Stellenbosch University Language Centre

Tag: Africa Day

The days of the week in isiXhosa

Why do we say ‘Monday’ for Monday? Where do the names for the days of the week come from in isiXhosa, English and Afrikaans?

uMvulo (The day opening the week)

In Afrikaans and English, the names of the days of the week come from Roman mythology. So, Monday is a loan translation of the Latin ‘dies lunae’, which means ‘day of Luna’, because this day is dedicated to the Roman moon goddess Luna.

In isiXhosa, each day of the week is linked to a specific meaning. The first day of the week in isiXhosa, ‘uMvulo’, is derived from the verb ‘-vula’, which means ‘to open’. In other words, Monday is the day opening the week.

uLwesibini (The second day)

The amaXhosa also use the seven-day week, however, unlike in Afrikaans or English, they derive the words for Tuesday to Friday from numerals. The word for ‘two’ in isiXhosa is ‘-bini’ and that is why we say ‘uLwesibini’ for Tuesday in isiXhosa.

uLwesithathu (The third day)

For the remaining days before the weekend, we can simply substitute the numeral part of the word to show which day it is. To create the isiXhosa word for Wednesday, we use the numeral ‘-thathu’, which means three, to form ‘uLwesithathu’.

uLwesine (The fourth day)

For the fourth day of the week  we use the isiXhosa numeral ‘-ne’, which means ‘four’, to create ‘uLwesine’ – the isiXhosa word for Thursday.

uLwesihlanu (The fifth day)

Friday is the last day of the week derived from numerals in isiXhosa. We use the numeral ‘-hlanu’, which means ‘five’ in isiXhosa, to get to ‘uLwesihlanu’ – the Xhosa word for Friday.

uMgqibelo (The day ending the week)

According to the seven-day calendar Sunday marks the end of the week. However, in isiXhosa, Saturday is considered the last day of the week or the day that ends or closes the week. Therefore, in isiXhosa we use the word ‘uMgqibelo’ for Saturday, which is derived from the verb ‘-gqibela’, meaning ‘to finish’.

iCawa (Church day)

Sunday is  the day when people traditionally go to church.   European missionaries settled among the amaXhosa in the 1820s, introducing Christian traditions, some of which the amaXhosa have adopted. That is why we use the isiXhosa word for church, ‘iCawa’, to refer to Sunday in isiXhosa.

If you’ve read until this point, congratulations – you’ve added seven words to your isiXhosa vocabulary!

Tags: , , , ,

Africa Day 2023: Our Africa, our future

In recognition of its wonder and multifaceted nature, the month of May is dedicated to Africa.

Africa Day itself is celebrated on 25 May – this year to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Organisation of African Unity (now known as the African Union), founded on 25 May 1963. On this day, leaders of 30 of the 32 independent African states signed a founding charter in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and vowed to encourage nation-building through unity and freedom from oppression.

This month, the Language Centre has chosen to highlight the important roles that interpreters have played on the African continent to overcome language barriers – from the professional linguists and praise singers of tribal African societies to the modern-day interpreters who facilitate nation-building and provide access to services by interpreting in national parliaments, conferences, courts and hospitals. And, of course, we also think of the educational interpreters who make it possible for university lectures to be understood in Afrikaans, English, isiXhosa and South African Sign Language.

The practice of interpreting from one language to another on the African continent, as elsewhere, goes back thousands of years.

[us_hwrapper]

In many African societies, the professional linguists or praise singers belonged to a long line of gifted multilingual orators who devised praise songs on important public occasions to celebrate the victories and glorious qualities of the chief and his ancestors.”

[/us_hwrapper]

The oral art of West African griots (‘bards’) and Southern African iimbongi (‘praise singers’) continues today, with praise singers acting as modern political commentators.

The hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission from 1996 to 1998 marked the first opportunity for many South Africans to become acquainted with the marvels of simultaneous interpreting in the eleven official languages of South Africa. Interpreters facilitated reconciliation during the hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Since then, they have continued to help to build South Africa as a nation at national and provincial legislatures, municipal council meetings and conferences. Other major employers of interpreters in Africa include the African Union, Pan-African Parliament, UNON (the United Nations Office in Nairobi), SADC (the Southern African development community) and the African Development Bank.

All around the world, sign language interpreters are known for facilitating access to education for Deaf students, but what is less well known is that spoken language interpreters can do the same for hearing students. This way several South African universities make university lectures accessible to students who are not necessarily so comfortable in the language of teaching. At SU, our educational interpreters work in Afrikaans, English, isiXhosa and South African Sign Language.

We celebrate the role interpreting has played over the years to help Africa and its people connect and prosper. At the Language Centre we consider ourselves privileged to be part of that story, and also to be part of the future of Africa – our Africa.

If you’re an interpreter working in Africa, please share your story with us. E-mail us at taalsentrum@sun.ac.za.

Source:
Wallmach, K. 2015. Africa. In Pöchhacker, F. (ed.) Encyclopaedia of Interpreting Studies. London: Routledge.

Blog by Dr Kim Wallmach, Director of the Language Centre

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Africa Day 2021: The gift of connection

In recognition of its wonder and multifaceted nature, the month of May is dedicated to Africa. Africa Day itself is celebrated on 25 May to commemorate the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (now known as the African Union) on 25 May 1963. On this day, leaders of 30 of the 32 independent African states signed a founding charter in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and vowed to encourage nation-building through unity and freedom from oppression.

This month, the Language Centre has chosen to highlight the important roles that interpreters have played on the African continent to overcome language barriers – from the professional linguists and praise singers of tribal African societies to the modern-day interpreters who facilitate nation-building and provide access to services by interpreting in national parliaments, conferences, courts and hospitals. And, of course, we also think of the educational interpreters who make it possible for university lectures to be understood in Afrikaans, English, isiXhosa and South African Sign Language.  

The practice of interpreting from one language to another on the African continent, as elsewhere, goes back thousands of years. In many African societies, the professional linguists or praise singers belonged to a long line of gifted multilingual orators who devised praise songs on important public occasions to celebrate the victories and glorious qualities of the chief and his ancestors. The oral art of West African griots (‘bards’) and Southern African iimbongi (‘praise singers’) continues today, with praise singers acting as modern political commentators.

The hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission from 1996 to 1998 marked the first opportunity for many South Africans to become acquainted with the marvels of simultaneous interpreting in the eleven official languages of South Africa. Interpreters facilitated reconciliation during the hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Since then, they have continued to help to build South Africa as a nation at national and provincial legislatures, municipal council meetings and conferences. Other major employers of interpreters in Africa include the African Union, Pan-African Parliament, UNON (the United Nations Office in Nairobi), SADC (the Southern African development community) and the African Development Bank.

All around the world, sign language interpreters are known for facilitating access to education for Deaf students, but what is less well known is that spoken language interpreters can do the same for hearing students. This way several South African universities make university lectures accessible to students who are not necessarily so comfortable in the language of teaching. At SU, our educational interpreters work in Afrikaans, English, isiXhosa and South African Sign Language.

We celebrate the role interpreting has played over the years to help Africa and its people connect and prosper. At the Language Centre we consider ourselves privileged to be part of that story.

If you’re an interpreter working in Africa, please share your story with us. E-mail us at taalsentrum@sun.ac.za.

– by Kim Wallmach

Source:
Wallmach, K. 2015. Africa. In Pöchhacker, F. (ed.) Encyclopaedia of Interpreting Studies. London: Routledge.

Tags: , , , , , , , ,