Litnet

"Lo titshala wathetha amazwi kuthi singabafundi abamnyama, wathi 'Buyelani apho nivela khona'." ("A teacher once told a group of black children to 'go back to where they belong'.") Precious Bikitsha shares her thoughts with LitNet.

"This is why the ATKV’s competition is so important. Every year I would go online to see who had won and I would listen to that person and decide what I would still need to learn to get better, so that I too could win."

'n Spesiale, beperkte uitgawe van Vlam in die sneeu: Die liefdesbriewe van André P Brink en Ingrid Jonker is beskikbaar vir voorafbestelling tot 30 Oktober. | A special, limited edition of Flame in the Snow: The Love Letters of André Brink and Ingrid Jonker is available for pre-order until the 30th of October.

"As part of its celebrations for International Translation Day, the South African Translators’ Institute on 1 October 2015 awarded its 2015 Prizes for Outstanding Translation and Dictionaries, which recognise excellence in published translations and dictionaries in South Africa’s official languages."

"But ultimately no memorial, no biography, no written account or account of any other nature will be able to reflect the ignominy, hurt and shame that the crippling racial laws inflicted on the emotions of the majority of South Africans restricted from participating in the broadest possible opportunities – such as to play golf when they wanted to, loved it and were good at it. Case has at least achieved giving one a glimpse of the reality of their triumph and their loss. The story of Papwa is a glowing example."

"The ideas in this book are easy to make and do not require DIY handyman experience. There are step-by-step instructions with each project and idea."

Whose line is it anyway? Sophia Sanan, research manager of the African Arts Institute, answers Naomi Meyer's questions about the proposed Copyright Amendment Bill of 2015.

Open Stellenbosch held a discussion on multilingualism after a screening of the documentary Afrikaaps.

"Ultimately, there is a relationship between the viewer and the painting. However, the interaction that takes place depends on how far the viewer wants to take it. It’s a bit like going to a cocktail party and seeing someone that you find appealing."

"Time spent writing in a dairy could be spent writing fiction, for example. And what's the point of writing all these volumes of words addressed only to me? Isn't there something self-defeating about keeping a diary?" (4.10.2004)

"I am all for transformation. Which is why I believe Stellenbosch University should remain Afrikaans."

"Mhlawumbi uyazibuza ukuba singayenza njani na le nto yokuphuhlisa iilwimi zesiNtu ukuze zibe kumgangatho ofanayo neAfrikaans?" | "Perhaps you are asking yourselves what we could do to improve African languages so that they reach the same level as Afrikaans?"

"I have learnt and understood that monetising any art form comes with a lot of challenges ..."

On 17 September 2015 IBBY SA announced the six South African books nominated to represent our country at the IBBY World Congress that will take place in Auckland, New Zealand, during 2016. Read more about and see photos of the announcement.

"From a diachronic viewpoint, Afrikaans has its roots in 17th-century Dutch, and has grown in African soil over a period of 360 years into a new language, distinct from other Western and Northern Germanic languages on all levels of linguistic description (morphological, phonological, syntactic and semantic), with the result that it has developed into an African language, a fact which is also reflected in its name."

"Constitutions are about the 'promised land'; ours is certainly not a magic wand that has wiped out our history and made us all equal. To achieve this 'promised land' we need to be pragmatic, generous and human in our approaches to move from where we are, from what we have inherited, to what we would collectively like to be." 

"… we believe that tuition in a language of choice is central to a dignified and well-deserved tertiary education. Students should not be compelled to be taught in a language they do not fully understand or do not know at all. However, by simply introducing English as the only language of instruction, the academic development of Afrikaans and isiXhosa is jeopardized. It is regressive and shameful to transformative constitutionalism if a previously neglected language such as isiXhosa loses its developmental status at SU, along with Afrikaans …"

On UWC Creates and the lack of literary translations from and into other indigenous languages.

"Finally, there is only one viable and long-term solution, namely the creation of a fully fledged English academy and a fully fledged Afrikaans academy on the same campus, with the ideal of having, one day, also a fully fledged Xhosa or Zulu academy."

"[L]anguage is more than just a means of communication; it influences our culture and even our thought processes."