Lesotho is a country in southern Africa. It is unusual because it is completely surrounded by one other country, South Africa: there is no coast, and you cannot leave Lesotho without going into South Africa. It is a land of mountains, high and often cold. The capital is Maseru. It became independent in 1966 and joined the Commonwealth. The name is from Sotho: Lesotho means land of the Basotho, the Sotho people. One person from there is a Mosotho; the people together are the Basotho; the language is Sesotho. In everyday English, people often just say someone is from Lesotho. Though actually, English speakers sometimes guess the sound from the letters and get it wrong: it is closer to le-SOO-too than to le-SOTH-oh.