” One nation many languages”
The Pan South African Language Board was established in South Africa to promote multilingualism and language rights as well as to develop the official languages of South Africa. The board was established through an act of the parliament. The Act seeks to:
- promote and create conditions for the development and use of native languages like the Khoe and San and sign languages.
- promote and ensure respect for all languages commonly used by communities in South Africa, including German, Dutch, Greek, Gujarati, Hindi, Tamil, Urdu, Arabic, Hebrew and other languages used for religious purposes.
Language development strategies are being approached through research, offering legal help in violation of language rights legislation, co-operation with government bodies, the development of monolingual explanatory dictionaries, offering translations and development of literature in (previously) marginalized languages.
