South African English is the set of English dialects native to South Africa, shaped by the country's particular linguistic and colonial history. The 2011 census counted about 4.9 million first language English speakers, some 9.6 percent of the national population, concentrated most heavily in the Western Cape, Gauteng, and KwaZulu-Natal. British settlement began in 1795, with a major wave of about 5,000 settlers arriving in the Eastern Cape in 1820, and English became an official language in 1822. The dialect resembles British English more closely than American English because of this colonial history, and it has absorbed vocabulary from Afrikaans and indigenous African languages, including braai for barbecue and robot for traffic light. It also exists in several distinct forms, with White South African English dividing into Cultivated, General, and Broad varieties alongside distinct Black, Indian, and Coloured South African English varieties, each with its own phonology and grammar.
Facts
RegionNative to South Africans; developed from British settlement beginning in 1795, with the first major influx of English speakers, about 5,000 mostly rural or working-class settlers, arriving in the Eastern Cape in 1820. 1 Speaker CommunityWhite South African English is often described through Roger Lass's 'Great Trichotomy' of sub-varieties: Cultivated (upper class, close to Received Pronunciation), General (middle class, the common tongue) and Broad (working class, closely approximating Afrikaans English). 1 Distinguishing FeaturesThe KIT vowel shows allophonic variation: after /h/ it is pronounced [ɪ], before tautosyllabic /l/ it is pronounced [ɤ], and in other contexts it is pronounced [ə], a feature not present in Conservative South African English. 1 Classification
Variety Kind Sources
1. Wikipedia: South African English
Wikimedia FoundationHistory section
The first major influx of English speakers arrived in 1820. About 5,000 British settlers, mostly rural or working class, settled in the Eastern Cape.
White South African English section
In this classification, the "Cultivated" variety closely approximates England's standard Received Pronunciation and is associated with the upper class; the "General" variety is a social indicator of the middle class and is the common tongue; and the "Broad" variety is most associated with the working class, low socioeconomic status, and little education.
Phonology, Vowels section
In some contexts, such as after /h/, the KIT vowel is pronounced [ɪ]; before tautosyllabic /l/ it is pronounced [ɤ]; and in other contexts it is pronounced [ə]. This feature is not present in Conservative SAE, and may have resulted from a vocalic chain shift in White SAE.
Variety kind, South African English entity page
South African English is the set of English dialects native to South Africa, shaped by the country's particular linguistic and colonial history.
View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.