South Africans should learn to speak each other's languages, says KZN artist

[wizardofid]

Agreed.

Afrikaans is well known for its high-octane swearing.

You get emotionally bliksemed...

The snappy comebacks as well.

"Jy is n drol"
"Dit vat n klien drol om n' groot drol te sien"

You are a piece of shyte.
It takes a little shyte to see a big one.

 

[Vorastra]

Lived amongst English speakers but couldn't learn to speak the language...?

I picked up basic xiTsonga phrases listening to an ex colleague. How hard is it to pick something up listening and interacting with hundreds daily?

150 IQ

 

[JuliusSeizure]

I know enough Afrikaans that with context I know what somebody is saying despite not knowing a lot of the words. I can't seem to read it anymore.

I can understand basic Dutch, depending on the accent

I was a 40%er most of the Gr11 and matric but somehow got over 50% in my final results

You can be kak at a second language in school and still ace it. For Afrikaans, they usually give away the essay questions more or less so most kids memorize the work.

The teachers kids (I'm sure you have seen this in the Indian community) also usually ace the papers because their parents are giving them inside info behind the scenes. In the Indian community, there is a very high link between "academic high achievers" and teachers kids and it's not always because these kids are smarter but they get inside info as well.

It also depends on the teacher you have. I did well in Afrikaans for the most part in ended with a strong B in matric because I ended up with a new teacher who did not have enough time to take a liking to me. Had it been my Grade 10-11 teacher, I'd have got an A.

They mark on reputation and if they have a family/friend connection to said student, also mark higher.

Basically, our education system does not actually teach kids languages.

 

[Phylax]

What's the problem with learning another language which is one of SA's 11 official languages to understand and talk to more of your countrymen?

Why tf would I want to talk to more of my countrymen???

And if we really need to speak with each other, let's just stick with English.

I really have no desire to learn an extra African language, Afrikaans is good enough for me!

 

[JuliusSeizure]

I picked up basic xiTsonga phrases listening to an ex colleague. How hard is it to pick something up listening and interacting with hundreds daily?

Good point. Most SA languages are not hard to learn compared to Euro and Asian languages, especially for English speakers.

 

[Okty]

Lived amongst English speakers but couldn't learn to speak the language...?

I picked up basic xiTsonga phrases listening to an ex colleague. How hard is it to pick something up listening and interacting with hundreds daily?

Fair enough.

But fortunately haven't encountered this problem of people not speaking or understanding english, even in the rural parts of Mpumalanga.

 

[wizardofid]

Afrikaners are emotional people.

Hence when we get angry, we don't get angry, we get dik befok. Unparalleled anger, lol.

Is dit nie bom befok nie ?

Example. Dis nou fokken mooi, Bril fokken jant, maatjie, Is jy fokken bom befok ?

 

[surface]

I used to run a shop for 10 years in the early 2000s that had 100% black customers. If they didn't speak English they didn't get served lmao

good old days, hein? Well, at least you had black customers admitted to your shop. Well done.

 

[Vorastra]

good old days, hein? Well, at least you had black customers admitted to your shop. Well done.

The good old days of....the 2000s?
lmao

 

[wizardofid]

You can be kak at a second language in school and still ace it. For Afrikaans, they usually give away the essay questions more or less so most kids memorize the work.

The teachers kids (I'm sure you have seen this in the Indian community) also usually ace the papers because their parents are giving them inside info behind the scenes. In the Indian community, there is a very high link between "academic high achievers" and teachers kids and it's not always because these kids are smarter but they get inside info as well.

It also depends on the teacher you have. I did well in Afrikaans for the most part in ended with a strong B in matric because I ended up with a new teacher who did not have enough time to take a liking to me. Had it been my Grade 10-11 teacher, I'd have got an A.

They mark on reputation and if they have a family/friend connection to said student, also mark higher.

Basically, our education system does not actually teach kids languages.

Just remembered why I have you on my ignore list. The conspiracy theories you have, is worse than drunk posting.....

 

[PrimeSteak]

Is dit nie bom befok nie ?

Example. Dis nou fokken mooi, Bril fokken jant, maatjie, Is jy fokken bom befok ?

I think both can be used.

 

[konfab]

Lived amongst English speakers but couldn't learn to speak the language...?

I picked up basic xiTsonga phrases listening to an ex colleague. How hard is it to pick something up listening and interacting with hundreds daily?

You say that as if it is just a matter of effort and not a matter of ability.

I spent my entire school career working my hardest at Afrikaans and I can barely say a few phrases. I had hours of 3rd and 4th year lectures in Afrikaans and still didn't pick up anything other than a bit of spelling relating to electrical engineering. I married into a very Afrikaans family and despite hearing the cackling of Afrikaans every weekend, I still am about as hopeless at the language as I was when I left school.

I don't demand that everyone in society has the same level of math and science that I have because I know some people won't be able to do it, so why should I be expected to have the same level of multilingualism as everyone else?

 

[wizardofid]

I think both can be used.

Afrikaans sarcasm is also quite beautiful, it is entirely lost when translated to english in most cases.

 

[HunterNW]

You say that as if it is just a matter of effort and not a matter of ability.

I spent my entire school career working my hardest at Afrikaans and I can barely say a few phrases. I had hours of 3rd and 4th year lectures in Afrikaans and still didn't pick up anything other than a bit of spelling relating to electrical engineering. I married into a very Afrikaans family and despite hearing the cackling of Afrikaans every weekend, I still am about as hopeless at the language as I was when I left school.

I don't demand that everyone in society has the same level of math and science that I have because I know some people won't be able to do it, so why should I be expected to have the same level of multilingualism as everyone else?

Jou tril man. Fokken hoenders kekkel. Soutpiel.

 

[Polymathic]

You can be kak at a second language in school and still ace it. For Afrikaans, they usually give away the essay questions more or less so most kids memorize the work.

The teachers kids (I'm sure you have seen this in the Indian community) also usually ace the papers because their parents are giving them inside info behind the scenes. In the Indian community, there is a very high link between "academic high achievers" and teachers kids and it's not always because these kids are smarter but they get inside info as well.

It also depends on the teacher you have. I did well in Afrikaans for the most part in ended with a strong B in matric because I ended up with a new teacher who did not have enough time to take a liking to me. Had it been my Grade 10-11 teacher, I'd have got an A.

They mark on reputation and if they have a family/friend connection to said student, also mark higher.

Basically, our education system does not actually teach kids languages.

The standard way languages are thought internationally, makes people masters in grammatical rules of the language but with little ability to actually speaker

 

[konfab]

Jou tril man. Fokken hoenders kekkel. Soutpiel.

Ok rope.

 

[Gyre]

You say that as if it is just a matter of effort and not a matter of ability.

I spent my entire school career working my hardest at Afrikaans and I can barely say a few phrases. I had hours of 3rd and 4th year lectures in Afrikaans and still didn't pick up anything other than a bit of spelling relating to electrical engineering. I married into a very Afrikaans family and despite hearing the cackling of Afrikaans every weekend, I still am about as hopeless at the language as I was when I left school.

I don't demand that everyone in society has the same level of math and science that I have because I know some people won't be able to do it, so why should I be expected to have the same level of multilingualism as everyone else?

I'm also bad with languages, but pretty okay with everything else. People just have different ways of learning.

 

[surface]

I know enough Afrikaans that with context I know what somebody is saying despite not knowing a lot of the words. I can't seem to read it anymore.

Good chances because people hardly speak pure afrikaans these days. I am not saying this - I heard it from nearly all my afrikaans colleagues that are over 45. Same is true of many other languages of course - a liberal sprinkling of English makes you understand any language because they are speaking English. LOL.

You can't seem to read it because writers (news e.g.) still write mostly pure afrikaans.

 

[wizardofid]

You say that as if it is just a matter of effort and not a matter of ability.

I spent my entire school career working my hardest at Afrikaans and I can barely say a few phrases. I had hours of 3rd and 4th year lectures in Afrikaans and still didn't pick up anything other than a bit of spelling relating to electrical engineering. I married into a very Afrikaans family and despite hearing the cackling of Afrikaans every weekend, I still am about as hopeless at the language as I was when I left school.

I don't demand that everyone in society has the same level of math and science that I have because I know some people won't be able to do it, so why should I be expected to have the same level of multilingualism as everyone else?

It is weird that english speakers have trouble with afrikaans, but afrikaans speakers in general don't have issues with english. They aren't that dissimilar, with a few exceptions they have overlapping rules, in many instances afrikaans just straight up stole words from english and changed the spelling. active = aktief, changing the c with double or singular K. activity= aktiewetyd, activist = aktevis activist-ism = aktevisme. Pretty strange.

 

[HunterNW]

Ok rope.

Tou ? Soek jy 'n tou ?