abba – Carry a child secured to one’s back with a blanket. From the Khoi-San.
amasi (pronounced um-ah-see) – A popular drink of thick sour milk. From the isiZulu. An alternative name is maas.
ag (agh) – Generally used at the beginning of a sentence, to express resignation or irritation, as in: “Ag no man! What did you do that for?”
B
babbelas (bub-buh-luss) – A hangover.
bagel (bay-gell) – An overly groomed materialistic young man, and the male version of a kugel.
bakgat (buck-ghut) – Well done, cool, awesome.
bakkie (buck-ee) – A pick-up truck.
bergie (bear-ghee) – From the Afrikaans berg, mountain, originally referring to vagrants who sheltered in the forests of Cape Town’s Table Mountain and now a mainstream word for anyone who is down and out.
biltong (bill-tong) – This South African favorite is dried and salted meat, similar to beef jerky, although it can be made from ostrich, kudu or any other red meat.
bioscope – A cinema or movie theatre, originally a defunct international English word that has survived longer in South Africa because of the influence of the Afrikaans bioskoop.
biscuit – In South Africa a cookie is known as a biscuit. The word is also a term of affection, as in “Hey, you biscuit”.
bliksem – To beat up, hit or punch – or a mischievous person.
blooming (blimmin) – A variation on very, as in: “That new bakkie is blimmin big.”
bobotie (buh-boor-tee) – A dish of Malay origin, made with minced meat and spices, and topped with an egg sauce.
boerewors (boor-uh-vors) – Literally, farmer’s sausage. A savoury sausage developed by the Boers – today’s Afrikaners – some 200 years ago, boerewors is South African food at its most traditional.
boet (like book, with a t) – A term of affection, from the Afrikaans for brother.
boma (bow-mah) – An open thatched structure used for dinners, entertainment and parties.
bonsella – Surprise gift, something extra, or a bribe. From isiZulu.
bosberaad (borse-bah-raad)- A strategy meeting or conference, usually held in a remote bushveld location such as a game farm.
braai (br-eye) – An outdoor barbecue, where meat such as steak, chicken and boerewors are cooked, served with pap and bredie.
bredie (brear-dee) – A traditional South African mutton stew, first brought to the country by Malay immigrants. It now refers to any kind of stew.
bru (brew) – A term of affection, shortened from Afrikaans broer, meaning “brother”. An example would be “Hey, my bru, howzit?”
bunny chow – Delicious and cheap food on the go, bunny chow is curry served in a hollowed-out half-loaf of bread, generally sold in greasy-spoon cafés. Perfect for eating on the side of the road while backpacking across South Africa.
bushveld (bush-felt) – Taken from the Afrikaans bosveld (“bush field”), the bushveld is a terrain of thick scrubby trees and bush in dense thickets, with grassy groundcover between.
C
café (kaf-ay, kaff-ee or kayff) – The ubiquitous small neighbourhood convenience store, often found on street corners and stocking cigarettes, cold drinks and newspapers.
china – To most people China is the country with the largest population in the world, but to a South African it can mean something entirely different. China means good friend, as in “This oke’s my china”. It’s one of the few Cockney rhyming slang words to survive in the country, coming from “china plate” = “mate”.
chommie – Friend, from the English chum.
cooldrink, colddrink – This is the common term for a soda, such as Coca-Cola. Ask for a soda in South Africa and you will receive a club soda.
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