On March 4, Internet search biggie Google honoured late African singer and prominent civil rights activist Miriam Makeba with a special Google Doodle to commemorate her 81st birthday.

Makeba, who was born in Johannesburg on March 4, 1932, was the first black South African singer who achieved global recognition. During the period from between the 1960s and her death in 2008, Makeba performed a number of concerts in North America; sharing the stage with well-known singers like Paul Simon, Harry Belafonte and, her first husband, Hugh Masekela.

In 1960, Makeba - who was an outspoken critic of apartheid - traveled overseas; but could not return home to South Africa because the country's government cancelled her passport. She returned back to South Africa in 1990, after Nelson Mandela was released.

In the beginning of her career, Makeba - who was later known as "Mama Africa" - sung jazz, but, she was best recognized for the work in her native dialect. She also won a Grammy for "Best Folk Recording" for her album An Evening with Belafonte/Makeba. The album - which brought together the Zulu, Swahili, Sotho styles of music - dealt with the issues faced by South African blacks under apartheid.

Makeba - who expressed her anti-apartheid beliefs in most of her work - died of a heart attack at the age of 76; after a performance for Roberto Saviano in Italy.