Nabetragting oor die taaldebat op Stellenbosch

Abstract

For twenty years Stellenbosch University has been at the centre of a public controversy about the role of Afrikaans in tertiary education – in particular the manner and extent to which Afrikaans should be used as a medium of instruction. This became known as the “taaldebat” – the language debate (conducted almost entirely in Afrikaans). For the first five of those years I served as the Rector and Vice-Chancellor of that University. This opinion piece is a personal retrospective view of, and perspective on, the “taaldebat” at Stellenbosch. It is offered as an alternative to the current narrative emanating from language activists, sometimes called “taalstryders”.