Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Young author on a quest to revive his native language
AT A TIME when indigenous languages are facing extinction, one man from the Garden Route is trying to reverse this trend by making sure his mother tongue remains relevant.
Mzoli Mavimbela is an award- winning author on a quest to revive his native language, Mpondo, which is spoken widely in the Eastern Cape, in areas such as Lusikisiki and Ngqeleni.
The langyage is spoken by a sub-group of the Nguni people called the amaMpondo. However, it is not among South Africa's 11 official languages, meaning that people like Mavimbela have to learn Xhosa at school.
Mavimbela, who resides in George and works as a social worker, holds a bachelor's degree in social work, a Master's degree and is currently studying towards a PhD.
He began writing as a hobby before deciding to pursue it professionally after his high school teachers convinced him of his talent.
“I enjoy writing about my culture and, more significantly, I enjoy reading Xhosa poetry.”
He said he had seen a gap in the literature in that there were very few books written about the amaMpondo or in Mpondo. This made him feel that his language and people were being marginalised and undermined as a cultural group in the country.
“Mpondo is a very rich language and culture, and we don't speak funny Xhosa, as many people would like to believe. This is our language, which is distinct from Xhosa,” he said.
Mavimbela said it pained him to see his language dying a slow death. He would love to see it continue to exist as it defined his nation, culture and heritage.
Mavimbela published a book, Amazwembezwembe
kaGxuluwe, which he wrote in Xhosa and isiMpondo. In it he explains the genealogy of the amaMpondo, using characters to tell the story of their origin and culture.
Amazwembezwembe can be loosely translated as “Gxuluwe's Puzzle” or “The Ups and Downs of Life”. The book is currently being read on Umhlobo Wenene FM by Dumza Maswana on Mondays and Wednesdays at 10pm. “To preserve our language, it is important that we continue to write books like these and make sure that they are included in the school curriculum, because currently at our schools there are no books written in Mpondo or about the amaMpondo.
“I hope this book will be taught in schools for generations to come, so that our children can have an idea of who they are and where they come from,” said Mavimbela.
The book was shortlisted by the SA Literary Awards and won the K Sello Duiker Memorial Literary Award.
His recent books include Zigqitwa kuhlwile,
Zibonwe liwuhlabile and Zezani na ezililo.
He is working on another book written in Mpondo which he hopes will be published next year.
He said the everyday experiences of his people and their socio-economic circumstances served as his sources of inspiration. He added that his works aimed to uplift and encourage individuals who had lost faith in life.
“I hope for Mpondo to be included in the list of South Africa's official languages as it's a distinctive language that deserves a place in the country's linguistic history,” Mavimbela said.