The Afrikaans Language Monument () is located on a hill overlooking

Paarl Paarl (; ; derived from ''parel'', meaning "pearl" in Dutch) is a city with 294,457 inhabitants in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is the largest city in the Boland, Western Cape, Cape Winelands. Due to the growth of the Mbekweni ...

, Western Cape Province, South Africa. Officially opened on 10 October 1975, it commemorates the semicentenary of Afrikaans being declared an official language of South Africa separate from Dutch. In addition, it was erected on the 100th anniversary of the founding of Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners (the Society of Real

Afrikaner Afrikaners () are a Southern African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers who first arrived at the Cape of Good Hope in 1652.Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: Brain to Casting''. Encyclopæd ...

s) in Paarl, the organisation that helped strengthen Afrikaners' identity and pride in their language.Charles S. B. Galasko. The Afrikaans Language Monument, Paarl. ''Spine'' 1 November 2008 – Volume 33 – Issue 23.

Structure

The monument consists of various tapering structures of a

convex Convex or convexity may refer to: Science and technology * Convex lens, in optics Mathematics * Convex set, containing the whole line segment that joins points ** Convex polygon, a polygon which encloses a convex set of points ** Convex polytop ...

and concave nature, symbolising the influences of different languages and cultures on Afrikaans itself, as well as political developments in South Africa, as follows: *Clear West – the European heritage of the language *Magical Africa – the African influences on the language *Bridge – between Europe and Africa *Afrikaans – the language itself *Republic – declared in 1961 * Malay language and culture There is also an open stadium at the bottom of the structure where concerts and events are held.

Plaque inscriptions

On a large plaque at the entrance are two quotations from prominent poets writing in Afrikaans: * – N.P. van Wyk Louw *:"Afrikaans is the language that connects Western Europe and Africa... It forms a bridge between the large, shining West and the magical Africa... And what great things may come from their union – that is maybe what lies ahead for Afrikaans to discover. But what we must never forget, is that this change of country and landscape sharpened, kneaded and knitted this newly-becoming language... And so Afrikaans became able to speak out from this new land... Our task lies in the use that we make and will make of this gleaming vehicle..." * – C.J. Langenhoven *:"If we plant a row of poles down this hall now, ten poles, to represent the last ten years, and on each pole we make a mark at a height from the floor corresponding to the relative written use of Afrikaans in the respective year, and we draw a line, from the first here near the floor to the last over there against the loft, then the line would describe a rapidly rising arc, not only quickly rising, but rising in a quickly increasing manner. Let us now, in our imagination, extend the arc for the ten coming years from now. See you, sirs, where the point shall be, outside in the blue sky high over

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein ( ; ), also known as Bloem, is the capital and the largest city of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa. It is often, and has been traditionally, referred to as the country's "judicial capital", alongsi ...

, in the year 1924." The phrase ''"DIT IS ONS ERNS"'' (roughly "we are earnest bout this, or "this is our earnestness") is emblazoned on the pathway leading up to the monument.

Burgersdorp monument

The first monument to commemorate Afrikaans was the monument in Burgersdorp, which was built in 1893, although it refers to the ''Hollandse taal'' or ''the Dutch language''. It depicts a woman pointing her finger at a book in her hands.

References

External links

{{Portal, South Africa, Languages
Homepage

Flight over the Afrikaans Language Monument

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20080215200910/http://www.museums.org.za/TaalMon/English.htm History and description of the Paarl monument
Afrikaans Museum & Monument

* ttp://www.paarldirectory.co.za/ Directory to Paarl 1975 establishments in South Africa Buildings and structures completed in 1975 Afrikaans Monuments and memorials in South Africa Paarl Buildings and structures in the Western Cape Obelisks in South Africa 20th-century architecture in South Africa