Learn Afrikaans in New Zealand.
About 95,000 people born in South Africa live in New Zealand, and Afrikaans is spoken in roughly 49,000 homes here. It is one of the fastest-growing languages in the country, and one of the least taught. There is no Duolingo course, the schools do not offer it, and the apps that do have Afrikaans drop a word list into a generic engine.
Praat was made in New Zealand by a South African, for a Kiwi partner who wanted to follow the conversation. The lessons are the situations a South African family here actually has: the front gate, coffee in the kitchen, the braai, the shop, a weekend plan. Everything is checked by native speakers, and you can practise out loud when you want to.
Level 1 is sixteen lessons and it is free with a free account. No card, no trial that runs out.
Start your first lesson, free →Five to ten minutes. Speaking is always optional.
Eight phrases to start with.
- Hallo!Hello!Start with the familiar Hallo, then keep the conversation going with Hoe gaan dit? (How are you?).
- Goeiemôre!Good morning!The ô marks a longer vowel, and the g is the throaty Afrikaans sound. In typed practice, goeiemore is accepted too.
- Hoe gaan dit?How are you?It asks how things are going, which is why the answer talks about dit rather than about you.
- Dit gaan goed, dankie.It’s going well, thank you.Literally, “It’s going well, thank you.” Dit gaan echoes the question Hoe gaan dit? and is a natural way to say you are well.
- Ek is Holly.I am Holly.Ek is covers I am in every situation; Afrikaans has no separate am, is and are to choose between.
- Wat is jou naam?What is your name?Jou is the everyday your; u naam is the formal version, kept for elders and officials.
- Lekker om jou te ontmoet.Nice to meet you.Lekker is the all-purpose word for anything pleasant, from food to weather to meeting someone.
- Tot siens!Goodbye!Tot means until, so this parting quietly promises a next time.
How Praat works.
- 1Hear it. Real situations: the gate, the braai, the shop, the phone call home.
- 2Say it. Practise out loud when you want to, with help that listens.
- 3Remember it. Short reviews bring the words back before you forget them.
Built by a South African in New Zealand.
Praat was made for a Kiwi partner who wanted to follow the conversation. Level 1, sixteen lessons, is free with a free account. Praat Plus opens the rest of the course and the voice coach.
Try the first lesson →