Awe! Hulle
wietie vi os, om te se, da is drie ouviesil lengwiejes innie Kaap, ma
wat vannie lengwiej wat os wietie ? Hulle moenie dink hulle kan vi os
swak maak moet osse lengwiej 'ie. Os sal hulle wysmaak van osse ding.
The above is a
demonstration of the way
most people on the Cape Flats speak. It is written as it is
spoken and, therefore, can be very confusing, even to the very
people who speak like this, unless it is read aloud.
( Click play on the audio icon
to listen to how the above is spoken.)
Translated into English, it means the following:
Hey! We are told
that there are three official languages in Cape Town, but what about
the language that we speak ? They must not think that they can
undermine our way of speaking. We will show them a thing or two.
The problem with this
translation is
that, while it correctly translates the words, it does not
necessarily capture the meaning, because the meaning depends on
the context in which the above was said, and even more
importantly, the tone of voice that was used. So for example, the
simple word "Awe!" could be an expression of surprise,
anger or disappointment, depending on how it was spoken.
So what is my point
with all of this ?
Basically, that in
the context of South
Africa having 11 official languages, three would be applicable in
Cape Town; namely, English, Afrikaans and Xhosa. However, most
people on the Cape Flats, while regarded as Afrikaans speakers,
in fact speak what is commonly called "Kapie-taal". It
is predominantly Afrikaans, but includes English and a few Xhosa
words as well- amongst older people it is also not uncommon to
find a few Dutch words. The problem is that the way in which
these languages are corrupted and combined to make up Kapie-taal,
means that in the end, what is spoken bears very little
resemblance to the original languages.
So the word 'official', which in Afrikaans is 'amptelik', becomes
"ouviesil" in Kapie-taal. To make it even worse, people on the
Cape Flats tend to speak very rapidly and with a sing-song type
of voice which, if you're not used to it, can sound quite
comical.
Kapie-taal is not to be confused with what is known as
"fly-taal" or "tsotsi-taal". The latter two
are normally used to refer to the style of speaking adopted by
township gangsters, and lately, by black yuppies. They're all
very similar, in that they tend to consist of a combination of
languages which have been corrupted to the extent that a
"new" language is produced. The difference, however, is
that for many people on the Cape Flats, Kapie-taal is the
language they speak and unlike tsotsi-taal, it is not regarded as
something unusual, certainly not on the Cape Flats.
The exciting thing about the language of the Cape Flats, is that
it is dynamic and is forever in a process of change, as new
experiences and situations are incorporated into it. It is also a
very expressive language in which the words used often seem to
have no direct bearing on the subject of discussion, but
illustrates the point being made in a way which is unimaginable
in the English language. Two examples (these incidents are not
necessarily true. I'm inventing them for the purposes of
demonstration):
Someone asks a
minibus-taxi driver the cost of a trip from Athlone to Mowbray. The
reply is that it will cost a "De Klerkie".
Now unless you understand the context within which this discussion is
taking place, it does not make sense at all. After all, what the hell
is a "De Klerkie"?
The simple answer is that South Africa's two-rand coin was minted for
the first time during the period when FW de Klerk (ex-State President)
was at the height of his political career. The two-rand coin was
promptly dubbed a "De Klerkie". In other words, a trip from Athlone to
Mowbray would cost two rands.
This second example
illustrates the
expressiveness of the Cape Flats language:
A mother is
complaining about her five-year old who refuses to walk anywhere, but
who does not hestitate to get into anyone's car to be driven somewhere,
and she says: "Hy wil net voetjies hang" (literally translated as "he
just wants to have his feet hanging"). Now the connection between
"voetjies hang" and driving in a car is not very obvious, except when
you think about it- when a five year old sits in a car, his or her feet
normally do not reach the floor i.e. they're hanging in the air,
therefore "hy wil net voetjies hang". Quite something, isn't it?
Nou ja, my blas. Julle
moenie nog ko
sikkel moetie ouens vannie Toun nie. Os ken julle gedagtes en os
tel nogal'ie oppie. Ek gan vi julle notch...
( Click play on the audio icon
to listen to how the above is spoken.)