scholarly journals Afrikaans: a language where ideology and linguistics meet

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
pp. 15-92
Author(s):  
Camiel Hamans

This paper summarizes the discussion about the origin and the status of Afrikaans. Two schools appear to be opposed to each other: the philological school and a creolistic view. The philological school tried to demonstrate with meticulous research of sources that Afrikaans is a full daughter of 17th century Dutch, which set foot ashore with van Riebeeck in 1652 at the Cape of Good Hope. Linguists who thought of a pattern of creolization in the formation of Afrikaans point to the influence of the languages of slaves brought to South Africa and to the influence of the original inhabitants, the Khoi and the San. This contribution mainly outlines the ideological background of these two schools of thought. For the philological school this is the system of Apartheid, while for the Creolist view the emphasis is more on decolonization.

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-120
Author(s):  
T N Sithole ◽  
Kgothatso B Shai

Awareness of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW 1979) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC 1989) is relatively high within academic and political circles in South Africa and elsewhere around the world. In South Africa, this can be ascribed mainly to the powerful women’s lobby movements represented in government and academic sectors. Women and children’s issues have been especially highlighted in South Africa over the last few years. In this process, the aforementioned two international human rights instruments have proved very useful. There is a gender desk in each national department. The Office on the Status of Women and the Office on Child Rights have been established within the Office of the President, indicating the importance attached to these institutions. These offices are responsible for co-ordinating governmental efforts towards the promotion and protection of women and children’s rights respectively, including the two relevant treaties. Furthermore, there is also a great awareness amongst non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in respect of CEDAW and CRC. This can be ascribed mainly to the fact that there is a very strong women’s NGO lobby and NGOs are actively committed to the promotion of children’s rights. Women are increasingly vocal and active within the politics of South Africa, but the weight of customary practices remains heavy. The foregoing is evident of the widening gap between policy theory and practice in the fraternity of vulnerable groups – children and women in particular.


2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mbuzeni Mathenjwa

The history of local government in South Africa dates back to a time during the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910. With regard to the status of local government, the Union of South Africa Act placed local government under the jurisdiction of the provinces. The status of local government was not changed by the formation of the Republic of South Africa in 1961 because local government was placed under the further jurisdiction of the provinces. Local government was enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa arguably for the first time in 1993. Under the interim Constitution local government was rendered autonomous and empowered to regulate its affairs. Local government was further enshrined in the final Constitution of 1996, which commenced on 4 February 1997. The Constitution refers to local government together with the national and provincial governments as spheres of government which are distinctive, interdependent and interrelated. This article discusses the autonomy of local government under the 1996 Constitution. This it does by analysing case law on the evolution of the status of local government. The discussion on the powers and functions of local government explains the scheme by which government powers are allocated, where the 1996 Constitution distributes powers to the different spheres of government. Finally, a conclusion is drawn on the legal status of local government within the new constitutional dispensation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 138 ◽  
pp. 33-40
Author(s):  
Susan Canavan ◽  
David M. Richardson ◽  
Johannes J. Le Roux ◽  
Scot A. Kelchner ◽  
John R.U. Wilson
Keyword(s):  

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 297-310
Author(s):  
Marijana Horvat ◽  
Martina Kramarić

In this article, we will present the rich linguistic heritage of the Croatian language and our attempts to ensure its preservation and presentation to the general public by means of the "Retro-digitization and Interpretation of Croatian Grammar Books before Illyrism ‒ RETROGRAM" project. There is a long tradition of grammatical description in the history of the Croatian language. The first grammar book of the Croatian language was written at the beginning of the 17th century and the first grammar book written in Croatian was compiled in the middle of the 17th century. In later years, when literary and linguistic activity were transferred from the Dalmatian area to the northern and eastern part of Croatia, the Latin model for the description of the Croatian language was still present, even though German was also used. There were a large number of grammars written up to the second half of the 19th century, which are considered pre-standard Croatian grammars. They are the subject of research within the project "Pre-standard Croatian Grammars" at the Institute of Croatian Language and Linguistics. This research proposal "Retro-digitization and Interpretation of Croatian Grammar Books before Illyrism" aims to create a model for the retro-digitization of the chosen eight Pre-standard Croatian Grammars (written from the 17th until the 19th century). The retro-digitization of Croatian grammar books implies the transfer of printed media to computer-readable and searchable text. It also includes a multilevel mark-up of transcribed or translated grammar text. The next step of the project is the creation of a Web Portal of Pre-standard Croatian Grammars, on which both the facsimiles and the digitized text of the grammars will be presented. Our aim is to present to the wider and international public the attainments of the Croatian language and linguistics as an important part of Croatian culture in general. Keywords: pre-standard Croatian grammars, history of the Croatian language, retro-digitization, Extensible mark-up language, Text encoding initiative, web portal of pre-standard Croatian grammars


1976 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 392-402
Author(s):  
E. W. Anderson

On 29 October 1969, taking the chair at a Duke of Edinburgh Lecture, the great educator Lord Butler commented, ‘…in my view, it would do a great deal of good if navigation could be considered an educational subject’. Indeed, we know that by 1700 the discipline was being taught in ordinary schools in this country, and it is perhaps worth repeating Isaac Newton's remarks on the Christ's Hospital syllabus: ‘he that is able to argue nimbly and judiciously about figure, force and motion is never at rest until he gets over every rub’.The inclusion of navigation in the curricula of schools during the 17th century was for financial rather than for educative reasons. In those days, the master of a ship was responsible for its navigation and invariably had a stake in the marine enterprise. Thus he might make a small fortune in a single voyage. By 1800, the introduction of the limited liability shipping company and the growth of marine insurance were beginning to relegate the captain to the status of a hired servant paid the minimum wage. Navigation rapidly disappeared from ordinary schools and was taught only in the specialized nautical establishments. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that today, the mariner, the submariner, the pilot and the astronaut have restored to the subject its original lustre and the yachting explosion has given the discipline a wide appeal.


2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 1282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jyothi Kara ◽  
Angus H. H. Macdonald ◽  
Carol A. Simon

The nereidid Pseudonereis variegata (Grube, 1866) described from Chile includes 14 synonymised species from 10 type localities with a discontinuous distribution, but no taxonomic or molecular studies have investigated the status of this species outside Chile. Two synonymised species, Mastigonereis podocirra Schmarda, 1861 and Nereis (Nereilepas) stimpsonis Grube, 1866, were described from South Africa and investigated here using morphological examination. MtCOI species delimitation analyses and morphology were used to determine the status of P. variegata in South Africa. Morphological examination revealed that museum and freshly collected specimens from South Africa that conform to the general description of P. variegata are similar to M. podocirra and N. stimpsonis with respect to the consistent absence of homogomph spinigers in the inferior neuropodial fascicle, expanded notopodial ligules and the subterminal attachment of dorsal cirri in posterior parapodia. The synonymy of M. podocirra and N. stimpsonis as P. variegata are rejected and P. podocirra, comb. nov. is reinstated. Morphologically, Pseudonereis podocirra differed from specimens from Chile with regard to the numbers of paragnaths, the absence of homogomph spinigers and changes in parapodial morphology along the body. Independence of these species was further supported by genetic distances, automatic barcode gap discovery and multi-rate Poisson tree process species delimitation analyses of 77 mtCOI sequences. Haplotype network revealed no genetic structuring within the South African populations. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:F0B1A5AF-9CE9-4A43-ACCF-17117E1C2F21


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 131-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nkosivile Welcome Madinga ◽  
Eugine Tafadzwa Maziriri ◽  
Thobekani Lose

South Africa is one of the most important countries in the status goods market. In addition, it has the biggest share from the status consumption market in Africa and it is amongst fastest growing countries worldwide in status consumption. The growth in status consumption in South Africa is attributed to the growth of the high-income and middle-income groups. As the demand for status increases and status goods become more available, the concept of status has become an important research area for academics and marketers. The aim of this study is to explore the concept of status consumption and provide an overview of status consumption. In this study, the literature has been reviewed for the studies on the same subject to make a compilation


Bothalia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Norbert Hahn

Background: The first checklist for the Soutpansberg was published in 1946, and the second list was compiled by the author in 2006 as part of his doctoral thesis. Currently, there is a need for an updated account of the biodiversity of the Soutpansberg Centre of Endemism and Diversity for conservation planning in the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve, within which the Soutpansberg is the principle geomorphological feature.Objectives: To present an updated list of vascular plants recorded for the Soutpansberg.Method: The list was compiled from various sources including literature reviews, herbarium specimens, herbarium databases and personal observations.Results: This article presents the most geographically accurate and taxonomically updated list of the indigenous vascular flora of the Soutpansberg, the northernmost mountain range of South Africa. Altogether 2443 taxa are recorded belonging to 922 genera in 187 families and 64 orders.Conclusion: The list presented in this article confirms the status of the Soutpansberg as a centre of floristic diversity in southern Africa. Notable is the higher-order diversity of the flora. It is likely that both future surveys and reviews of herbarium collections will add new taxa to the current total.


Obiter ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Glynis van der Walt

Currently, South Africa has an estimated 5,2 million abandoned children in need of care. Facing the highest rate of deaths worldwide from HIV/AIDS, and as a developing country, many children are left in need of care. The current article considers the status of alternative care in South Africa in light of the State’s ability to provide appropriate alternative care for those in need thereof.


1992 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y.M. Herselman ◽  
J.H. Van Wyk ◽  
P. le F.N. Mouton

AbstractTo evaluate the taxonomic status of the races of the graceful crag lizard, Pseudocordylus capensis, geographical variation in 44 external morphological characters was determined, using 97 specimens from 31 localities. Two different epiphenotypes predominate in the northern and southwestern parts of the distribution range. These epiphenotypes are, however, connected by a continuum of variation. It is therefore suggested that the recognition of races be abandoned in the formal taxonomy. Several new distribution records for the species are provided.


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