Skryftekens

“Skryftekens” refers to diacritical marks or accents used in Afrikaans to modify the pronunciation or meaning of certain letters. Here are the key diacritical marks and their usage in Afrikaans:

1. Kappie (Circumflex):

• Usage: Placed on the vowels mostly û, ê, and ô to indicate a long vowel sound.
• Examples: bêre (to save), êrens (somewhere), wêreld (world).

2. Deelteken (Diaeresis):

• Usage: Placed on the vowels ë and ï to indicate that they are pronounced separately from the preceding vowel. The deelteken, is represented by two dots (¨) placed above a vowel.  
• Examples: reën (rain), geïnteresseerd (interested).
• Reën (rain): In this word, the diaeresis is placed above the “e” to indicate that it should be pronounced separately from the preceding vowel, resulting in a two-syllable pronunciation.

3. The “koppelteken” is a punctuation mark used in Afrikaans, commonly known as the hyphen (-). It serves various purposes in writing.

• Joining Compound Words: One of the main uses of the koppelteken is to join words together to create compound words. It helps combine two or more words to form a single word with a specific meaning. For example: “Blou-oog” (blue-eyed): The koppelteken is used to join “blou” (blue) and “oog” (eye) to form the compound word for blue-eyed.
• Word Division: The koppelteken is also used to divide words at the end of a line when there is not enough space to fit the entire word. It helps maintain the correct division of the word between two lines of text.
• Repetition of words: The koppelteken is used when there is a repetition of words.

For example: fluit- fluit, nou- nou

4. Hoofletters (Capital letters)

• In Afrikaans, “hoofletter” is indeed the term used for “capital letter.” When writing in Afrikaans, the rules for using “hoofletters” are similar to those in English. Here are some guidelines for using capital letters in Afrikaans:
• Beginnings of sentences: Capitalize the first letter of the first word in a sentence.

Example: Ek het ‘n hond. (I have a dog.)

• Proper nouns: Capitalize the first letter of names of people, places, and days of the week, months, languages, religions, and specific organizations. Example: Ek bly in Kaapstad. (I live in Cape Town.)
• Titles: Capitalize the first letter of each significant word in titles, including books, movies, songs, and articles. Example: Ek het die boek “Fiela se Kind” gelees. (I read the book “Fiela’s Child.”)
• Acronyms and abbreviations: Capitalize all letters in acronyms or abbreviations.

Example: Die VN (Verenigde Nasies) het ‘n vredestigting. (The UN (United Nations) has a peacekeeping mission.)

• Geographical regions: Capitalize the first letter of geographical regions and their inhabitants. Example: Hy is ‘n Kaapenaar. (He is a Capetonian.)
• Titles of people: Capitalize the first letter of titles when used before names.

Example: Dokter Van Der Merwe is baie bekwaam. (Doctor Van Der Merwe is very competent.)

• Special events and holidays: Capitalize the first letter of special events, holidays, or festivals. Example: Ek vier Kersfees saam met my familie. (I celebrate Christmas with my family.)
• Titles of books, movies, and songs: Capitalize the first letter of each significant word in titles. Example: Ek het na die fliek “Die Stilte” gekyk. (I watched the movie “The Silence.”)

It’s important to note that diacritical marks are used sparingly in Afrikaans and primarily serve to distinguish between similar words or indicate pronunciation. Their usage is not as extensive as in some other languages.

When writing in Afrikaans, make sure to use the appropriate diacritical marks to accurately represent the intended pronunciation and meaning of words. However, do note that while diacritical marks are important for proper spelling, they are often omitted in informal writing or when typing on devices that don’t support them.