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The Latin alphabet is used. For some languages, orthographies with extended characters were established and are still used.
The Latin alphabet is used. For some languages, orthographies with diacritic characters were established and are still used.
Afrikaans, Southern) Ndebele, Northern Sotho (Sepedi), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu, English
The Global Learning Portal (GLP) has apparently had a project for providing information online to teachers in South Africa.
"The emergent role of email as a medium of communication has been replaced by mobile phones. Because few people have access to the Internet or email, and because of the delay in accessing it (that is, most people have to be at work to get their email), mobile phones are preferred to communicate with people. An added factor is that SMS (and by extension, email) are perceived by the older generation as not heartfelt or genuine and that the only way to communicate (even to confirm something which would seem to lend itself towards SMS) is by voice." (Towards an African e-Index)
"The emergent role of email as a medium of communication has been replaced by mobile phones. Because few people have access to the Internet or email, and because of the delay in accessing it (that is, most people have to be at work to get their email), mobile phones are preferred to communicate with people. An added factor is that SMS (and by extension, email) are perceived by the older generation as not heartfelt or genuine and that the only way to communicate (even to confirm something which would seem to lend itself towards SMS) is by voice." (Towards an African e-Index)
"South Africa’s well-developed communication sector ... is often assumed to reflect positively on policy and regulatory reform over the last decade. It is far more likely, however, to reflect the country’s considerably higher GDP per capita ... rather than the success of its communications policies. In fact, despite the progress evident in South Africa’s ICT indicators between 1996 and 1998 ... the gap between South Africa and the global average on a range of ICT indicators has grown since then (Sciadas 2005)." (Towards an African e-Index)
"South Africa's well-developed communication sector ... is often assumed to reflect positively on policy and regulatory reform over the last decade. It is far more likely, however, to reflect the country's considerably higher GDP per capita ... rather than the success of its communications policies. In fact, despite the progress evident in South Africa's ICT indicators between 1996 and 1998 ... the gap between South Africa and the global average on a range of ICT indicators has grown since then (Sciadas 2005)." (Towards an African e-Index)
"In the absence of a coherent national ICT policy framework, and given an ICT sector governed largely by fragmented legislation and with a multiplicity of sometimes overlapping institutions, it is not surprising then to find an NGO sector that is both vibrant and marginalised." (Lewis in GISW 2007)
According to Lewis (in GISW 2007), South Africa has several government institutions governing ICT policies:
Lewis, Charley. "South Africa." Global Information Society Watch (GISW) 2007 Report http://globaliswatch.org/en/node/622
UNDP (2006) gives a literacy figure (without reference to which language[s]) of: 82.4%
UNDP (2006) gives a literacy figure (without reference to which language[s]) of: 82.4%
African Language Association of Southern Africa (ALASA) is an academic/research organization hosted by the Department of African Languages of the University of South Africa (UNISA) http://www.alasa.org.za/
African Language Association of Southern Africa (ALASA) is an academic/research organization hosted by the Department of African Languages of the University of South Africa (UNISA) http://www.alasa.org.za/
Corel WordPerfect apparently had a Xhosa spelling dictionary a few years ago. [verify - current status?]
Corel WordPerfect apparently had a Xhosa spelling dictionary a few years ago. [verify - current status?]
According to Tectonic (22 Feb. 2007) "the Department of Communications, CSIR and Translate.org.za have committed to updating and maintaining translations of OpenOffice.org, Mozilla Firefox and Mozilla Thunderbird for three years."
According to Tectonic (22 Feb. 2007) "the Department of Communications, CSIR and Translate.org.za have committed to updating and maintaining translations of OpenOffice.org, Mozilla Firefox and Mozilla Thunderbird for three years."
This is the localisation, language & ICT profile for South
Africa. For the ZA-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
This is the localisation, language &
ICT profile for South Africa. For the
ZA-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
APC, "ICT Policy in South Africa," Africa ICT Policy Monitor, http://rights.apc.org/africa/test.shtml?apc=s21817e_1 ("Politiques de TIC en/au Afrique du sud," Observatoire des politiques des TIC en Afrique, http://afrique.droits.apc.org/index.shtml?apc=s21817e_1
APC, "ICT Policy in South Africa," Africa ICT Policy Monitor, http://rights.apc.org/africa/index.shtml?apc=s21817e_1 ("Politiques de TIC en/au Afrique du sud," Observatoire des politiques des TIC en Afrique, http://afrique.droits.apc.org/index.shtml?apc=s21817e_1
The APC page, "ICT Policy in South Africa" has some information and links: http://rights.apc.org/africa/test.shtml?apc=s21817e_1
The APC page, "ICT Policy in South Africa" has some information and links:
APC, "ICT Policy in South Africa," Africa ICT Policy Monitor, http://rights.apc.org/africa/test.shtml?apc=s21817e_1
APC, "ICT Policy in South Africa," Africa ICT Policy Monitor, http://rights.apc.org/africa/test.shtml?apc=s21817e_1 ("Politiques de TIC en/au Afrique du sud," Observatoire des politiques des TIC en Afrique, http://afrique.droits.apc.org/index.shtml?apc=s21817e_1
Translate.org.za has localized OpenOffice in all eleven South African official languages. Their work has involved among other things an annual "Translate-a-thon" event.
Translate.org.za has localized open-source software in all eleven South African official languages. Their work has involved among other things an annual "Translate-a-thon" event:
According to Tectonic (22 Feb. 2007) "the Department of Communications, CSIR and Translate.org.za have committed to updating and maintaining translations of OpenOffice.org, Mozilla Firefox and Mozilla Thunderbird for three years."
Tectonic, "OSS apps keep up to date in SA's 11 languages" (22 February 2007) http://www.tectonic.co.za/view.php?id=1375
Translate.org.za has localized in all eleven South African official languages. Their work has involved among other things an annual "Translate-a-thon" event.
Translate.org.za has localized OpenOffice in all eleven South African official languages. Their work has involved among other things an annual "Translate-a-thon" event.
Afrikaans, (Southern) Ndebele, Northern Sotho (Sepedi), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu, English
Afrikaans, Southern) Ndebele, Northern Sotho (Sepedi), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu, English
Microsoft Corp. has indicated it will localize in South African languages.
Microsoft Corp. has indicated it will localize in South African languages.
Corel WordPerfect apparently had a Xhosa spelling dictionary a few years ago. [verify - current status?]
Corel WordPerfect apparently had a Xhosa spelling dictionary a few years ago. [verify - current status?]
(see also 3.d below for localisation projects)
(see also 3.4 below for localisation projects)
Ministry of Education (see below, 1.b.3.)
PanSouth African Languages Board (PanSALB) http://www.pansalb.org.za/
Ministry of Education (see below, 1.2.c.)
UNDP (2006) gives a literacy figure (without reference to which language[s]) of: 82.4%
"There are currently 981 collective access points such as cyber cafés, MPCCs, post offices, digital villages and telecentres now available with variable usage (Thomas 2004). With fixed line prices so high, cyber cafés have not penetrated throughout the country, with two of South Africa’s nine provinces without any commercial access points." (Towards an African e-Index)
"In terms of cyber café usage, the total number of respondents is so low (reflecting the absence of the cyber café culture found in other countries on the continent) that no significant conclusions can be drawn [from the survey used for the report]." (Towards an African e-Index)
The APC page, "ICT Policy in South Africa" has some information and links: http://rights.apc.org/africa/test.shtml?apc=s21817e_1
APC, "ICT Policy in South Africa," Africa ICT Policy Monitor, http://rights.apc.org/africa/test.shtml?apc=s21817e_1
International Telecommunications Union (ITU). 2006. World Information Society Report 2006. Geneva: ITU. http://www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications/worldinformationsociety/2006/wisr-web.pdf
______. 2004. African Telecommunication Indicators 2004. Geneva: ITU.
Wikipedia, "South Africa," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa
UNDP. 2006. ''Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis. Human Development Report 2006.'' New York: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). [Human development index Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and older) (HDI) http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/indicators/3.html ]
Vodafone. 2005. "Africa: The Impact of Mobile Phones." The Vodafone Policy Paper Series, Number 3, March 2005. http://www.vodafone.com/assets/files/en/GPP%20SIM%20paper.pdf
Wikipedia, "Languages of South Africa," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_South_Africa
______, "South Africa," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa
This is the localisation, language & ICT profile for South Africa. For the ZA-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
This is the localisation, language & ICT profile for South
Africa. For the ZA-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
This is the localisation, language & ICT profile for South Africa. For the ZA-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
This is the localisation, language & ICT profile for South Africa. For the ZA-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
(:toc:) [Need the name of the country in the 11 official languages...]
Wikipedia. "South Africa," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa
Wikipedia, "South Africa," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa
Afrikaans, Ndebele, Northern Sotho (Sepedi), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu, English
Afrikaans, (Southern) Ndebele, Northern Sotho (Sepedi), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu, English
Xhosa, Zulu, Tsonga, Venda, Northern Sotho (Sesotho sa Leboa), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Tswana, Ndebele, Swazi (Swati), and Afrikaans
Xhosa, Zulu, Tsonga, Venda, Northern Sotho (Sesotho sa Leboa), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Tswana, Southern Ndebele, Swazi (Swati), and Afrikaans
Xhosa, Zulu, Tsonga, Venda, Northern Sotho (Sepedi), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Tswana, Ndebele, Swazi (Swati), and Afrikaans
Xhosa, Zulu, Tsonga, Venda, Northern Sotho (Sesotho sa Leboa), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Tswana, Ndebele, Swazi (Swati), and Afrikaans
The Latin alphabet is used. For some languages, orthographies with extended characters were established, but use of these letters has generally been dropped (except in some cases, apparently, for names).
The Latin alphabet is used. For some languages, orthographies with extended characters were established and are still used.
This is the localisation, language & ICT profile for South Africa. For the ZA-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
(see also 3.d below for localisation projects)
Information about South African languages is also presented at http://salanguages.com/
There is a considerable amount of web content originating in South Africa. Two English language sites of interest:
There is a considerable amount of web content originating in South Africa. An English language site of interest (that often carries news relevant to localisation is:
Wikipedia. "South Africa,"
Wikipedia. "South Africa," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa
Darker shades indicate majority, lighter shades, plurality (most speakers but less than 50%). "Afrikaans in blue, Ndebele in brown, Northern Sotho in pink, Southern Sotho in grey, Swati in yellow, Tsonga in cyan, Tswana in red, Venda in olive, Xhosa in purple and Zulu in green. Borders are after the 2005 12th amendment of the constsitution. Data from th 2001 census rearranged to the new borders."
http://www.PanAfriL10n.org/wikidoc/maps/300px-South_Africa_municipalities_by_language_2001.png
Darker shades indicate majority, lighter shades, plurality (highest number of speakers but less than 50%). "Afrikaans in blue, Ndebele in brown, Northern Sotho in pink, Southern Sotho in grey, Swati in yellow, Tsonga in cyan, Tswana in red, Venda in olive, Xhosa in purple and Zulu in green. Borders are after the 2005 12th amendment of the constsitution. Data from the 2001 census rearranged to the new borders." (The file is licensed under a licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.5 License.
Wikipedia. "South Africa,"
Wikipedia. "South Africa,"
A map showing language dominance by municipality in South Africa from Wikipedia follows.
Darker shades indicate majority, lighter shades, plurality (most speakers but less than 50%). "Afrikaans in blue, Ndebele in brown, Northern Sotho in pink, Southern Sotho in grey, Swati in yellow, Tsonga in cyan, Tswana in red, Venda in olive, Xhosa in purple and Zulu in green. Borders are after the 2005 12th amendment of the constsitution. Data from th 2001 census rearranged to the new borders."
There is a considerable amount of web content originating in South Africa. Two English language sites of interest:
The South African language site "Batho Portal" http://www.sediba.org.za/ has a section on & in each of the country's 11 official languages
Wikipedia. "South Africa,"
A South African multilingual keyboard for different operating systems is available at http://translate.org.za/content/view/24/41/
African Language Association of Southern Africa (ALASA) is an academic/research organization hosted by the Department of African Languages of the University of South Africa (UNISA) http://www.alasa.org.za/
Internet World Stats: Africa. 2006. http://internetworldstats.com/africa.htm
Gillwald, Alison et al, Albert, and Christoph Stork,. 2005. "South Africa." In Gillwald, Alison (ed.), Towards an African e-Index: Household and individual ICT Access and Usage Across 10 African Countries. (Research ICT Africa!, http://www.researchictafrica.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=504 )
Gillwald, Alison et al. 2005. "South Africa." In Gillwald, Alison (ed.), Towards an African e-Index: Household and individual ICT Access and Usage Across 10 African Countries. (Research ICT Africa!, http://www.researchictafrica.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=504 )
Ministry of Education (see below, iii.)
Ministry of Education (see below, 1.b.3.)
"... with the exception of Mexico and Morocco, South Africa has significantly fewer total telephone subscribers per capita than the other middle-income comparison countries ..." (Towards an African e-Index)
"The emergent role of email as a medium of communication has been replaced by mobile phones. Because few people have access to the Internet or email, and because of the delay in accessing it (that is, most people have to be at work to get their email), mobile phones are preferred to communicate with people. An added factor is that SMS (and by extension, email) are perceived by the older generation as not heartfelt or genuine and that the only way to communicate (even to confirm something which would seem to lend itself towards SMS) is by voice." (Towards an African e-Index)
"Uptake of the Internet is much more limited than mobile and reflects the generally poor access that many South Africans have to ICTs other than basic voice telephony. Just 5.7% of all individuals have an email address. This email address is most likely to be a combination of a work and personal account (38.5%), with over one-quarter (26.6%) purely work-related." (Towards an African e-Index)
"While access is difficult even in urban areas, the digital divide is even greater between the metropolitan areas and the rest of the country. Of the respondents who have Internet connections at home, over 80% are in metropolitan areas, 20% in other urban areas and none in rural areas." (Towards an African e-Index)
"In terms of cyber café usage, the total number of respondents is so low (reflecting the absence of the cyber café culture found in other countries on the continent) that no significant conclusions can be drawn [from the survey used for the report]." (Towards an African e-Index)
"Internet penetration in 2004 (compared to 2003) continues to plateau, with penetration only increasing by 6% to an estimated 1.1 million dial-up subscribers (Goldstuck 2004). While South Africa’s Internet penetration has followed the standard path of technological adoption – which is weak initially until a critical mass is achieved, followed by subsequent explosion in growth, which then reduces as the market gets saturated – the tapering off coincides precisely with the dramatic increase in tariffs in 2000." (Towards an African e-Index)
"There are currently 981 collective access points such as cyber cafés, MPCCs, post offices, digital villages and telecentres now available with variable usage (Thomas 2004). With fixed line prices so high, cyber cafés have not penetrated throughout the country, with two of South Africa’s nine provinces without any commercial access points." (Towards an African e-Index)
"South Africa’s well-developed communication sector ... is often assumed to reflect positively on policy and regulatory reform over the last decade. It is far more likely, however, to reflect the country’s considerably higher GDP per capita ... rather than the success of its communications policies. In fact, despite the progress evident in South Africa’s ICT indicators between 1996 and 1998 ... the gap between South Africa and the global average on a range of ICT indicators has grown since then (Sciadas 2005)." (Towards an African e-Index)
Gillwald, Alison et al, Albert, and Christoph Stork,. 2005. "South Africa." In Gillwald, Alison (ed.), Towards an African e-Index: Household and individual ICT Access and Usage Across 10 African Countries. (Research ICT Africa!, http://www.researchictafrica.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=504 )
Translate.org.za has localized in several South African languages. Their work has involved among other things an annual "Translate-a-thon" event.
Translate.org.za has localized in all eleven South African official languages. Their work has involved among other things an annual "Translate-a-thon" event.
(See also specific language pages.)
Corel WordPerfect apparently had a Xhosa spelling dictionary a few years ago. [verify - current status?]
Corel WordPerfect apparently had a Xhosa spelling dictionary a few years ago. [verify - current status?]
(See also specific language pages.)
Over 20 languages spoken.
Ethnologue has a list at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ZA
Ethnologue lists 24 living maternal languages at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ZA
The Latin alphabet is used. For some languages, orthographies with extended characters were established, but use of these letters has generally been dropped.
South Africa is the most advanced country on the continent with regard to connectivity.
The Latin alphabet is used. For some languages, orthographies with extended characters were established, but use of these letters has generally been dropped (except in some cases, apparently, for names).
South Africa is the most advanced country on the continent with regard to connectivity.
Xhosa, Zulu, Tsonga, Venda, Sotho/Tswana, Ndebele, and Swazi (Swati), Afrikaans
Ministry of Communication (maintains a multilingual site on South African official languages, "Batho Portal," at http://www.sediba.org.za/ )
Ministry of Education (see below, iii.)
The Ministry of Education is promoting teaching and learning of the official languages.
South Africa is the most advanced country on the continent with regard to connectivity.
Translate.org.za has localized in several South African languages.
Translate.org.za has localized in several South African languages. Their work has involved among other things an annual "Translate-a-thon" event.
Xhosa, Zulu, Tsonga, Venda, Sotho/Tswana, Ndebele, and Swazi (Swati). (Afrikaans is not in the list - should it be added?)
Translate.org.za has localized in several languages.
Translate.org.za has localized in several South African languages.
Microsoft Corp. has indicated it will localize in South African languages.
Corel WordPerfect apparently had a Xhosa spelling dictionary a few years ago. [verify - current status?]
Translate.org.za has localized in several languages.
Xhosa, Zulu, Tsonga, Venda, Sotho/Tswana, Ndebele. (Afrikaans is not in the list - should it be added?)
The Latin alphabet is used. For some languages, orthographies with extended characters were established, but use of these letters has generally been dropped.
Afrikaans, Ndebele, Northern Sotho (Sepedi), Southern Sotho (Sesotho), Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu, English
Over 20 languages spoken.
Ethnologue has a list at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=**
Ethnologue has a list at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ZA
The site L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde has a page on * at http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/*
The site L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde has a page on South Africa at http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/afriquesud.htm
Leclerc, Jacques. L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde, "**," http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/**
SIL International, Ethnologue: Languages of the World, "Languages of **," http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=**
Leclerc, Jacques. L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde, "Afrique du Sud," http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/afriquesud.htm
SIL International, Ethnologue: Languages of the World, "Languages of South Africa," http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ZA
Ethnologue has a list at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=**
The site L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde has a page on * at http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/*
Leclerc, Jacques. L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde, "**," http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/**
SIL International, Ethnologue: Languages of the World, "Languages of **," http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=**
