Author by : Gerald Crawford

On the very southern tip of Africa lies a large land whose generous endowment on the natural beauty front provides plenty of ticks on most travelers’ desirable destination wish-lists.

South Africa’s pristine beaches, majestic mountains, great quantity and variety of animal and plant life make it an obvious and compelling travel destination. Though visitors undoubtedly find themselves uniquely enchanted by the country’s dramatically varied landscape, abundant wildlife, pulsing cities and innumerable eco-tourist and outdoor adventure possibilities, it is the people of South Africa that constitute this country’s singular charm.

The people who occupy the land from which it is believed all humankind sprang are as dramatically diverse and fascinating as the country’s geography. Those who ‘Go South’ discover, alongside a myriad of natural attractions and inviting pursuits, a colorful cornucopia of cultures and a proud people whose warmth, resilience and refreshing mindset make for the most memorable of holidays.

The People The estimated population of South Africa in Aug 2005 stood at +- 46.7 million, with the following racial mix: African: 79% White: 9.6% Colored: 8.9% Indian! Asian: 2,5% - Population Density: 35.3 per sq km.

Cultural Groupings South Africa’s population is made up of the following groups:

The Nguni People (including the Zulu, Xhosa and Swazi), who account for two thirds of the population The Sotho-Tswana people, who include the Southern, Northern and Western Sotho (Tswana) The Tsonga The Venda The Afrikaners (of Dutch, German, French, Koi Origin) The English Coloureds Indians The Khoi and San people Other immigrants from Africa, Asia and Europe

Languages

South Africa has no fewer than 11 official languages, namely: Afrikaans English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa, isiZulu, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda and Xitsonga. Most South Africans are multi-lingual and English is fairly widely spoken, notably in urban centers. Our impressive linguistic endowment gives South Africans of different ethnic backgrounds an equal chance to be heard in their own language - thus preserving our much cherished heterogeneity. However, most of us speak English - even if not at home - so you’ll have very little trouble communicating.

This multi-cultural background has peppered our speech with some colourful idioms - most of which come from one or more of the many African languages. For example, you can use the Zulu word “yebo”, which means “yes”, for almost anything, even a greeting and, in Afrikaans it is not uncommon to begin a sentence with the phrase “ja-nee”, meaning “yes-no”.

When we do speak “proper” it’s the British rather than the American variety of English - although many younger people are being influenced by television and cinema, and that is slowly changing.

Now that you’ve figured out the language bit, the actual communicating is also pretty easy. We have a well-developed communications infrastructure, with extensive landline phone networks and three mobile phone service providers with extensive coverage. You can rent mobile phones from the airport on arrival. You should find an internet café in even the smallest towns, and the postal service works.

[tags]South African,People,Travel,Information[/tags]

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