Languages of South Africa facts for kids
South Africa is a country with a rich mix of cultures and languages! It's special because it has eleven official languages. This means that these languages are recognized and used by the government and in official documents.
Most people in South Africa, over 99%, speak one of these eleven languages as their first language. Many South Africans can even speak more than one language! Before 1994, South Africa only had two official languages: English and Afrikaans.
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Languages of South Africa
What Are the Official Languages?
The eleven official languages of South Africa are:
- Afrikaans
- English
- Ndebele
- Northern Sotho
- Sotho (also called Southern Sotho)
- Swati
- Tswana
- Tsonga
- Venda
- Xhosa
- Zulu
The South African constitution (which is like the country's rulebook) lists these languages by their names in their own language. For example, Zulu is called isiZulu, and Xhosa is called isiXhosa.
Different Names for Languages
In South Africa, Southern Ndebele is usually just called Ndebele. This is because most people who speak Northern Ndebele live in Zimbabwe, a country near South Africa.
Northern Sotho has also had different names. In 1993, the constitution called it Sesotho sa Leboa. But in 1996, it was changed to Sepedi. Different government groups still use different names for Northern Sotho today.
Language Families
Two of South Africa's official languages, English and Afrikaans, are Germanic languages. This means they come from a language family that includes German and Dutch.
The other nine languages are Bantu languages. These languages are part of a very large family of languages spoken across much of Africa.
- Four of the Bantu languages belong to the Nguni family: Zulu, Xhosa, Swati, and Ndebele.
- Three of the Bantu languages are Sotho-Tswana languages: Northern Sotho, Southern Sotho, and Tswana.
- Tsonga is a Tswa-Ronga language.
South Africa also has its own national sign language, called South African Sign Language. This is used by people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Languages in Government and Business
English is the main language used by the government in South Africa. This means that official documents and government meetings often use English.
Both Afrikaans and English are very important languages for commerce (business and trade). Many wealthy South Africans speak both Afrikaans and English.
Images for kids
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See also
In Spanish: Lenguas de Sudáfrica para niños
