Afrikaans

[ af-ri-kahns, -kahnz ]

noun

Also called the Taal. an official language of South Africa, developed out of the speech of 17th-century settlers from Holland and still very like Dutch.

adjective

of or relating to Afrikaans or Afrikaners.

Origin of Afrikaans

1895–1900; <Dutch, equivalent to Afrikaan native of Africa + -s-ish¹

Words that may be confused with Afrikaans

Africans, Afrikaans

Words Nearby Afrikaans

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Afrikaans in a sentence

At the beginning of 2014, there were editions in 287 languages, ranging from Afrikaans to Žemaitška.
You Can Look It Up: The Wikipedia Story | Walter Isaacson | October 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for Afrikaans

Afrikaans

/ (ˌæfrɪˈkɑːns, -ˈkɑːnz) /

noun

one of the official languages of the Republic of South Africa, closely related to Dutch: Sometimes called: South African Dutch

Origin of Afrikaans

C20: from Dutch: African

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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