A Brief Guide to South African Accents

Now that I’ve been here for over a month, I feel that I can successfully identify – though weakly replicate – a standard Cape Townian accent. 

My notes as follows for accents:

- Consider all o’s to be u’s: For example, Thabo Mbeki is pronounced tah-boo, Lesotho is less-oo-too, and so on.

- Vowels are big. Not long, in the sense of Southern accents, but just big. Read Johannesburg as Joeee-hane-eeess-behg or a shocked “No way!” as “Noooy waiee!”

- All conversations end as if the other person can’t wait to be rid of you. “Alright, cheers” They say in monotone, two octaves higher than the rest of the conversation, as if they’re beyond bored with whatever you’re saying.

My favorite South African vocabulary:

- Howzit: Meaning, “how are you?"

- Lekker (lekk-ah): Good, pleasing, awesome (“That dinner was lekker!”)

- Just now: It'll happen sometime soon, “I’ll meet you just now”

- Now now: It'll never happen. “I’ll get you your dress back now now.”