Afrikaans Translation Services

Language History
Afrikaans, also known as the Cape Dutch, is a language that is part of the west Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family. It was originally a language spoken between 1652 and 1705 by Dutch settlers and workers in areas of South Africa. Until the 20th century, Afrikaans was considered a Dutch dialect and in the mid 1920s, it became recognised as a distinct language from Dutch.
There are many debates on the origins of this language. Some believe it was used as a creole between Dutch settlers and their African and South Asian workers, while others believe the language kept a lot of Dutch structure and vocabulary to be dubbed a creole.
According to World Data, there around 23 million people that speak Afrikaans worldwide.
Where is Afrikaans Spoken?
FACT
Did you Know?
Dialects
• Cape Afrikaans: influenced by the language of Malay slaves.
• Orange River Afrikaans: influenced by the Khoi languages.
• East Cape Afrikaans: developed through contact between Dutch and English settlers.
“Afrikaans is the youngest official language in the world as it was only recognised in 1925 by the South African government.”
4 Easy Phrases in Afrikaans!
Population vs. Internet Penetration
South Africa Population:
11,193,725
Internet Users:
887,722
Penetration:
7.9%
As of 2020. Source:
www.internetworldstats.com
FACT
Afrikaans Translation Tips
• The stress in Afrikaans words are on the first syllable, however there are some exceptions.
• Definite articles in Afrikaans is die and indefinite articles is ‘n.
• Nouns are not marked for gender or case, but for number, instead.
• In the present tense, verbs are not marked for person.
• Word structure in Afrikaans is Subject-Verb-Object.