Previously known as Cape Dutch or Kitchen Dutch
History
The language Afrikaans has its roots in
seventeenth century Dutch but it has been
influenced by many languages including: English, Malay,
German, Portuguese, French and some African languages. Some of the first written
work in Afrikaans was done using the Arabic alphabet in the work
Bayaan-ud-djyn written by Abu Bakr. Apart
from this development and minor writings in so-called Cape Dutch Afrikaans acted
mainly as a spoken language for people living in the Cape and
Dutch was used as the formal and written language. On 14 August
1875 the GRA, an organization that promoted the Afrikaans
language, was formed by Rev. S.J. Du Toit. By this though the language was
spoken by many people of different races and ethnic groups throughout Southern
Africa.
The first complete translation of the Bible into Afrikaans was made in 1933.
According to Act 8 of 1925 of South Africa it became the official language
(incorporated with Dutch) together with English. The language was promoted
alongside Afrikaner nationalism after 1948 and played an important role in
minority white rule in Apartheid South Africa. The usage of Afrikaans in schools
was one of the reasons for the 1976 Soweto uprising. With the new constitution of South Africa
(1996) it was again written into the constitution as one of the official languages of South
Africa.
It is important to note that Afrikaans is spoken
by all races and ethnic groups in South Africa and much has been done in recent
years to promote varieties of this language that were suppressed during the
years of Apartheid.
CLASSIFICATION:
Family: Indo-European
Group: Germanic
Subgroup: West Germanic
VARIETIES: Eastern Cape Afrikaans (Oosgrensafrikaans - which became Standard Afrikaans), Cape Afrikaans
(Kaapse Afrikaans) and Orange River Afrikaans (Oranjerivierafrikaans).
Speakers
Around 5 811 547 people use Afrikaans as their home
language in South Africa. The language is
also spoken in the Republic of Namibia as well as by some South Africans living
and working in the United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
|
MORE INFORMATION |
| Pronunciation |
| General words & phrases |
| Expressions and idioms |
| Example of texts |
| Unesco Language Survey |
Books
Internet Links
Search engines / Site lists
Die Knoop - Comprehensive list of Afrikaans web sites
Rieme.co.za - Afrikaans search engine
Afrikaans Google - use Google in
Afrikaans
Language introductions
ETHNOLOGUE: Afrikaans
English Wikipedia introduction
Language learning
Learn Afrikaans online - detailed
with resources on Afrikaans and learning material
Literature
LitNet - Afrikaans literature web site
Storiewerf - Afrikaans site on children's literature
Woes.co.za - Afrikaans literature
submission site
Dictionaries
Pharos - Afrikaans-English dictionaries/spelling
checker on CD
Afrikaans-English Dictionary at TRAVLANG
Spelling checks
Spel.co.za Afrikaans spelling check
WSpel - Free spelling check
Tiaan.com -
Another spelling check
Media
Kyknet - Afrikaans television channel
Radio
Sonder Grense -
Afrikaans Radio Station
Daily Afrikaans newspapers: Beeld,
Die Burger,
Volksblad
Other sites
Mieliestronk.com - Afrikaans online
encyclopedia
Bybel.co.za - Complete online Afrikaans
Bible
Taalmuseum - Afrikaans language museum
© J. Olivier (2009)
SAlanguages.com
