Partner Country of the Month December 2023: South Africa

The diversity of South Africa starts with its 3 capital cities and 12 official languages. Since the end of the racist apartheid regime, South Africa’s vision is to be a rainbow nation of cultural diversity and mutual tolerance. South Africans are typically relaxed, outgoing, direct and fun-loving. Looking at nature, South Africa impresses with its wildlife and landscapes, from elephants and savannahs to huge sardine runs and kelp forests.

With the "Partner Country of the Month" campaign, we want to shine a spotlight on the wide diversity of countries, regions and partner universities of TU Dresden that our students can explore during a semester abroad.

© panthermedia/Peopleimages

General facts and figures about South Africa

Capital: Pretoria is the seat of government but shares the status of capital with Cape Town (Legislative) and Bloemfontein (Judicial)
Population: 60 million (2021)
Official languages (by number of speakers): isiZulu, isiXhosa, Afrikaans, English, Sepedi, Setswana, Sesotho, Xitsonga, siSwati, Tshivenda, isiNdebele, South African Sign Language.
National holiday: Freedom Day on 27^th April (first post-apartheid elections)
Currency: Rand (R / ZAR)

You can find further facts, figures and information on Wikipedia or on the website of the German Federal Foreign Office. For travel info, see wikivoyage or southafrica.net.

Language matters

South Africa's 12 official languages are on equal standing legally, but English plays a unifying role as the lingua franca. It's the most common language used in higher education, media, politics and business, and it's understood across South Africa's diverse ethnic groups. Only around 9% of South Africans speak English as their native tongue, while the majority is multilingual and likes to mix in influences from other languages. Here's an introduction to the specialties, including the South African sense of time:

• Mzansi – South Africa
• Lekker – nice, enjoyable
• Robot – traffic light
• Jol – party, often followed by a babelaas – hangover
• Now – eventually, maybe
• Just now – sometime later
• Now now – sometime soon

The two Bantu languages isiZulu and isiXhosa have the largest proportions of native speakers, with 23% and 16%, respectively. They are spoken by the Zulu and Xhosa ethnic groups and use numerous click sounds, an influence from the indigenous Khoisan languages. You may have heard both languages before: isiZulu is used in some songs of Disney's "The Lion King", and isiXhosa is the language of the fictional nation of Wakanda in the Marvel Universe.

The third largest native language is Afrikaans with 14%. It derives from Dutch and is spoken by the descendants (both of mixed and of European origin) of the Dutch settlers who arrived in South Africa in the 17th and 18th centuries. Since the end of Apartheid (Afrikaans for "separateness"), the language has become less important in public life. Especially for South Africa's black population, Afrikaans still carries associations to the white supremacy of this era, so it has been giving way to the more neutral English.

At our partner university in South Africa, you can study all your courses in English. Please check the language proficiency requirements before applying. You can join a course at TUDIAS to brush up your English, e.g. the preparation course for a period abroad.

© panthermedia/shamsamir

Did you know that ....?

• only in South Africa, two Nobel Peace Prize laureates have lived in the same street together? Of course, that was no coincidence. South Africa's first black president Nelson Mandela and archbishop and human rights activist Desmond Tutu were leading figures in the fight against white supremacist apartheid (1948 - 1994). Both helped shape the peaceful transition to an equal society. The principle of apartheid was the segregation of society according to skin colour. Only the white minority was allowed to live in the city centres. All others were pushed to overcrowded townships on the outskirts of cities - such as Soweto, where both Mandela and Tutu lived.
• South Africa encloses a small kingdom? Lesotho is an independent state of only about 2.5% the size of the surrounding country. This makes South Africa the country in the world apart from Italy to have another independent country right in the middle of its territory.

• there are around 3,000 shipwrecks along South Africa's coast? Today, many of them are great diving spots teeming with marine life. In the past, sailors especially feared the hidden rocks and dangerous winds at Cape of Good Hope at the south-western tip of the country. By the way, the namesake hope is to have reached the southern tip of Africa and so found the route to India - not the good portion of hope required for the journey, as you might think.

• many medical innovations come from South Africa? The first successful heart transplant was performed in a Cape Town hospital. There's also a number of important inventions, like safety syringes, CT scans and 3D-printed bone transplants. Another medically relevant invention is the vuvuzela – in a more negative sense, as it can lead to hearing damage.

• South Africa is the first country in Africa to legalise same-sex marriage? Worldwide, it ranks in fifth place - well ahead of Germany, which only recognized same-sex marriages eleven years later, in 2017. South Africa's post-apartheid constitution emphasizes equality between genders, cultures and skin colours, and also protects sexual orientation. Desmond Tutu often compared the fight against homophobia to the fight against apartheid.

• gumboots can talk? In the South African gumboot dance, they are used as percussion instruments. The history of the dance speaks of resilience in adversity, originating in the 19th century gold mines of Johannesburg, where enslaved black labourers toiled in chains and were forbidden to speak to each other. They developed a language of sounds by stamping and rhythmically slapping and tapping their gumboots. In this way, they secretly made fun of the overseers and gave each other strength.

© panthermedia/Dendenal

Cooperation with TU Dresden

You can find all cooperations of TU Dresden in our database. Have a look at the experiences of our previous exchange students at Questionnaires. Professors at your faculty may have direct contacts to your partner university of choice and can advise you.

Our partner university in South Africa via TUDworldwide

• Stellenbosch University – interdisciplinary cooperation
  • • University: Stellenbosch University is considered one of the best (and oldest) universities in South Africa and has around 35,000 students. The ranking is especially high for development studies, agriculture, forestry and theology as well as politics, law and geography. All courses and examinations are offered bilingually in English and Afrikaans.
    • Location: Our partner university has its main campus in Stellenbosch, a student town located in the centre of South Africa's wine-growing region. The medical and business campuses are located in nearby Cape Town, South Africa's second largest city, picturesquely placed between Table Mountain and the coast.

Don't miss...

© panthermedia/EcoPic

Safari in a national park. South Africa has all kinds of wildlife commonly associated with the African continent - lions, elephants, zebras, giraffes and many more. The classic is a visit to Kruger National Park. With an area larger than Saxony, diverse biomes and countless large animals, it's one of the world's most important national parks. Plan several days for observing the animals in their natural environment. If you prefer a smaller-sized park, Addo Elephant National Park is a good choice. While it's famous for its elephants, the park is also home to many other large animals. But beware, carrying citrus fruit is prohibited, as the elephants are addicted to oranges. Both parks offer accommodation and can be explored by guided jeep tours or in your own (rental) car.

© panthermedia/fivepointsix (YAYMicro)

The Cradle of Humankind. Around a third of all known pre-hominid fossils have been found in this area of limestone caves near Johannesburg. A particularly important site of discovery are the Sterkfontein caves, which you can explore on guided tours. Close by, the interactive exhibitions of Maropeng Visitor Centre provide information about human evolution, the development of fossils and the area’s discoveries.

© panthermedia/shalamov

Table Mountain National Park encompasses the mountainous scenery of Cape Peninsula, stretching from Table Mountain to the Cape of Good Hope. It’s a landscape of extraordinary beauty, with rugged cliffs, sandy bays and a highly diverse bush vegetation. During its peak flowering time, the bushes fill the area with impressive colours. The national park is home to caracal cats, baboons and miniature antelopes, as well as African penguins. On Foxy beach, you can observe a colony of penguins up close. Also worth seeing: Shipwreck Trail at Cape Point, which leads past several stranded wrecks on a scenic route through the dunes and by the sea.

© Tapiwa Guzha / privat

Eating ice cream at Tapi Tapi. Here you can discover the beauty of African flavours that were often erased during South Africa's colonial history. The food culture of Cape Town in particular is quite eurocentric - Tapiwa Guzha's café provides a counterpoint. The constantly changing ice cream flavours draw inspiration from all over Africa, from sorghum and baobab to Ghanaian plantain snacks and edible clay. You can also donate to Guzha's food accessibility program and buy solidarity ice cream for people who can't afford it otherwise.

Let's get cooking...

South Africa's cuisine is as diverse as its population, with influences from Europe, Africa and Asia. Many typical dishes combine the European (Dutch) preference for meat with Indonesian and Indian spices. In Durban, home to many people of Indian origin, curry dishes are popular. A typical example is bunny chow, curry served in a loaf of bread. For most black South Africans, pap is an essential staple, a cornmeal porridge often served with the spicy relish chakalaka and a hearty meat stew.

In summer, South Africans love to gather outside and Braai - have a barbecue. This is such a popular pastime that many public areas have Braai spaces. An essential for Braai is Boerewors, a long spicy sausage that gets twisted into a spiral for grilling.

Bobotie

This South African national dish is said to have been Nelson Mandela's favorite and is often served on festive occasions. It’s a classic of the Cape Malays, a community whose Indonesian ancestors were brought to South Africa as slaves during the Dutch colonial period. The recipe is probably derived from patinam ex lacte, an ancient Roman dish that was still common in 17^th century Europe. The spicing, the name of bobotie and the classic side dishes of yellow rice and hot sambal are of Indonesian origin.

© panthermedia/asimojet

Ingredients:

• 1 kg beef mince (or plant-based option)
• 2 slices of white bread, crusts removed
• 375 ml milk
• 2 onions
• 2 tbsp fruit chutney
• 1 tbsp apricot jam
• 100 g sultanas
• 100 g blanched almonds
• 4 eggs
• 3 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp tumeric
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 4 bay leaves
• salt and pepper
• oil

Preparation:

1. Soak the bread in the milk in a bowl. Finely chop the onion and mix it with the mince in a separate bowl.

2. When it’s softened, take the bread, squeezing out the milk, and mix the bread with the mince. Set the remaining milk aside. Add the chutney, apricot jam, raisins, blanched almonds and spices. Mix these ingredients into the mince and onion, until they have all amalgamated.

3. Heat oil in a frying pan, add the mince mixture and lightly brown all over. Scrape into a casserole dish. Preheat your oven to 180°C.

4. Crack the eggs into the bowl of milk, season with salt and pepper and whisk. Pour this egg mixture evenly over the meat. Dot with bay leaves. Put the dish into the oven and let it bake for 30-35 minutes (until the egg mixture is set).

(Many thanks to foodloversmarket.co.za!)

Contact

Have you had a great time in South Africa? Do you have tips for places and experiences that are not to be missed? We would be happy to share your experiences here, on social media or, if you want, in information events for other TUD students. Get in touch with us:

© Sven Ellger/TUD

Advice on studying abroad

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Ms Federica Serra

Infocenter/ Study abroad; TUDworldwide: America

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