Has SA formally Americanised?

Has SA formally Americanised?

Author
Discussion

Pints

Original Poster:

18,444 posts

193 months

Sunday 28th October 2012
quotequote all
Browsing www.vw.co.za this morning when I noticed they're advertising the new Polo Sedan.

We always referred to 4-door versions as saloons and when sedan crept into use in forums a few years ago, I had something to say about it.

Now that Volkswagen are using the American termI fear it's the point of no return.

What's next? Choosing your favorite color and car with a trunk?

Edited by Pints on Sunday 17th March 13:37

rs1952

5,247 posts

258 months

Monday 19th November 2012
quotequote all
I'll be in Cape Town in a couple of weeks - I'll check to make sure they're still (mostly) driving on the left smile

Alfanatic

9,339 posts

218 months

Friday 23rd November 2012
quotequote all
rs1952 said:
I'll be in Cape Town in a couple of weeks - I'll check to make sure they're still (mostly) driving on the left smile
hehe

Pints

Original Poster:

18,444 posts

193 months

Thursday 13th June 2013
quotequote all
Listening to SA news this morning, I noticed they're now pronouncing the letter Z as "zee".
banghead

DennisTheMenace

15,603 posts

267 months

Wednesday 24th July 2013
quotequote all
You do call your mum's mom's... i tried to correct her but she just shouts at me in a funny language hehe

Have a nice day y'all

Dave Holmes

9 posts

114 months

Thursday 11th September 2014
quotequote all
I believe the English (in England) are to blame for the lowered standard of English in South Africa. In the bad ole' years, the performing arts world in England named "Equity", withdrew all English based programmes from South Africa, thinking that it would encourage English speakers, many of whom did not like the old regime in South Africa anyway, to add their voices in protest.
All that did happen however, is that in the vacuum of English based and English spoken programmes, our media was flooded with American accented presentations, which is all that South Africans now listened to ad nauseum.
This is why I say the English are to blame for our English in South Africa!

Pints

Original Poster:

18,444 posts

193 months

Thursday 11th September 2014
quotequote all
Dave Holmes said:
I believe the English (in England) are to blame for the lowered standard of English in South Africa. In the bad ole' years, the performing arts world in England named "Equity", withdrew all English based programmes from South Africa, thinking that it would encourage English speakers, many of whom did not like the old regime in South Africa anyway, to add their voices in protest.
All that did happen however, is that in the vacuum of English based and English spoken programmes, our media was flooded with American accented presentations, which is all that South Africans now listened to ad nauseum.
This is why I say the English are to blame for our English in South Africa!
When did this happen?

rs1952

5,247 posts

258 months

Thursday 11th September 2014
quotequote all
Dave Holmes said:
I believe the English (in England) are to blame for the lowered standard of English in South Africa. In the bad ole' years, the performing arts world in England named "Equity", withdrew all English based programmes from South Africa, thinking that it would encourage English speakers, many of whom did not like the old regime in South Africa anyway, to add their voices in protest.
All that did happen however, is that in the vacuum of English based and English spoken programmes, our media was flooded with American accented presentations, which is all that South Africans now listened to ad nauseum.
This is why I say the English are to blame for our English in South Africa!
I wondered how long it would take before Pints noticed that someone had started posting on the SA thread smile

Anyway, back to topic. There is a fundamental flaw in your argument, and that is that American English has been flooding the English-speaking world's media since films, radio and TV were invented. And this of course includes the UK, but we still go on putting our extra "u" in certain words, and carry on smoking fags...

Blindly following the Yanks with their version of the "mother tongue" is not compulsory wink

It is said that the Americans and the English are separated by a common language, but SA also had its own version of the language well before the electronic media got involved. F'rinstance, as I have pointed out to people over there thinking of coming here for the first time, in the UK you find robots in science fiction, not on street corners wink

Pints

Original Poster:

18,444 posts

193 months

Friday 12th September 2014
quotequote all
rs1952 said:
I wondered how long it would take before Pints noticed that someone had started posting on the SA thread smile
tongue out (I've seen the other thread too, just thought the post didn't warrant a mention.)


Not to mention a circle vs roundabout.
And then there's the yogurt vs yoghurt pronunciation debate. A bone of contention in chez Pints. smile

Dave Holmes

9 posts

114 months

Wednesday 18th November 2015
quotequote all
Strange that my name is Holmes - an English name, which is mispronounced only by the English, who enunciate the " L " when in fact it is a silent one.