LL-L "Language varieties" 2010.02.11 (02) [EN]

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L O W L A N D S - L - 11 February 2010 - Volume 02
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From: Mark Dreyer <mrdreyer at lantic.net>
Subject: LL-L "Language varieties" 2010.02.10 (03) [EN]

Haai, Ron, Cliff & Co.



Subject: Language varieties

Well, Ron, in response to your point:

Is it not possible that Afrikaans grew from a *mixture *of sources and under
a *mixture *of circumstances mentioned by both Cliff and you, plus more?



I have this to say. 'Kombuistaal' doesn't carry the same meaning to
Afrikaners that 'kitchen Dutch' does to the English.



The *kitchen* was restricted, at least in Gentle Society, to the servants, &
only on business. Mrs Watson (she would always be Mrs) suffered no frivolous
intrusion in her domain, not even from the butler or the steward, & if she
had to do with the butler, she approached him in the pantry - his domain.
Both had to do with the Lady of the House in the drawing-room, where she ran
her business, & it could be a lot, in those far-off days. The Children might
be relegated to the kitchen for their meals in less formal context (only
usually - as usual - in the nursary), but 'Mrs.' saw it as an intrusion in
her domain, which she tolerated amiably or not, according to her character.
Let me add that issue of race mattered not a whit. Annie Mafeking, a
Motswana from Bechuanaland & of the royal line, was a cook in a certain
great household here, & she was not a patient woman. The Lady of the House
was constrained to set up an outshut as a satellite kitchen with a 'petit
gourmet' mini-stove, to teach her daughters to cook. That was not Annie's
business. To quote Saki, "She was a good cook, as cooks go, & as cooks go,
she went." Only in Annie's case she didn't, & ruled supreme until her
retirement.



The *Kombuis* was more a living-area than the parlour, which lurked in
darkness with thick curtains drawn until the dominee came visiting, or some
other such luminary. But in the kombuis from early morning until late
evening the huisvrou reigned supreme. One passed through the kombuis in &
out of the house as a matter of course, from the Master of the house to a
delivery-boy passing-by or even a tramp. One stopped for a rest, or lounge,
or chaff family & friends, to eat or drink more or less formally. There was
always a pot of soup on the back-burner, & another of coffee. One took
orders there, compliments or rebukes, from the scion of the house to the
garden-boy, in the sight & hearing of all. One did one's homework on the
table, & learning came to & passed from the most unlikely sources &
recipiants.



This was not usual in the more Eurocentric suburbs of our cities. I know my
Grandmother shocked her cook rigid when she took overthe 'kitchen' when as a
young bride they moved to Yeoville, a very Jewish suburb of Johannesburg in
those days. She also rised eyebrows by directing that any delivery boy was
to stop for a cup of coffee & a biskuitor so ( rusk / zweiback). but she was
only doing what she was brought up to. Certain persons with rigid notions
about what apartheid was or was not would no doubt be baffled to
accomodatethe usages of the kombuis into their prejudices - sorry - their
paradigm.


Yes, Ron, certainly, a 'mixture' of peoples & circumstances contributed to
Afrikaans, but we must make one exception. The Slamaaiers, the Cape Malays,
Moslems, were & still are a doctrinaire lot, & they have rules of diet &
ritual purity that are a serious obstacle to such commensuality as the
kombuis dictates. For this reason they kept their own establishments, naming
them from their own initial tongue, 'kampong'. This word has passed into
Afrikaans as the dwelling area of the staff, on farms & such works as house
employees on the premises. Only S. African English say 'compound'.



Granted, the multitude of speakers of foison plenty tongues used the Taal &
contributed to its usage. In every case I can call to mind, the
interlocuters contributed notably more to the culture of Afrikaans than to
the tongue: I mean richly! I, as you know, am most exercised by the
remarkable fact of how *little* this 'mixture' of peoples & tongues
contributed to the Afrikaans language, as opposed to all the rest. & let us
not forget the English. The Dutch will tell you how much we got from them,
almost as much as from the Scots. I give you technical terms, but every
language has that. We agree, I think, that Afrikaans is not a 'creole'?



Yrs,

Mark

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