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Map of South Africa with its Flag. Photo By Gordon Johnson –

A Quick Guide to Languages in South Africa

With a population of sixty million, South Africa (SA) has about 34 different languages making it the 3^rd African country with the most diverse languages. Because of this, South Africans are bilingual or multilingual having one language as their first language (LI) and the other as their second (L2).

South Africans are also known for code-switching meaning the mixing of two or more languages in a statement. Their multilingual nature makes it possible to combine English, Afrikaans, and another native language in one conversation.

People having a conversation. Photo By boellstiftung –

The South African languages can be categorized into four main groups namely, Southern Bantu Makua, Afrikaans, English, and Khoisan. Afrikaans and Khoisan are also native languages of the neighboring country Namibia.

In 1910, only 2 languages were recognized by the SA Republic, English and Afrikaans. However, 9 more languages were added to the constitution in 1993. Sign language is not categorized as an official language in SA. However, the 18^th constitutional Amendment Bill of May 2022 included it as part of the official language and was published for public comment.

The Southern Bantu Makua language group is subdivided into four groups the Nguni, TshiVenda, Sotho Tswana, and the XiTsonga/Tswa Ronga. Each of the subgroups is broken down further except TshiVenda. Amongst the Khoisan, the two unofficial languages are the Khoekhoe and the Grique. Afrikana and English are individual languages with no subgroups.

1. Southern Bantu Makua Languages

Map showing the localization of Niger Congo subgroups and important single languages of that family. Photo By Ulamm –

The Southern Bantu Makua is a member language of the largest language family in Africa, Niger-Congo. The Bantus who migrated to South Africa in 1000 BCE came along with different languages that were intermarried with the already existing Khoisan dialect to form Southern Bantu Makua languages.

Southern Bantu Makua languages are spoken by over 43% of the total South African population making it the most spoken language of the four groups. All Southern Bantu languages are mutually intelligible. They are also tonal, meaning the same word can mean something different depending on how high or low the tone is.

a) The Nguni

The most common languages in SA, IsiZulu, and IsiXhosa, fall under the Nguni language group. 39% of South Africans speak either of the two languages as their first language with the most spoken being IsiZulu (22.7%). The other languages in this category are SiSwati and IsiNdebele.

IsiNdebele, also Southern Ndebele, is the least spoken official language in SA covering just 2.1% of the population.  Matebele/ Northern Ndebele is different from IsiNdebele. Matebele is an official language in Zimbabwe and has more similarities with IsiZulu than IsiNdebele

IsiZulu, SiSwati, and IsiNdebele are mainly spoken in KwaZulu Natal and Mpumalanga provinces. The main speakers of IsiXhosa are in Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces. All of the Nguni languages are characterized by click sounds.

b) Sotho-Tswana

This category includes the official languages of Sesotho sa Leboa (Sepedi), Sesotho, and Tswana. It is the 2^nd largest group of the Southern Bantu languages and is a native language in Botswana.

Collectively, 24.7% of the population speak Sotho-Tswana languages as their LI. Sesotho sa Leboa is the first language of 9.1.% of South Africans while Sesotho is 7.6%. The remaining portion speaks Tswana.

Sesotho is widely spoken in Free State province, Sesotho sa Leboa in Limpopo, Gauteng and Tswana in the Northwest Province, and some parts of the Northern Cape.

c) XiTsonga/Tswa-Ronga

XiTsonga language group is categorized into XiTsonga, Tswa and Ronga. Of the three languages, only XiTsonga is recognized as an official language.  The other two are unofficial but are still spoken among South African communities.

The XiTsonga-speaking communities are located in Gauteng and the North Eastern area of South Africa in Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces. XiTsonga language is also spoken in Mozambique. The pronunciation of their words contains both whistling and clicking sounds.

d) TshiVenda

The TshiVenda language has no subgroup. It has 1.3 million speakers making it the second least spoken official language in SA. It is the only language in the Southern Bantu group that has no click sounds. TshiVenda speakers are mainly found in the North East of Limpopo province.

2. Afrikaans

“Dit is ons erns” (“This is our passion”), at the Afrikaans Language Monument in Western Cape Province. Photo By ECSequeira –

Afrikaans, previously called Cape Dutch, is the 3^rd most spoken language in SA. It is a West Germanic language that originated in the 1600s when SA was a colony of the Dutch. Due to this, South Africans associated it with racial discrimination calling it the language of apartheid.

Read more on the facts about apartheid in South Africa here. 

The South Holland dialect picked up aspects of African, French, German, and English languages to form its own lingo. Afrikaans was part of the major factors that influenced the Soweto Uprising protest of 1976.

When the Dutch intermarried with indigenous Khoisans, and slaves from India, Asia and Africa, their offspring spoke Afrikaans as their first language. Today, Afrikaans is spoken by 13.5% of the South African population. Of the 13.5%, more than half are mixed-race South Africans. The main Afrikaans speakers are found in Western Cape and Northern Cape provinces.

3. English

English is the 4th most spoken language in SA and the minority in all the provinces. It is widely spoken as a second language and is used in educational institutions, business organizations, and media/broadcasting channels.

It is the native language of 9.6% of South Africans and is mainly spoken in the major South African cities of Cape Town, Durban, and Johannesburg in the Western Cape, KwaZulu Natal, and Gauteng provinces.

Read on the best cities to visit in South Africa here.

4. Khoisan

Bushmen Hottentots armed for an expedition. Photo By Samuel Daniell –

The Khoisan is a minority group of indigenous South Africans made up of the Khoekhoe and the San (bushmen). They occupied South Africa 260,000 years ago but were forced to relocate due to the European and Bantu migration. Some, however, were able to remain in SA due to intermarriage. The spoken Khoisan languages of SA are the Khoekhoe and Grique, both of which are unofficial and are considered nearly extinct.  These languages influenced the click sounds in Southern Bantu languages.

Read more on the Khoisans in the South Africa city, Cape Town here.

Due to the cohabiting of immigrants from China, India, and other African countries in the Bantustan settlements, other minor languages were formed. KheLobedu, Fanakalo, Tsotsitaal, SiNrebele and SiPhuthi are just a few of the other unofficial languages in SA. Other smaller immigrant communities speak Greek, Hindi, French, Portuguese, Telugu, Yiddish, Italian, and German.

Portuguese and French are the fastest-growing languages among the non-official languages in South Africa. They are spoken by refugees from Angola, Francophone Central Africa, and black and white settlers.  

With all these language groups and subgroups, it is safe to say that a lengthy visit to South Africa will definitely have you catching a few new words from at least two different languages.