Prefixes of Sesotho, isiZulu and other home languages November 21, 2008
Posted by Rethabile in sesotho, vocabulary.Tags: language, sesotho, vocabulary
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“We continue to refer to some of our most widely used languages as Zulu, Sotho, Tswana, Pedi and Xhosa, which is inappropriate.
Instead, we have languages called Sesotho, Sepedi, Setswana, IsiZulu and IsiXhosa. An important feature of African grammar is the use of prefixes called concords, which create meaning for the principal or term. In the above example, the prefix “Se” or “Isi” is appropriate.
But we have unconsciously (this is my perception, at least) allowed this to continue as part of apartheid’s legacy of demeaning South Africa’s indigenous cultures.
KwaZulu-Natal cannot be changed to Zulu Natal because without the prefix “Kwa” the term would be meaningless.
The prefix therefore enhances meaning, clarity and context — in much the same way that the English word race has at least two distinct meanings. In the same way, we should be saying that Sesotho is spoken in Lesotho, and it would be nonsensical to say that Sotho (language) is spoken in Sotho (place).”
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