South Africa's system of official languages

bibliographic database
Line

Periodical article

Title:	South Africa's system of official languages
Author:	Skovsholm, Klavs
Year:	2000
Periodical:	Verfassung und Recht in Übersee
Volume:	33
Issue:	1
Pages:	5-25
Language:	English
Geographic term:	South Africa
Subjects:	language policy multilingualism
Abstract:	This article deals with the current rules on official languages in the Republic of South Africa. After a discussion of language provisions in the 1909, 1961 and 1983 constitutions under the colonial and apartheid regimes and in the 1993 interim constitution, the focus is on the 1996 final Constitution of South Africa. Attention is given to the linguistic situation and language policy in South African society today and the trend towards monolinguism despite the official objective of a multilinguistic society, though this objective does not comprise a total parity between the eleven official languages. Certain languages will appear more as official languages than others simply because of their more frequent use. If this trend continues to grow stronger, Section 6 of the Constitution may one day have to be amended. The appendices present the full text of Sections 3 and 6 of the 1993 and 1996 constitutions respectively, statistics on South Africa's linguistic diversity, and a list of the official languages in the provinces. Notes, ref., sum. (p. 3).