Tuesday, October 13, 2009

An Afrikaans lesson...

Aparently, if you add the gutteral sounding ge- in front of any English word, it automatically becomes an Afrikaans word.

C in the car on the way home from school - Mamma kan ek asseblief 'n slukkie koeldrank kry? (Mom can I have a sip of colddrink please?)

Me - Yes, but don't backwash. (She frantically swallows the snack she'd been eating...)

C - Mamma ek het nie ge-backwash nie. (Mom I didn't backwash.)

For my non-South African friends, it's very difficult to try and explain how to pronounce the ge- sound. It's very gutteral and sounds like you are trying your utmost to clear your throat.

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