South Africa Essay Research Paper Throughout the

South Africa Essay, Research Paper

Throughout the years South Africa has had many internal problems such as apartheid, small wars within the country, and poverty. Since the early 1990s most of these problems have subsided with the exception of poverty. Before 1994 there were only two official languages in South Africa, now the government recognizes eleven different languages. With the vast land of this region comes numerous religions, cultures, and beliefs. After many trials and tribulations, today South Africa is on the path to become a respected nation something it has not seen in years due to apartheid.

The Language, Religion and Politics of South Africa.

South Africa is located on the southern tip of Africa, bounded North by Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe and northeast by Mozambique and Swaziland. The Indian Ocean is located along the southern part of the country. South Africa has 2,700 miles of coastline, which makes this country a great place to import and export goods and services. Being easily accessiblie has help form the different cultures of this land, not to mention is various Religions and Languagues.

Languages

Until apartheid ended in 1994 only Afrikaans and English were official languages, although they represent the home languages of only 15 percent and 9 percent of the total population, respectively. Afrikaans is spoken not only by Afrikaners but also by 83 percent of Colored people. English is the primary language of many whites, but also is spoken by 95 percent of Asians. The 1994 constitution added nine African languages to the list of recognized, official languages: Zulu, Xhosa, Sesotho sa Leboa (Northern Sotho or Pedi), Tswana, Sesotho (Southern Sotho), Tsonga, Venda, Ndebele, and siSwati. Some of these African languages are mutually understood and many blacks can speak two or more of them, in addition to English and Afrikaans. Together these 11 languages are the primary languages of 98 percent of South Africans. Many Indians also speak Hindi, Tamil, Telegu, Gujarati, and Urdu.

In practice English, and to a lesser extent Afrikaans, retain a dominant position, with English as the main medium of instruction in schools and most universities. Afrikaners attach great value to their language, however, and struggle to keep it as a medium of instruction and to resist any threat to undermine its status.

Religion

Of the four-fifths of South Africans who profess religious faith, 77 percent are Christians. The remaining 3 percent are Hindus (1.74 percent), Muslims (1.09 percent), and Jews (0.41 percent). Hindus are mainly Indian, and Muslims either Indian or Colored. There has been some growth of Islam among Colored people in recent years. The Christian churches include over 4000 African independent churches that collectively claim over 8.5 million adherents.

African independent churches originally broke off from various mission churches, but have since developed their own momentum. The majority is now Zionist or Apostolic churches, with some independent branches of the Pentecostal movement. The Zion Christian Church is by far the largest of these churches; biannual gatherings at Zion City, its headquarters in Moria near the Northern Province, usually attract about 1 million members. In rural KwaZulu-Natal there are hundreds of separate churches, and at least 900 churches flourish in Soweto.

Most Afrikaners belong to one of the three Dutch Reformed churches whose 4.5 million members also include about half of the Colored people and a small number of blacks. The Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk (Afrikaans for Dutch Reformed Church ) is the largest of the Dutch Reformed churches with 4 million members including the Colored and African membership. It was a racially segregated church that supported the state during the apartheid years, but then recanted and moved closer to other churches. Other denominations include Roman Catholics (2.91 million), Methodists (2.25 million), Anglicans (1.46 million), Lutherans (0.96 million), and Presbyterians (0.56 million). The larger churches in this group were prominent in the struggle against apartheid, at least at the leadership level. A number of charismatic churches (an interdenominational Christian movement) have also been established in recent years, including the Rhema Church in Randburg, Gauteng Province.

Most people who claim no religious affiliation are African traditionalists. Their religion has a strong cultural base and rituals vary according to ethnic group. They generally recognize a supreme being, but ancestors are much more important, and they believe in manipulation of the power of spirits. Traditionalists have had some contact with Christianity and many are in a transitional position, incorporating aspects of both religions into their beliefs and worship.

Government and Politics

In 1910 the union of South Africa was formed, comprising the provinces of Cape of Good Hope, Natal, Orange Free State, and Transvaal. Jan Smuts speedily crushed a Boer (Dutch farmer s) rebellion on the outbreak of World War I. South Africa occupied German SW Africa (now Namibia). Between the wars the union was alternately governed by the republican nationalists under James Hertzog and the South African Party under Jan Smuts, who supported the Commonwealth connection. Hertzog wanted South Africa to be neutral in World War II, but Smu