French-zulu manual aims to combat xenophobia
A UNIVERSITY of Kwazulu-natal masters student’s idea of bridging the gap between languages has been realised.
He has published a French-zulu Manual of Conversations to assist tourists visiting the Zulu Kingdom.
Mongezi Bolofo, from G-section in Kwamashu township, collaborated with Dr Michel Lafon, a retired African languages scholar from Paris, France.
The manual is a resource to assist French speakers to have direct access to Zulu.
Bolofo believes the book will also help fight xenophobia caused by misunderstanding between the local people and foreign nationals from Francophone countries.
Bolofo said he met Lafon in 2008 when he was an undergraduate studying Zulu media in communication.
He said Lafon came to UKZN looking for a research assistant to help him translate a Zulu novel, Asikho Ndawo Bakithi, by the late Mathew Jabulani Mngadi, from Zulu to French.
“From there we have worked together. I have had this vision for a long time. I proposed to Lafon that we do a small phrase book for visitors from the Francophone world to teach
themselves isizulu. It was that idea that has developed to work of this magnitude,” said Bolofo.
He said the book would help achieve social cohesion among the African people living in South Africa.
Bolofo, 37, said there was no need
for an English interpreter between the different indigenous language speakers because there were striking similarities in African languages.
He said while he grew up in Kwamashu township where Zulu is the dominant language, he was also
fluent in Sotho, Xhosa and Ndebele.
Bolofo lamented that there were no books being translated into South African languages.
He pleaded with the Department of Education to promote the country’s indigenous languages at school level.
He said being an academic living in the township sometimes had its own limitations.
“It is not fashionable for others to walk with a cup of coffee and a book in one hand instead of a bottle of beer. But growing up in the township has made me streetwise. I always support the upliftment of my community. I cannot disown the township life because it reflects who I am,” said Bolofo.
Lafon, who is based in Pretoria, said he expected the manual to hit the bookshelves by end of May after it was published in France. He said the book price was set around R380. He said they were working with local printers.
He said they were also working on another project, a lexicon from both languages to be published later this year.
Seventy-one-year-old Lafon, who speaks Zulu fluently, said his love for the language began after he arrived in Gauteng in 2001.
“Isizulu is more popular in France after different cultural groups have travelled to perform in European countries. The aim of the phrase book is to give kids an opportunity to learn both languages. It was also more logical to choose the language because it is one of the most spoken on the African continent,” said Lafon.