Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. The honorific Mahatma (Sanskrit: "high-souled", "venerable")—applied to him first in 1914 in South Africa —is now used worldwide. He is also called Bapu (Gujarati: endearment for "father","papa") in India. In common parlance in India he is often called Gandhiji. He is unofficially called the Father of the Nation.