Features of the Culture of Dating and Greeting in South Africa
South Africa is sometimes called the rainbow nation because of its diverse population. With 11 official languages and more than 10 different nations calling it a rainbow nation isn’t an exaggeration. South Africa has its own unique and distinctive culture, and oldcooldates.com has shared the specifics of dating in this country.
Few Facts About the Culture of South Africa
As mentioned before, South Africa is very colorful when it comes to culture. Most people are familiar with Aparhade and Nelson Mandela. But learning there are 11 official languages is a shock to many. The Zulu language is the most spoken. 23% of the population speaks it. Interestingly, English is in 4th place with less than 10% of people speaking it.
One more fascinating fact shows how rich the culture in South Africa is. The first-ever art piece was found in a cave in South Africa. Pierced snail shells are 75,000 years old. They were used to make necklaces. That makes them the first known piece of jewelry. UNESCO recognized their natural and cultural heritage too. There are 10 World Heritage sites in South Africa.
The population of that beautiful country is among the youngest in the world, which aids in constant changes and mixing of cultures. According to UNESCO’s site - 28% of the population is younger than 14 years, the average age is 27 years (in 2018). Sadly, there are many HIV positive young people in South Africa, and the life expectancy is 64 years. For example, Germany, a well-developed European country, has a life expectancy of 81 years (but the Germans' average age is 47 years).
Peculiarities of the Etiquette of Dating and Greetings in South Africa
In a colorful country like South Africa, there are many ways to greet other people, but dating etiquette is pretty much the same in all layers of society.
Dating Etiquette in South Africa
Dating etiquette in South Africa is a bit traditional. Women are independent, and they know what they want, but society is mildly patriarchal. While asking a girlfriend's father for permission to marry her isn’t a thing anymore in Europe or the USA, that’s still common in South Africa. That’s not the only thing men have to ask when dating - girls like when men ask them out properly. When a couple starts dating, men are expected to be gentlemen. Women are expected to be elegant “in return”. It’s similar to the rest of the world, but it’s just more emphasized in South Africa. Because of a diverse population, there are many relationships between different races and nations, but less than you’d expect. That’s a consequence of Apartheid. Hopefully, time will wash it away.
Greeting in South Africa
Because of the diverse population and many languages, greeting people in South Africa might seem like a problem. Luckily, everybody will understand hello. Still, every language has its greetings. We’ll stick to saying hello in 5 different languages.
● Zulu - Sawubona singular / Sanibonani plural
● Xhosa - Molo singular / Molweni plural
● Sotho - Dumela singular / Dumelang plural
● Tsonga - Abuxeni
● Venda - Ndaa when greeting men / Aa for women
If you want to find out how to pronounce those words - you can learn them here.
Sign Language in South Africa
With 11 official languages, it’s hard for deaf people to form a neutral sign language. That was partially solved in 2001 when South African Sign Language (SASL) was introduced. The keyword there is partly because not all deaf residents of South Africa are speaking it. Other, smaller sign languages are still alive, but SASL is becoming more popular with time. In 2011 it had 235,000 speakers, and now it has more than 600,000.
Since it’s hard to describe signs, we’ll describe only the “hello” sign. To say hello, place your left hand on the side of your forehead like you’re saluting in the military, but your palm should face forward instead of down. Then make a saluting motion, and you’ve just said hello. More examples are available on YouTube where it’ll be much easier to learn it because it’s a visual language.
South Africa has a beautifully colorful and rich population when it comes to language and culture. Their dating etiquette is great too because they respect politeness, elegance and couples respect each other deeply.
Few Facts About the Culture of South Africa
As mentioned before, South Africa is very colorful when it comes to culture. Most people are familiar with Aparhade and Nelson Mandela. But learning there are 11 official languages is a shock to many. The Zulu language is the most spoken. 23% of the population speaks it. Interestingly, English is in 4th place with less than 10% of people speaking it.
One more fascinating fact shows how rich the culture in South Africa is. The first-ever art piece was found in a cave in South Africa. Pierced snail shells are 75,000 years old. They were used to make necklaces. That makes them the first known piece of jewelry. UNESCO recognized their natural and cultural heritage too. There are 10 World Heritage sites in South Africa.
The population of that beautiful country is among the youngest in the world, which aids in constant changes and mixing of cultures. According to UNESCO’s site - 28% of the population is younger than 14 years, the average age is 27 years (in 2018). Sadly, there are many HIV positive young people in South Africa, and the life expectancy is 64 years. For example, Germany, a well-developed European country, has a life expectancy of 81 years (but the Germans' average age is 47 years).
Peculiarities of the Etiquette of Dating and Greetings in South Africa
In a colorful country like South Africa, there are many ways to greet other people, but dating etiquette is pretty much the same in all layers of society.
Dating Etiquette in South Africa
Dating etiquette in South Africa is a bit traditional. Women are independent, and they know what they want, but society is mildly patriarchal. While asking a girlfriend's father for permission to marry her isn’t a thing anymore in Europe or the USA, that’s still common in South Africa. That’s not the only thing men have to ask when dating - girls like when men ask them out properly. When a couple starts dating, men are expected to be gentlemen. Women are expected to be elegant “in return”. It’s similar to the rest of the world, but it’s just more emphasized in South Africa. Because of a diverse population, there are many relationships between different races and nations, but less than you’d expect. That’s a consequence of Apartheid. Hopefully, time will wash it away.
Greeting in South Africa
Because of the diverse population and many languages, greeting people in South Africa might seem like a problem. Luckily, everybody will understand hello. Still, every language has its greetings. We’ll stick to saying hello in 5 different languages.
● Zulu - Sawubona singular / Sanibonani plural
● Xhosa - Molo singular / Molweni plural
● Sotho - Dumela singular / Dumelang plural
● Tsonga - Abuxeni
● Venda - Ndaa when greeting men / Aa for women
If you want to find out how to pronounce those words - you can learn them here.
Sign Language in South Africa
With 11 official languages, it’s hard for deaf people to form a neutral sign language. That was partially solved in 2001 when South African Sign Language (SASL) was introduced. The keyword there is partly because not all deaf residents of South Africa are speaking it. Other, smaller sign languages are still alive, but SASL is becoming more popular with time. In 2011 it had 235,000 speakers, and now it has more than 600,000.
Since it’s hard to describe signs, we’ll describe only the “hello” sign. To say hello, place your left hand on the side of your forehead like you’re saluting in the military, but your palm should face forward instead of down. Then make a saluting motion, and you’ve just said hello. More examples are available on YouTube where it’ll be much easier to learn it because it’s a visual language.
South Africa has a beautifully colorful and rich population when it comes to language and culture. Their dating etiquette is great too because they respect politeness, elegance and couples respect each other deeply.
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