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Languages of South Africa
30 languages of the index are spoken in South Africa; 12 have official status (Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans and English). The country has about 62 m inhabitants (2022).
30 languages10 endangered or dormantAfricaISO ZA / ZAF
Official languages
zulZuluNiger–Congo · 27.8 m1 · NationalxhoXhosaNiger–Congo · 19.2 m1 · NationalafrAfrikaansIndo-European · 7.2 m1 · NationalengEnglishIndo-European · 1.13 bn0 · InternationalvenVendaNiger–Congo · 1.3 m1 · NationalsfsSouth African Sign Languageunclassified5 · DevelopingnsoNorthern SothoNiger–Congo · 4.1 m1 · NationalsswSwaziNiger–Congo · 2 m1 · NationaltsnTswanaNiger–Congo · 4.5 m1 · NationaltsoTsongaNiger–Congo · 4 m1 · NationalsotSesothoNiger–Congo · 6 m1 · NationalnblSouthern NdebeleNiger–Congo · 640,0001 · National
All languages spoken in South Africa
| Language | ISO | Family | Countries | Speakers | Vitality |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| engEnglish | eng | Indo-European | +93 | 1.13 bn | 0 · International |
| panPunjabiپنجابی | pan | — | +15 | 125 m | Safe |
| tamTamilதமிழ் | tam | Dravidian | +5 | 83 m | 2 · Provincial |
| zulZuluisiZulu | zul | Niger–Congo | 27.8 m | 1 · National | |
| xhoXhosaisiXhosa | xho | Niger–Congo | 19.2 m | 1 · National | |
| afrAfrikaans | afr | Indo-European | +2 | 7.2 m | 1 · National |
| sotSesothoseSotho | sot | Niger–Congo | 6 m | 1 · National | |
| tsnTswanaseTswana | tsn | Niger–Congo | +1 | 4.5 m | 1 · National |
| nsoNorthern SothoSepedi | nso | Niger–Congo | 4.1 m | 1 · National | |
| tsoTsonga | tso | Niger–Congo | +1 | 4 m | 1 · National |
| slvSloveneslovenski jezik | slv | Indo-European | +7 | 2.4 m | 1 · National |
| sswSwazisiSwati | ssw | Niger–Congo | 2 m | 1 · National | |
| venVendatshiVenḓa | ven | Niger–Congo | 1.3 m | 1 · National | |
| yidYiddishיידיש | yid | Indo-European | +26 | 1 m | Definitely endangered |
| rngRonga | rng | Niger–Congo | 722,000 | 5 · Developing | |
| nblSouthern NdebeleIsiNdebele | nbl | Niger–Congo | 640,000 | 1 · National | |
| lozLozi | loz | Niger–Congo | +2 | 600,000 | 4 · Educational |
| flyTsotsitaal | fly | — | 500,000 | 9 · Second language only | |
| naqKhoekhoeKhoekhoegowab | naq | Khoisan | 250,000 | 4 · Educational | |
| fngFanagalo | fng | Niger–Congo | 100,000 | 9 · Second language only | |
| nghNǁng | ngh | Khoisan | 3 | 8b · Nearly Extinct | |
| xamǀXam | xam | Khoisan | 10 · Extinct | ||
| sfsSouth African Sign Language | sfs | — | 5 · Developing | ||
| oorOorlams | oor | Indo-European | 6a · Vigorous | ||
| kqzKorana | kqz | Khoisan | 9 · Dormant | ||
| gicGayle | gic | — | 9 · Second language only | ||
| kquSeroa | kqu | Khoisan | 10 · Extinct | ||
| xegǁXegwi | xeg | — | 10 · Extinct | ||
| xiiXiri | xii | Khoisan | 8b · Nearly Extinct | ||
| gkuǂUngkue | gku | Khoisan | 10 · Extinct |
30 languages · click a column to sort · source: Wikidata