PanSALB, IN COLLABORATION WITH WALTER SISULU UNIVERSITY (WSU) TO CONDUCT LINGUISTIC HUMAN RIGHTS PUBLIC LECTURE
The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), in collaboration with the Walter Sisulu University, will on Thursday, 26 March 2026, conduct a Linguistic Human Rights Public Lecture at the Great Hall, Zamukulungisa Site, Mthatha Campus, Walter Sisulu University. The Chief Justice of South Africa, Justice Mandisa Maya, will deliver the lecture under the theme “Language […]
THE DEPARTMENT OF SPORT, ARTS AND CULTURE TO HOST LANDMARK NATIONAL LANGUAGE SUMMIT IN CAPE TOWN.
The Department of Sports, Arts and Culture, in collaboration with the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) and the South African Centre for Digital Language Resources (SADiLaR) will on Monday, 16 March 2026, host the National Language Summit at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) in the Western Cape. The summit forms part of […]
PanSALB WELCOMES INCLUSION OF KHOI & SAN INDIGENOUS NAMES IN HOME AFFAIRS SYSTEM
The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) has welcomed the inclusion of Khoi and San indigenous names within the Home Affairs system as announced by the department. This comes after decades of challenges faced by the Khoi and San community with registering their indigenous names due to the technical orthographies and unique writing system associated […]
PanSALB TO COMMEMORATE INTERNATIONAL MOTHER LANGUAGE DAY
The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) in conjunction with Msunduzi Municipality will, on Tuesday, 24 February 2026, commemorate International Mother Language Day at the Pietermaritzburg Hall, Chief Albert Luthuli Street in KwaZulu-Natal. International Mother Language Day, declared by United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), is observed globally on 21 February to promote […]
PanSALB WELCOMES EC HIGH COURT RULING ON THE USE OF isiXHOSA DURING COURT PROCEEDINGS BY LEGAL PRACTITIONER AS NOT CONTEMPT OF COURT
The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) has welcomed the ruling handed by the Eastern Cape High Court over a contempt of court charge brought against legal practitioner, Mr Melani, by a Whittlesea Magistrate for addressing the court in isiXhosa. In the matter brought before the High Court for special review, the magistrate seemed to […]
PanSALB TO ROLL-OUT LANGUAGE ACTIVISM MONTH CAMPAIGN
The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), as part of its ongoing commitment to promoting the use of mother tongue languages, will roll out the Language Activism Campaign from 01 February 2026. The campaign will be conducted through a series of coordinated activities and build-up programmes implemented across all provinces throughout the month of February. […]
PanSALB CONDEMNS LANGUAGE-BASED DISCRIMINATION
The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) strongly condemns the conduct shown in the viral video where a woman verbally attacks KwaZulu-Natal Police Spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda for not communicating with her in isiZulu. The behaviour shown in the video constitutes discrimination based on language. While PanSALB fully recognises the legitimate frustration individuals may experience […]
PanSALB CALLS ON PARLIAMENT TO SUSPEND PROCEEDINGS OF THE AD HOC COMMITTEE UNTIL INTERPRETING SERVICES ARE FULLY IMPLEMENTED
The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) calls on Parliament to uphold its constitutional obligations by strengthening linguistic inclusivity in the proceedings by the Ad Hoc Committee investigating allegations made by Lt Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi. PanSALB has observed recurring challenges related to language use in the committee’s work. The right of witnesses and Members of […]
PanSALB URGES THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION TO REINSTATE THE 5% LANGUAGE COMPENSATION FOR NON-MOTHER TONGUE USERS
The Pan South African Language Board urges the Minister of Education, Honourable Siviwe Gwarube and uMalusi, the Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training, to reinstate the 5% language compensation policy that was previously extended to learners whose home language differed from the language of teaching and learning (LoLT). This mechanism, introduced in […]
ANNOUNCEMENT OF 2025 SA WORD OF THE YEAR
G20 DECLARED SA WORD OF THE YEAR 2025 #SAWordoftheYear On 23 December 2025, the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), in partnership with media research company Focal Points, announced the 2025 South African Word of the Year. After carefully considering a range of words, terms, and expressions, “G20” was selected as the winner, prevailing over […]