Standaardafrikaans en omgangsafrikaans in Pretoria

Abstract

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.