Celebrating Heritage Day

Today, 24 September 2017 we are celebrating Heritage day in South Africa. Also well know as "Braai Dag" (Barbeque Day). South Africans celebrate their culture and diversity of their traditions and believe.  We are truly the rainbow nation. It was first time celebrated on 24 September 1995 and is a public holiday. Now, this year it is on a Sunday, that means tomorrow is a public holiday. Yippy! For a long weekend!

Celebrating Heritage Day

 We celebrate the day at school and the learners had the opportunity to dress in their traditional clothes. They all looked so colourful and beautiful. 

Learners in their traditional clothes

Maybe you don't know it, but South Africa have 11 official languages. And most people here are fluent in two languages. For example I'm Afrikaans but can also speak English as my second language. I'm teaching Afrikaans as First Additional Language at a Primary School. But for most of my students it is their third language. Most schools in South Africa are English or Afrikaans and not the learner’s home language.

Today I’m sharing words that some learners told me in their mother tongue.

	ENGLISH	LANGUAGE
yiyakubonga	Thank you	isiZulu
Goeie nag	Good night	Afrikaans
izala	Come here	isiZulu
isitunsi	shadow	isiZulu
dumelang	hello	Spedi
unjane	How are you?	isiZulu
umuhle	You are beautiful	isiZulu
hatic	I know	Swathi
Mobimo	God	isiZulu
Modimo	God	seSotho
gogo	Granny	isiZulu
margo	but	isiZulu
umama	mother	isiZulu
isea	come	Xhosa
Inkosa zana	princess	isiZulu
molwene	hello	Xhosa

Look at the beautiful beads!

 It is really wonderful it is to live in a country so diverse and beautiful.