomas Sankara came to power through a military coup d'état on August 4, 1983. After the coup, he formed the National Council for the Revolution (CNR), with himself as president. Under the direction of Sankara, the country changed its name on August 4,
Fatherland current Dutch national anthem, Het Wilhelmus. The Ancient Greek "patris", fatherland, led to "patrios", "of our fathers" and thence to the Latin "patriota" and Old French "patriote", meaning compatriot; from these the English word patriotism is derived. The related Ancient Roman word "Patria" led to similar forms in modern Romance languages. "Fatherland" was first encountered by the vast majority of citizens in countries that did not themselves use it during World War II, when it was featured in news reports associated with Nazi Germany. German government propaganda used its appeal to nationalism when making references to Germany and the state.