EL0 1: A general

overview of the
language families
found in Namibia
 Lesson Objectives
Upon completion of this unit students should be
able to:
• Discuss the origin of the different Bantu,
Khoesaan and Germanic languages of Namibia.
• Indicate their current state of development,
standardization and use in educational and other
functions.
• Briefly explain the relationship between language
and culture and illustrate this with examples.
 A short history of Namibia for language
purposes
• Stone tools found in Namibia dates back 300
000 years B.C.; rock paintings date as far back
as 29 000 B.C. The first peoples of Namibia
are the Bushmen - (the hunter-gatherers).
• The Khoekhoe entered southern Namibia
some time during the 1stth century.
• San and Khoekhoe is commonly known as the
Khoesan peoples.
 BANTU-SPEAKING PEOPLE
• Bantu speaking peoples started moving east and south from
central Africa from as early as the third century but did not
enter Namibia until the 16th and 17th century from the north
and settled in the north-western and central parts of the
country.
• The Owambos and the Ovaherero were livestock
communities, while the Kavango and the Caprivians formed
agricultural and or fishing communities
• Encounters with Europeans occurred from 1670, but large
movement of white people into Namibia occurred only from
the 1850s. They were mainly traders and missionaries.
 REVISION
• Who are thus the eldest inhabitants of
Namibia?
• Which groups came from the south?
• And the north?
 The Namibian population (1991 census)
• Oshiwambo 50,6% 713919
• Otjiherero 8% 112916
• Kavango 9.7% 136649
• Caprivian 4,7% 66008
• Setswana 0,4% 6050
• Khoekhoegowab 12,5% 175554
• Bushman 1,9% 27229
• Afrikaans 9,5% 133324
• English 0,8% 10941
• German0,9% 12827
• Other 1,0% 14503
 Linguistic and group boundaries
• The Namas and Damaras are 2 different peoples
but speak the same language; Khoekhoegowab
• Depending on our definition, Namibia has from
10 – 30 languages! From a functional point of
view, we count 12 national languages:
• Oshindonga, Oshikwanyama, Otjiherero,
Rukwangali, Rumanyo (Rugciriku), Thimbukusku,
Silozi, Setswana, Khoekhoegowab, Afrikaans,
German and English
 LANGUAGES IN NAMIBIA
• The word Bantu remains a scientific term,
refer to a specific language group.
• Afrikaans are mainly spoken by so-called
whites, Coloureds and Rehoboth Basters
• Orthographies have differed over time; names
of languages also differed over time
• Oshiwambo refers to a cluster of dialects, not
a single language
 Language families in Namibia
WHAT IS A LANGUAGE FAMILY?
o A language family is a group of languages which originated
from the same original language.
The languages which are spoken in Namibia today can be
divided into THREE LANGUAGE FAMILIES:
• Bantu family - Owambo, Ovaherero, Kavango, Caprivian and
Batswana
• Khoesaan family - Bushman languages and Khoekhoegowab
• Germanic family- European languages: English, Afrikaans,
German
 Origins of Bantu
• Bantu people evolved in the region of present day Cameroon
and Nigeria
• They spread eastward and southwards to Zaire forest and
savannah woodlands
• Migration started in 1000BC – largest in human history
• Due to increase in population and introduction of new crops
• Bantu speakers’ spread into southern Africa in comparatively
recent past
• Large scale conquering of migrating peoples
• Bantu speakers were farmers
• Also brought knowledge of iron working to Africa
 Origins of Bantu
• Eastern and western streams
• Eastern Bantu – South Africa (Shona, Xhosa and
Zulu)
• Western Bantu – Angola, Namibia and north
western Botswana (Tonga, Herero and Owambo)
• 180 million Africans speak Bantu language.
• Swahili =most widely spoken - lingua franca
along eastern coast of Africa
 Similarities….
Languages Person
• Shona Munhu
• Zulu Umuntu
• Swahili Mtu
• Otjiherero Omundu
• Oshikwanyama Omunhu
• Oshindonga omuntu
 Owambo and Oshiwambo languages
• The Owambo peoples speak a cluster of dialects jointly known as
Oshiwambo.
• 50,6% of total population
• Traditionally cattle and agriculture livelihood
• Originates from 8 kingdoms, biggest in Namibia is Uukwanyama and
Ondonga (65% of all Owambo)
• According to an Owambo legend Owambo and Ovaherero are
descendants of common ancestor – Mangundu
• Owambo entered northern Namibia around the 16th century - migration
due to population pressure and scarcity of wild animals and later also
political conflicts – settled in 17th century
• Conflicts in the North continued, with Germany and South Africa until
Independence
 Owambo and Oshiwambo languages
• Owambo dialects mutually intelligible. 3 codified
by missionaries (Oshindonga, Oshikwanyama
and Oshikwambi). Official orthography
published for Oshindonga in 1966, 1975, and
Oshikwanyama in1966, 1980.
• Oshindonga used as written standard in all
Owambo kingdoms except Uukwanyama.
• Dictionaries for Oshindonga and Oshikwanyama
• Available literature on other dialects is scarce
Language families and languages of Namibia

The languages which are spoken in Namibia

today can be divided into three language
families:
KHOESAAN LANGUAGES BANTU LANGUAGES GERMANIC LANGUAGES

 Oshindonga  Afrikaans
San languages, e.g. Ju/’hoan  Oshikwanyama  German
 Otjiherero  English
 Setswana
 Languages of the Kavango:
o RuKwangali
o Thimbukushu
Khoekhoegowab (Nama and o Rumanyo
Damara)  Languages of the Caprivi:
o Subia
o Mwafwe
 
 The San
• According to ethnologists the San lived many years in
Namibia.
• They are the oldest inhabitants of Namibia.
• According to archaeological excavations they
discovered that the San lived over the whole of
Africa: rock-carvings were found everywhere in
Africa. They even found rock-carvings in the
mountains (between Spain and French). This is an
indication that the San once lived in the southern
parts of Europe. Gradually they migrated to the
southern parts of Africa where they settled in desert
and semi-desert areas.
 BANTU LANGUAGES
• A large part of Namibia’s population belongs
to the so-called Bantu-speaking people, who
originated in present-day Nigeria and
Cameroon, spread across a vast area of
central, southern and eastern Africa over the
course of 3 000 years. In the past, researchers
associated the migration of Bantu speakers
with the spread of iron working, agriculture
and a unique pottery style, collectively known
as the Early Iron Age Complex.
 BANTU LANGUAGES
• Agriculture and the use of iron do seem to
have disseminated together, but recent
linguistic analysis places the start of the Bantu
migrations before the Early Iron Age.
The Bantu language is a sub-family of the Niger-Congo
 

family of languages, spoken widely across West Africa and as

far east as southern Sudan. Speakers of the Benue-Congo
(Bantu) branch of this family live almost exclusively within
eastern Nigeria and adjoining areas of southern Cameroon.
The word bantu, literally translated, means “people.”
 
 Bantu Languages
• The original ancestor of the languages
classified as Bantu-languages, or “parent
Bantu” (referred to by linguists as proto-
Bantu) is thus thought to have evolved in the
region of present-day Nigeria and Cameroon.
From there it is believed to have spread (1)
eastwards around the northern edge of the
Zaire forest, and (2) southwards through the
forest to the savannah woodlands beyond
 Bantu Languages
• This migration started in about 1 000 BC, and is considered
by historians to be one of the largest in human history.
• The exact routes and directions of the spread of the early
Bantu-speakers remain speculative. Studies by
archaeologists suggest that the early Bantu-speakers
remain speculative. Studies by archaeologists suggest that
the early Bantu-speakers spread southwards over two
broad fronts or “streams”.
• The division between the western and eastern streams
seems to fall along the line of the Luangwa valley of
eastern Zambia.
 Bantu Languages
• Apparently, the Eastern Bantu migrated
through present day Zimbabwe and
Mozambique down to South Africa. Tribal
groups descended from the Eastern Bantu are
the Shona, Xhosa, Kikuyu and Zulu.
• The Western Bantu moved into what are now
Angola, Namibia and north-western
Botswana. This group includes tribal groups
such as the Herero and Ovambo.
 Bantu Languages

• Bantu languages are a family of languages

that developed from the same ancient
language (proto-Bantu) and it is spoken by
about 180,000,000 people, almost entirely in
Africa.
 Bantu Languages
LANGUAGE person persons
Ganda: omuntu abantu
Shona: munhu banhu
Zulu: umuntu abantu
Swahili: mtu watu
Otjiherero: omundo ovandu
Oshikwanyam omunhu ovanhu
a:
Oshindonga: omuntu aantu
 Bantu Languages
• Bantu languages are spoken in Namibia by the:
• Vambo (Groups: Ndonga, Kwanyama, Kwambi, Mbalantu,
Ngandjera, Kwaluudhi, Nkolonkadhi). The most prominent
languages are: Oshindonga, Oshikwanyama.
• Kavango (Groups: Mbunza, Kwangali, Gciriko, Shambio, Mbukushu).
). The most prominent languages are: Rukwangali, Timbukushu.
• Herero: (Groups: Herero, Mbanderu, Himba, Tjimba). Language:
Otjiherero.
• People of the Caprivi: (Groups: Masubia, Mafwe, Matotela). Most
prominent language: Silozi.
• Tswana: (Groups: Tswana). Language: Setswana.
 
 The Khoekhoe (Nama)
• The Khoekhoe originated from North-West-Africa by an
intermixture of the San and Hermitical groups. They
emigrated along the east coast of Africa until they
reached the Cape Province in South Africa.
• This theory is reinforced by the fact that a group of 10
000 to 15 000 people similar in appearance and language
to that of the Nama is living in Tanzania today. 
• 1500 years ago the Khoekhoe (Nama) migrated to the
north, they crossed the Orange River and migrated to
Namibia.
 KHOESAAN LANGUAGES

• The Khoesan languages (San, Khoekhoegowab

and Damara) are unique in the sense that they
have no connection whatsoever with any
other language family in the world and are
spoken only in southern Africa.
• All these languages have ingressive sounds
(the flow of air moving from outside into the
mouth and lungs), namely the click sounds
 The Khoekhoe (Nama)
• The most common groups are:
• The Bondelswarts in the south at Warmbad;
• “Tseib se mense” who originally was situated at
the Chamob river, but moved to the north to
Keetmanshoop;
• The “Veldschoendragers” at Tses;
• The “Rode Natie” (Rooinasie) who originally was
situated at Hatsamas, but moved to Hoachanas;
 The Khoekhoe (Nama)
• The “Fransmanne” at Gochas, also known
today as “Simon Kooper se mense”;
• The Swartboois who lived at Rhehoboth until
1864. They then moved to Ameib, and still
later to Fransfontein and Sesfontein in the
Koakoland.
• The Topnaars in the Kuiseb valley in the area
of Walvisbaai
 The Khoekhoe (Nama)
• At the end of the 19th Century more groups of
Namas – namely the Oorlam (clever,
intelligent) – migrated from South Africa over
the Orange River to Namibia. The first group
who crossed the Orange River was the !Amen
or “Bethaniërs”. In 1790 another Oorlam
Group under the leadership of Klaas Afrikaner
(the “Afrikaners”) migrated to Namibia. Then
the “Lambertsmense” and Witboois followed.
 The Khoekhoe (Nama)
• They were the first groups who brought
Afrikaans (at that stage called “Kaapsch
Hollands”) into Namibia. They could read and
write and could handle rifles and horse
riding. They also adopted Christianity.
 The Khoekhoe (Nama)
• The Oorlam groups are:
• The “Afrikaanders” at Blydeverwacht (later
Windhoek);
• The Witboois (at Gibeon);
• The group/clan of “Bethanie” (Frederickse)
• The group/clan of “Berseba” (Goliaths)
• The group/clan of Amraal Lamberts (first at
Noassanabis; later at Gobabis);
• The group/clan of Jan Boois (in the area of Maltahöhe)
 The Damara

• It is not known where the Damara originated

from or when they entered into Namibia. The
Damara and Khoekhoe are not related, but
the language the Damara speak is very similar
to Khoekhoegowab. The ethnologist Dr
Vedder regards Damara as a dialect from
Nama. Certain words that you only find in
Damara (and not in Nama) also occur in
Sudanese dialects.
 The Khoekhoe (Nama)
• This is probably where the Damara originated
from. There are, however, not many words
out of Sudanese dialects. At the moment the
Damara and Nama share one language –
Khoekhoegowab.
 GERMANIC LANGUAGES
 

• The Germanic language family is the biggest

language family in the world. They all
originated from one primordial language,
namely Indo-Germanic or Indo-European:
 GERMANIC LANGUAGES

INDO-EUROPEAN LANGUAGES
GERMANIC ROMANCE BALTIC SLAVIC CELTIC GREEK ARMENIAN ALBANIAN INDO-
IRANIAN
NORTH                
Swedish French Latvian Russian Irish Greek Armenian Albanian Sanskrit
Norwegian Spanish Lithuanian Polish Scottish Hindi
Danish Italian Czech Celtic Iranian
Icelandic Portuguese Serbo- Welsh
Romanian Croatian Breton
 
WEST
German
English
Dutch
Afrikaans
Flemish
Yiddish
 

EAST
Gothic (extinct)
 Afrikaans
• The history of Afrikaans started in 1652 when
Jan van Riebeeck – from the Netherlands –
arrived with his three ships at Cape of Good
Hope. The Dutch of Jan van Riebeeck was not
the standardized language, but a dialect.
 Afrikaans
• The Netherlanders/Dutchmen came in contact with the Khoi in
Southern Africa. The language of the Hottentots influenced Dutch.
The following loan-words out of the Khoi language are still used
today in Afrikaans: boegoe, dagga, gogga, kwagga, kierie, karos,
abba.
• In 1658 - 1685 a lot of slaves from Indonesia came to South Africa.
They spoke the lingua franca Malayo-Portuguese. This language
also had an influence on Dutch. The following loan-words out of
Malayo-Portuguese are still used today in Afrikaans: aia, nonna,
bobotie, sosatie.
• Dutch was also influenced by other European languages: French (the
French Huguenots); German; English (the British Settlers – 1820).
 Afrikaans
• New things and places should get new names:
• (a) Places: a bay where they found a lot of good
wood – “Houtbayken”; an island where they
found a lot of rock-rabbits or dassies –
“Dasseneiland”; an island where they found a lot
of seals – “ Robbeneiland”; a river where they
found a lot of elephants – “Olifantsrivier”.
• (b) New plants and animals: “Kaapse vy”;
“Hottentotsvy”.
 Afrikaans
• They were far away from Holland. There were no
schools during that period. They did not read Dutch on
a regular basis. Gradually they started to pronounce
words differently and they started to use new words.
• By 1750 – 100 years after Jan van Riebeeck came to S.A.
– Dutch had been changed to Cape-Dutch or ‘Kaaps-
Hollands’.
• Between 1743 and 1800 three forms of Afrikaans were
formed: Khoi-Dutch, Afrikaans of the slaves (Weskaaps)
and “Oosgrensafrikaans” (Afrikaans of the Whites).
 Afrikaans
• Khoi-Dutch or “Oranjerivierafrikaans” came into
Namibia from the south. Afrikaans of the slaves
(Weskaaps)stays in the Cape Province;
“Oosgrensafrikaans” moved with the white
Voortrekkers about 1800 to the Transvaal (because
of the Anglicisation of Brittan).
• The discovery of gold and diamonds in the Transvaal
gave Afrikaans an economical and political power.
Therefore Transvaal Afrikaans became the dominant
dialect of Afrikaans – the standard language.
How and when the groups
entered into Namibia

The Rehoboth-Basters
 The Rehoboth-Basters
• This group Namibians originated from the Cape Province
of South Africa. They lived north of the Karee Mountains.

• The Basters tried to buy land from the Cape government,

but failed and they decided to move into Namibia.
• On 16 November 1868 ninety families under the
leadership of Hermanus van Wyk crossed the Orange river
into Namibia
• . Van Wyk bought land around Rehoboth from the leader
of the Oorlam, Abraham Swartbooi and settled there.
 The Rehoboth-Basters
• Other groups settled around Keetmanshoop,
Otjimbingwe, Windhoek, Omaruru and
Karibib.
• They became an independent community and
wrote a Constitution in Cape Dutch in 1868.
• During the German occupation many German
intermarried with the Rehoboth Baster and
influence their language in a significant way.
 The Dorslandtrekkers
• Between 1875 and 1877 three groups of white Afrikaners
departed from the Republic of Transvaal on their way to Namibia
through Angola.
• The first group settled in the north of Namibia and lived there for
four years.
• In 1885 there were 55 families in Ovambo and they tried to buy
land from the Ovambo, but did not succeed.
• Some of them moved back to Angola, others moved back to the
Transvaal and many moved to the central regions of Namibia to
Tsumeb and Grootfontein.
•
 The Dorslandtrekkers
• They brought Standard Afrikaans into Namibia. 
• The Black Van der Merwes (they adopted the
surname of one of the Dorslandtrekkers) stayed
in Ovambo. Their home language is Afrikaans.
 
• At the end of the nineteenth century Afrikaans
was no foreign language in the northern parts
of Namibia.
 Riemvasmakers
•
This group of Namibians out
of the Damara, Nama and Coloured communities lived since
1923 on the farm Riemvasmaak, north of the Orange River.
• Oranjerivierafrikaans was the dialect of this group. In 1973 the
South African Government sent them to Khorixas in
Damaraland.
• After 1991 they were allowed to go back, but some of them
stayed in Khorixas. They formed a united group with their own
dialect of Afrikaans in the midst of Nama-Damara people.
 White Afrikaans speaking farmers

• 75 years after the Oorlam entered Namibia and 25 years after

the Rehoboth-Basters settled at Rehoboth in Namibia white
Afrikaans speaking farmers entered Namibia from the south.
• The Visagie family settled around 1791 at Modderfontein – the
now called Keetmanshoop.
• In 1854 three families were living in near the Swakop River – the
now called Swakopmund.
• Around 1896 there already lived 782 Afrikaans speaking farmers
who spoke a dialect of Afrikaans – “Oranjerivierafrikaans”.
• After 1950 a lot of Afrikaans speaking people – speaking
Standard Afrikaans – entered Namibia.
 Coloureds from South Africa
• A dialect from the Western Cape – the Cape
Coloureds – entered Namibia from 1900 –
1950 and later.
 English

• The majority users are second language users.

• The mother tongues of the Namibians influence their
variety of English
• It is close to South African English
• Formally Namibia follows British English
pronunciation and spelling
• Namlish is our own informal variety.
• It is influenced by Namibian Languages
• There are semantic shifts – robot, shame, bottle store
 German

• 0.9% of the population are German

• Namibia was governed as a German colony….
• The German have urban settings and are farmers.
• They have close contact with European relatives
• There are traces of German colonialism in Namibia
• The other languages influenced Namibian German
 Portuguese
• They form a small community.
• It is not a recognized language in Namibia.
However ,now there are new development in
this regard.
• They came from Angola.
Current Development of languages
• The objective, you should be able to :
 Indicate the current state of development,
standardisation and use in educational and other
functions of languages in Namibia
 Languages taught in schools
The following languages are taught at school level in Namibia:

• Afrikaans First Language • Setswana

• Afrikaans 2nd Language • English First Language
• Namibian Sign • English 2nd Language
Language • Oshindonga*
• Silozi
• Rumanyo
• German
• Khoekhoegowab
• Otjiherero
• Rukwangali
( see language policy in
• Oshikwanyama school)
* Available on Ordinary and Higher levels.

The above-mentioned languages are used as medium of instruction in Grade 1 –

3 and as language subjects from Grade 1 – 12.

 Owambo and Oshiwambo languages
Although Owambo dialects are mutually intelligible, there
are only three codified dialects by missionaries
– namely Oshindonga, Oshikwanyama and Oshikwambi.
There were official orthography published for
Oshindonga in 1966 and 1975 and for Oshikwanyama in
1966 and 1980.
Oshindonga is used as written standard in all Owambo
kingdoms, except in Uukwanyama.
There are dictionaries published for Oshindonga and
Oshikwanyama.
Available literature in the other dialects is scarce.
Oshindonga and Oshikwanyama are the official
languages.
Oshindonga and Oshikwanyama are used as the
medium of instruction in Grades 1 – 3 and in non-
promotional subjects in the primary school.
School text books from Grade 1 – 12 for
Oshindonga and Oshikwanyama are published and
are being used in the schools.
 Otjiherero
Central Otjiherero formed the basis for standardization.
The other dialect suffered‘ because of this. The other
dialects are very similar to Central Otjiherero, except for
lexicon and prosody.
Otjiherero is recognized as a national language and is
thus used in education, administration and radio
broadcasting. The orthography is first published in 1968
and revised in 1974 and 1983. Several
grammars and dictionaries were published. Other
studies include a place name study by Kamupingene
In Kaokoland there are three dialects of
Otjiherero: northern, central and south-eastern
Otjiherero. There
are some phonological differences – but very
blurred.
The Botswana Herero has close ties with
Namibia. Some of them recently returned to
Namibia.
 Languages in Kavango
Rukwangali

Rukwangali is spoken by the Vakwangali and the Vambunza;

Rukwangali is regarded as the main administrative language in the
two Kavango regions.
Rukwangali has been recognised as a national language and is
used for educational, administrative and broadcasting purposes
together with Mbukushu and Rumanyo.
The orthography is first published during 1968 – 1974. Very little
is written in the language. In 1994 a dictionary is published.
 Rusambyu

There is very little linguistic study in Rusambyu.

No orthography was published. It has no official
status.
Vagciriku
Vagciriku is nearly wiped out.
Rumanyo
Rumanyo (In Maho, J.F. 1998 this language was
misused as Rugciriku) - very near to Shishambyu – is
the second largest language in Okavango.
The orthography is published in 1988. It is a national
language – in education and administration. There is
a dictionary in Rumanyo as well as an orthography.
Few literature books are also available.
 Thimbukushu
The Hambukushu (not all) – migrated to Okavango
from central Africa. Their Chiefs were famous
rainmakers. Their language is Thimbukushu. There
are 10000 speakers of Thimbukushu.
It is recognised as a national language used in
education, administration and broadcasting. The
orthography is published in 1968. One grammar
guide and a dictionary are published in
Thimbukushu.
 Caprivi languages
Subiya
No orthography was yet published for Subiya.
Bafwe
No orthography was yet published for Bafwe.
Bayeyi
No orthography was yet published for Bayeyi.
 Silozi
Silozi is spoken by the Malozi – one of the most
powerful kingdoms in early history.
Silozi has great social importance: it has been
standardized and a revised orthography was
published in 1985. Silozi has educational,
administrative and broadcasting functions. It is
a national language in Zambia and Namibia. It is
spoken in neighboring countries.
 Setswana
Setswana is spoken by a small minority in Namibia
– 6000 people. It is important to note that
Setswana
is a powerful language – 80% of the population in
Botswana speaks it and 2 million in South Africa
speaks it.
Setswana is recognised and used in education, etc.
It is based on South African Standards. There is
abundant literature written in Setswana.
 The Khoesaan languages of Namibia
Khoekhoegowab language
It is the language of the Namas and Damaras. There are 175000
(70000 Nama)KKG speakers in total. Some Hai//om San also
speak KKG. About 5 varieties exist, e.g. Sesfontein variety – but
they can differ substantively.
The first orthography was published in 1969 (rev 1977). It was
standardised by professor Haacke. It is a national language used
in education, administration and broadcasting over the radio.
Literature exists (music…). Abundant academic literature exists –
written by professor Haacke. The
dictionaries that exist are out-dated.
 The San language
There are eight groups of San:
!Kung (O-!Kung, !Xung, Ju/‘hoan, =Kxau //ein)
o Hai//om in northern Namibia. They speak a variety of KKG.
o Kxoe in easternmost Okavango , Caprivi (―black bushmen‖).
Kxoe is not standardized.
o The Naro in Eastern Namibia. The Naro not a standardised
language.
o !Xoo in eastern Namibia. It is not a standardised language.
The standardisation of the language is based on Ju/‘hoan in
1969 (rev 1987). Linguistic literature exists.
The Indo-European languages of Namibia

The Indo-European languages are Afrikaans,

English, German and Portuguese.
 ENGLISH

Standardisation of British English

The first standardisation dated back to the rise of
London in the 9th century and the form of
language spoken in London and the East
Midlands became Standard English within the
Court, literature and education in Britain.
Modern British spelling was standardised in
Samuel Johnson's A Dictionary of the English
Language (1755).
Since the 20th century, books by British authors
intended as guides to English grammar, for
example
Fowler's Modern English Usage and The Complete
Plain Words by Sir Ernest Gower. The Oxford
University Press published The Oxford Manual of
Style in 2002. The Oxford Manual is a standard for
published British English, which writers can use in
the absence of any specific guidance from their
publishing house.
 AFRIKAANS
It is the mother tongue of 9,5% of the population.
In the1980‘s nearly 90% understood Afrikaans.
The vocabulary of Afrikaans is derived from many
languages:
o Most of the vocabulary comes out of Dutch – the
language of its origin.
o Bantu and KKG: boegoe, dagga, gogga, kwagga,
kierie, karos, abba.
o Malay-Portuguese: aia, nonna, bobotie, sosatie.
It was standardised in 1915 with the first edition
of AFRIKAANSE WOORDELYS EN SPELREËLS. It
became the Official language with English in
1925. It is one of the national languages of
Namibia.
It is still spoken widely by the Riemvasmakers,
black Van der Merwes, Rehoboth Basters,
Topnaars, Coloureds and White Afrikaners.
 GERMAN
The situation in Namibia
It is taught in schools as a foreign language from
Grade 8 – 12 and as a first language in German
schools from Grade 1 – 12. It is therefore also
used as medium of instruction in Grade 1 – 3 in
private schools.
 PORTUGUESE

It is only a small community. There is no local

standardization. It is taught in schools as a
foreign language from Grade 8 – 12.
Briefly explain the relationship between
language and culture and illustrate this with
examples
 Language and Thought
• “Language and society are so intertwined that
it is impossible to understand one without the
other. There is no human society that does not
depend on, is not shaped by, and does not
itself shape language” (Chaika, 1989:2).
• that language does influence thought and
perception of reality but language does not
govern thought or reality. (Stacy Phipps, 2001)
 Language and Thought
• Language in society is also concerned with identifying the
social functions of language, as well as the way language
is used to carry social meaning.
• We need a language system in which we order our
thoughts, but language also makes us aware of how we
act and what we do.
• What we think and do are directed by how we experience
the social situation we are in at that moment.
• It also shows us how we have experienced social
situations we were in before
 Language and culture
• Educational system of a society generally
promotes a “dominant’’ culture according to
Pierre Bourdieu.
• Can the language of lower or middle class
children affect their performance in school?
 END OF ELO no. 1

Thank you for your

attention