LL-L "Terminology" 2006.05.02 (06) [E]

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   L O W L A N D S - L * 02 May 2006 * Volume 06
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From: Ingmar Roerdinkholder <ingmar.roerdinkholder at WORLDONLINE.NL>
Subject: LL-L "Terminology" 2006.05.02 (03) [E]

Elsie, ik ben heel blij dat je je niet beledigd voelt. Ek is baie bly dat
jy jou nie beledig voel nie (?!) I'm very happy that you don't feel
offended. Btw I've always known that there is a large group of Afrikaans
speakers that are not 'white', but I didn't know about the Boer versus
Afrikaner thing. Well, now I do. Is it so that you can call all (white)
Afrikaans speakers Afrikaners, but not Boere? And can 'coloured' speakers
of Afrikaans be called Afrikaners too?

Btw when is someone considered to be white and when coloured, that's
another difficult question from an ignorant European. Is it about the way
people look, or their names, their heritage, does their language (i.e the
way how they speak Afrikaans)has anything to do with it? Are there white
people who speak Afrikaans in a coloured way, and vice versa? Has this
changed after Apartheid? Etc Etc.

Ingmar - who is often seen as a 'foreigner' in the Netherlands because
of his darker hair, eyes and complexion, by both autochtonous and
allochtonous Dutch (are you Turkish/Italian/Greek/Middle Eastern/South
American/Indo ? etc). Some autos see that as a disadvantage, many allos as
a reason for solidarity (you're one of us, too...) When I tell them the
truth these autochtonous often appologize that they dared to ask me (what
an insult!). For me, I don't care too much, but I think it's one of the
reasons for my interest in other cultures, and it's also an opportunity to
come closer to allochtonous people because they'll trust me sooner.
Kaulana

>From: Elsie Zinsser <ezinsser at icon.co.za>
>Subject: LL-L "Terminology" 2006.05.01 (02) [A/D/E]
>
>Hi all,
>
>Thanks, Ingmar, Paul and Marcel for your views.
>
>Ingmar, I do not feel offended that you assumed that the Boer and
Afrikaner
>constitute the same political grouping. It is a typical eurocentric
>viewpoint but
>now you can go forward and educate the masses that white Afrikaans
speaking
>South Africans are not one homogenous group, as is assumed.
>
>Yes, you are right that the terms have become heavy-laden in South Africa
>but not
>necessarily outside the country. Heck, the international media got more
>leverage
>from showing the stereotypical white Afrikaans speaker as conservative
>supremacist
>falling off his horse but within the country we saw that juxtaposed by the
>moderate
>Afrikaner who was trying to forge political change.

----------

From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Terminology

Hi, Ingmar!

Probably inadvertently, you have entered a hot or warm zone.  Thanks for 
doing so in a considerate manner and with honest eagerness to learn.

If I may toot our own horn for a second I say that this is where this list 
comes in very handy, is very educational, because, despite a few scary 
moments, it provides an opportunity to learn the necessary subtleties of 
perception from insiders in a generally supportive and friendly atmosphere, 
and for the insiders it is a great opportunity to educate and sensitize 
their fellow Lowlanders.  We are very fortunate to have people like Elsie on 
the List, people willing to explain these things to us.  I for one pass on 
that sort of knowledge, and I hope everyone else does likewise.  That's the 
List operating at its optimum.

Obviously you aren't the only one who grapples with the "Afrikaner" versus 
"Boer" thing, Ingmar.  This is not only a matter of European ignorance 
either.  I've been grappling with it for a long time, although I consider 
myself a little bit more aware or at least sensitive than the average 
non-South-African, and I have heard many British, American, Australian and 
German people use the wrong terminology, even though they did not mean any 
harm.  I suppose that as a German I find it a little easier to understand 
how hurtful it can be to be thrown into the same pot of stew with people 
that speak the same language but from whose pasts, views, attitudes and 
cultures you need to distance yourself.  The media rarely help with their 
few soundbytes of generalization.

Elsie mentioned Breyten Breytenbach and other well-known Afrikaans-speaking 
South Africans that are "liberal" and have a history of assertion against 
supremacist sentiments and and influences.  These are just a few stars from 
among a large population of Africans of Lowlands European descent whose 
language is being discriminated against in today's South Africa because of 
unfortunate generalizations.   Before apartheid came to an end, the world 
media focused on Anglo-South-African anti-apartheid activists, and knowledge 
of Afrikaans-speaking ones was more or less restricted to the intellectual 
in-crowds that read more in-depth literature.  We are still reaping the 
fruit of this, because the rest of the world still hasn't caught up with 
events in South Africa ... or anywhere else.  When I talk about Australia, 
many Americans who consider themselves particularly educated raise questions 
about racist immigration policies and the oppression of women, about stuff 
that lies several decades in the past.  Many Americans, especially Jews, are 
taken aback by me reporting about Jewish immigrants and Judaism as a state 
religion in today's Germany.  The media and people's mental pictures are 
slow in catching up, indeed.  It is up to us to educate ourselves beyond the 
snippets a handful of media conglomerates throw at us.  But, yes, how to 
find the time?

Nevertheless, especially you who are interested in Afrikaans or can read it 
without having to study much, I wholeheartedly recommend reading some of the 
newer Afrikaans literature, or otherwise you might kill two birds with one 
stone and read good Afrikaans novels set in apartheid-era South Africa, such 
as Mark Behr's _The Smell of Apples_ (also available in Afrikaans as _Die 
reuk van appels_).  I find this sort of reading very rewarding.

A lot more could be said about this, but this is more than enough from me 
for now.

So, thanks for braving these frigid waters, Ingmar, and for enlightening us, 
Elsie, Mark and Marcel!

Cheers!
Reinhard/Ron 

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