The Pan South African Language Board today revealed ‘Russia-Ukraine’ as word of the year, while ‘Kuningi’ made it as social media word of the year.
In celebrating World Dictionary Day, this announcement is significant today.
The board’s spokesperson, Ntombentle Huluhulu, and sign language interpreter, Mickey Moretsi, made the announcement this morning.
Some of the shortlisted words included bathing, danko, ivale mfana, cima, 10 past 4 (indluyawa) and kuningi emerged victorious.
Other contenders for SA word of the year included BRICS, interest rates and geopolitics.
The SA Word of the Year selection process was conducted by PanSALB, who shortlisted candidates based on real language usage. Focal Point analysed frequency statistics from October 2022 to September 2023, tracking keywords that were prominently used in credible print, broadcast, and online media. “Russia-Ukraine” emerged as the most dominant keyword in the media, accounting for 44% of the total clip count and mentions, followed by “BRICS” at 27%.
The prominence of the “Russia-Ukraine” war in South African public discourse can be attributed to various factors, including the country’s official stance on the war, the mediation envoy of African leaders led by President Cyril Ramaphosa, its impact on the hosting of the BRICS summit, and political pressure to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin.
As Kuningi was named the most popular for social media, Huluhulu said its is closely translated as “its a lot”.
“I think our viewers would know that there were some elements that did not reflect on the shortlist, such as Thabo Bester, Dr Nandipha Magudumana. But we had to have conversations about whether or not a name of a person qualifies as a word of the year. We really had to make that decision to disqualify. It's been a lot, just when you thought we are over this, something else comes up… kuningi,” said Huluhulu.
Other words and terms that were submitted and considered include Inflation, Hita Hlula, Zama Zama, iSigaxa, and Yoh, among others.
“The SA Word of the Year reflects the preoccupations of South Africans for a given period and is an essential indicator of the cultural and social landscape of the nation,” said Huluhulu.
Reacting to the announcement, social media platform X user Enzokuhle Sabela wrote: “SA Word of the year shortlist
(Social media) danko, cima, bathong, kuningi. This is proof that there is never a dull moment in South Africa, you choose to be bored”.