TANNOURINE, Lebanon - Colombian pop star Shakira on Saturday visited the village in Lebanon where her paternal grandmother was born.

"Hello Tannourine, thank you, I am happy to be here!", the 41-year-old singer said in Arabic during a visit under high security to the village of Tannourine in Lebanon's mountainous north.

Accompanied by local officials, Shakira visited a nature reserve that grows cedar trees - Lebanon's national emblem - and planted two saplings.

To mark the occasion, a small patch of the reserve was named "Shakira Mubarak" - after one of the singer's family names, Tannourine's mayor Bahaa Harb said.

On Friday evening, she kicked off the Cedars International Festival in Lebanon, a concert set to attract 13,000 people.

Shakira performed at the ancient cedars of Lebanon in a mountaintop concert. The Colombian singer-songwriter delighted a crowd of thousands gathered under the stars in northern Lebanon, where she said she was proud to be singing in the land of her grandparents.

“Lubnaaan! It’s amazing to be in this magical setting, it’s surreal, thank you so much for having me tonight,” she said after her opening songs, using the Arabic word for Lebanon.

“This means so much to me to be singing in the land of my grandparents,” she said. “I feel so proud of these cedars, so proud of my heritage and so proud of you,” said Shakira to cheers from the crowd.

Shakira, who was born in Columbia to a Lebanese father and Colombian mother, first performed in Lebanon in 2011.

She performed songs from her 11th album, El Dorado, which was released last year as well as classic hits such as Estoy Aqui and Whenever, Wherever. She also belly danced.

Part of a world tour, the Shakira concert marked the start of the Cedars International Festival, one of a number of music festivals hosted by Lebanon each summer. - Agencies