Die algemene doelwit van hierdie studie was die inwinning en dokumentering
van sosiolinguistiese kennis oor Afrikaans. Aangesien die bestudering
en beskrywing van Afrikaans as 'n heterogene gegewe, binne die raamwerk
en volgens die metodologie van die sosiale taalwetenskap, 'n relatief
jong terrein is in die Afrikaanse taalkunde, is die aard van linguistiese
heterogeniteit, die beginsels en metodes van die sosiale taalwetenskap en
die relevante terminologie ter aanvang uiteengesit en bespreek.
In ooreenstemming met die sosiolinguistiese beskouing van 'n taal as
die geheel van 'n aantal onderskeibare varieteite, nl. dialekte, style en
registers, is van die uitgangspunt uitgegaan dat Standaardafrikaans en
Pretoriase Omgangsafrikaans (POA) twee varieteite van Afrikaans is. Hierdie
twee varieteite is aan die hand van bepaalde kriteria uit die literatuur
oor standaardtaal en omgangstaal, sowel as empiriese data wat vir die
doel van hierdie studie ingesamel is, ondersoek en bespreek.
Standaardafrikaans is aan die hand van die hoofkriteria, nl. die status,
vorm en funksies daarvan, ondersoek. Uit die bespreking van die statusaspek
het dit geblyk dat die standaardvarieteit van 'n taal se status
deur twee faktore bepaal word, nl. die feit dat die standaardsprekerskorps
deur die res van die gemeenskap as 'n statusgroep beskou word, en tweedens,
omdat die standaardvarieteit gebruik word om die hoe- of standaardfunksies
te verrig.
Die vorm van die standaardvarieteit van Afrikaans is in ooreenstemming
met bogenoemde twee faktore, vanuit twee gesigspunte ondersoek, nl. as die
taalgebruik van die toonaangewende standaardsprekers sowel as die gedokumenteerde preskriptiewe norme vir Standaardafrikaans. As gevolg van die
aantoonbare verskil tussen hierdie twee stelle data, is die normeringsgronde
waarvolgens die norme vir Standaardafrikaans sedert die begin van
die standaardiseringsproses in 1925, ondersoek.
In teenstelling met die sosiolinguistiese beskouing dat die standaardvarieteit
van 1 n taal 1 n objektiewe werklikheid is waarvan die norme
op demokratiese wyse bepaal meet word, is gevind dat die preskriptiewe
norme vir Standaardafrikaans tot 'n groat mate gebaseer is op ongeldige,
eksterne normeringsgronde. As gevolg hiervan het voorgeskrewe Standaardafrikaans
1 n kunsmatige karakter verkry en die gevolgtrekking is gemaak
dat dit eerder beskou meet word as Superstandaardafrikaans. Enkele probleme
en implikasies wat die bestaan van 1 n superstandaard inhou vir 1 n
spraakgemeenskap, is kortliks bespreek.
Die ondersoek van Omgangsafrikaans in Pretoria is aangepak met die
verwagting dat die ondersoekgroep, nl. die laermiddelklassprekers van
Pretoria, eiesoortige taalgedrag sal toon tydens spontane, ongemonitorde
talige interaksie. Na aanleiding van 'n empiries gefundeerde uiteensetting
van die linguistiese kenmerke van POA en 'n kontrastering van hierdie
kenmerke met die standaardnorme, is tot die gevolgtrekking gekom dat
daar 'n beduidende verskil is tussen POA en Standaardafrikaans en dat e.g.
moontlik wel beskou kan word as 'n stilistiese en sosiale varieteit van
Afrikaans. Die klassifikasie van POA as 'n sosiale dialek van Afrikaans
kon egter nie op grand van die data wat vir hierdie studie gebruik is, gemaak
word nie.
Die belangrike rol wat omgangstaal in die lewe van 'n taal speel, sowel
as die moontlikhede wat sosiolinguistiese kennis van taal bied in die
hantering van sekere onderrigprobleme, is ten slotte kortliks bespreek.
The general aim of this study was the collecting and documentation
of sociolinguistic knowledge about Afrikaans. Since the study and description
of Afrikaans as a heterogeneous entity within the framework
and according to the methodological principles of social linguistics is
a relatively new area in Afrikaans linguistics, the nature of linguistic
heterogenity, the principles and methods of social linguistics and the
relevant terminology were firstly discussed.
In accordance with the sociolinguistic view of language as consisting
of a number of identifiable varieties, i.e. dialects, styles and registers,
standard Afrikaans and the vernacular Afrikaans of Pretoria were viewed as
two varieties of Afrikaans. These two varieties were examined and discussed
according to certain criteria in the literature on standard and
vernacular languages, as well as empirical data collected for this study.
The criteria according to which standard Afrikaans was examined, are
the status, form and functions of standard languages. From the discussion
of the status aspect of the standard variety, it was concluded that the
status of the standard can be attributed to two factors: firstly, the
fact that the speakers of the standard variety is viewed by the rest of
the society as a prestige group and secondly, that the standard variety is
used in the higher or standard functions.
The form of the standard variety of Afrikaans was examined from two
viewpoints, i.e. as the language use of the leading prestige group as well
as the documented prescriptive norms for standard Afrikaans. Because of
the notable difference between these two sets of data, the grounds upon which the norms for standard Afrikaans were based since the beginning of
standardization in 1925, were examined.
In contrast with the sociolinguistic point of view of the standard
variety of a language as an objective reality of which the norms are democratically
determined, it was found that the prescriptive norms for standard
Afrikaans are, to a great extent based on invalid, external grounds.
Because of this, prescribed standard Afrikaans has attained an artificial
character and it was concluded that it should be seen as a super-standard
form of Afrikaans. A few problems and implications which the existence
of a superstandard have for a speech community, were discussed briefly.
Vernacular Afrikaans in Pretoria was studied with the expectation
that the language behaviour of the group identified as the lower middleclass
speakers, would show distinguishable traits in spontaneous, unmonitored
language interaction. After an empirically based description of
the linguistic features of the vernacular and after contrasting these
features with the standard norms, the conclusion was reached that Pretoria
vernacular Afrikaans can justifiably be considered as a stylistic and social
variety of Afrikaans. However, the data used in this description
did not render sufficient grounds for the classification of this variety
as a social dialect of Afrikaans.
In the last instance, the important role vernacular language plays
in the life of a language, as well as the possibilities sociolinguistic
knowledge about language offers in the handling of certain educational
problems, were briefly discussed.