Language is a verbal representation of culture and people.
South Africa is considered therainbow nationsince it is one of the most ethnically diverse nations on the continent.
For decades, the languages recognised by the constitution included English, European-Dutch, and Afrikaans.
Photo: canva.com (modified by author)Source: UGC
So, how many official languages in South Africa are recognised by the constitution?
11 languages of South Africa
The constitution recognizes 11 SA languages.
Initially, the nation had 34 languages, but four Khoesan dialects have become extinct.
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Out of the remaining 30, 19 are less famous.
Here are the most common ones.
Zulu
Zuluis spoken by over eleven million people living in KwaZulu.
Zulu traditional attire. Photo: zulu_tradition_loveSource: Instagram
It is among the leading official languages of South Africa.
It is estimated that about 22.7% of the citizens speak the isiZulu.
Out of these, 99.4% are black.
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Xhosa
Xhosa is the second most spoken language in the country, with over eight million native speakers.
Afrikaans
Afrikaans evolved from Dutch introduced in the country in 1652.
With over six million native users, it continues to gain prominence across the country.
Sependi heritage. Photo: mrskatlego_mohlalaSource: Instagram
Currently, more than ten million people use it as a second lingo.
Afrikaans is one of the most spoken languages in South Africa.
It is spoken by at least 9.6% of the country.
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5.
Sependi
Sependi is also known asSesotho sa Leboaor Northern Sotho.
Currently, about 9.1% of the entire population speaks Sependi.
The Venda. Photo: charllotedm_saSource: Instagram
Tswana
Tswana, also known as Setswana, is spoken by about four million people from early childhood.
However, there are over seven million people who use it as a second lingo.
Over eight million citizens learnt it and use it now.
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Sotho is mainly spoken by the blacks, who make about 99% of all native speakers.
About 9.4% of the entire nations population know it.
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8.
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Tsonga
About 2.2 million citizens speak Tsonga as their mother tongue.
More than three million others use it as a second tongue.
Tsonga is mainly concentrated in the North-Eastern region, especially in the South Africa-Mozambique border.
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Swati
Swati is a Nguni language that is spoken inMpumalangaand areas along the South African-Swaziland border.
It is among the least spoken South Africa languages, with only about one million native speakers using it.
Nonetheless, at least two million others have learned it as a second lingo.
Venda
It is also known as Tshivenda and is used by at least one million people.
About 1.7 million people use Venda besides other languages.
The Venda is spoken mainly among the Sotho-Makua-Venda sub-family and is common for the North-Eastern parts of Limpopo.
Ndebele
Ndebele is used by about 1.09 million natives.
It is confined to only a few areas, including Gauteng and Mpumalanga.
Only 2.1% of the population speak Ndebele.
Like many of the South African official languages,isiNdebeleis a Nguni lingo.
It is a form of expression and communication.
Below are some questions to ease your queries.
Which language is mostly spoken in South Africa?
The most spoken language in South Africa is Zulu, also known as isiZulu.
What are the top 3 languages spoken in South Africa?
The top three most used South African languages are Zulu, Xhosa, and Afrikaans.
What are the top 3 languages spoken in Africa?
The top three tongues widely used in the continent are Kiswahili, Arabic, and French.
Arabic, on the other hand, is Semitic that is also spoken by over 100 million people.
Based on the number of native speakers, the most commonly spoken tongue in the world is Chinese.
There are different cultures, many tribes, several races, but all make one nation.
This year has not been the best for most people after the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, some people did not let this put them down and had their traditional wedding ceremonies.
Check out the list to see the cute couples, their traditional weddings, and attire.
