Afrikaanslanguage

Afrikaans is a West Germanic language spoken mainly in South Africa and Namibia. It originated from the Dutch vernacular of the 17th-century Cape Colony and developed into a distinct language through contact with Khoisan languages, Malay, Indonesian, and other languages spoken in the region.

Over time it diverged from Dutch, expanding its own vocabulary and simplifying grammar. By the 19th and early 20th centuries a standardized form was codified, and Afrikaans gained official status alongside Dutch in South Africa.

It is one of the 11 official languages of South Africa and is widely used in education, media, and government. In Namibia, Afrikaans is widely used in administration and media.

The language has regional varieties, including General Afrikaans and localized forms in the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, and Free State, with influences from Malay and Khoisan in vocabulary and pronunciation.

Afrikaans uses the Latin alphabet with a spelling system simplified from Dutch. It generally has no grammatical gender and tends to analytic constructions, with a relatively fixed subject–verb–object word order and frequent formation of compound words.

In culture and media, Afrikaans plays a significant role in Southern Africa’s literature, journalism, radio, and film, and it is studied as a first or second language by millions, forming a core part of the region’s linguistic landscape.