The Influence of Low Dutch on the English Vocabulary

Chapter XIV
The Influence of South African Dutch or Afrikaans on the English Vocabulary

14. 1.Ga naar voetnoot14. 1.

Some fifty years after its foundation the Dutch East India Company found the need for a halfway halt for its ships on the long voyage to the Indies. In 1652 one of its servants, Van Riebeek, arrived at the Cape of Good Hope to form a refreshment station in Table Bay. The policy of the Company was to keep the new settlement entirely for their own uses, and most of the settlers were discharged soldiers of their own. So slow was the development of the Cape that by 1792 there was a white population of only about 15,000. There was no intercourse with any nation except the Dutch, for the Company kept a strict monopoly of trade.

English influence in South Africa dates from the end of the 18th century. In 1794-5 the Netherlands declared themselves a republic under the title of the Batavian Republic and entered into close alliance with France. The British Government immediately fitted out an expedition to seize the Cape Colony, and obtained a mandate from the stadholder William V, who had taken refuge in England, requiring the authorities in Capetown to admit the English troops. In June 1795 the English occupied Simonstown and by September the feeble Dutch resistance had ended, Capetown surrendered, and the rule of the East India Company ended in South Africa after over a hundred and forty-three years. An attempt to regain the colony failed when a Dutch fleet was trapped and forced to surrender in Saldanha Bay (1796).

The first English occupation lasted until 1803, when under the terms of the Treaty of Amiens the Cape was restored to the Dutch. It was noted that, owing to the similarity of race, intermarriage between English and Dutch began to take place as soon as the two peoples were brought together.

Cape Colony was again seized by the English in 1806. The Dutch colonists were not reconciled to English rule, but gradually became accustomed to it. Their language was still used in the courts of law and in the public offices, and inter-

marriage made for the extinction of racial antipathies. Up to 1820 the colonists outside of Capetown were almost entirely Dutch-speaking. They were few in number, only about 42,000 whites; so the country invited settlers. South Africa was included in the scope of the emigration policy which was undertaken in England after the close of the Napoleonic Wars to relieve the distress prevailing among the labouring classes. In 1820 and 1821 nearly 5,000 colonists of British birth settled in the colony, with very few exceptions in the east between the Bushmans and Fish Rivers. The artisans in the new colony did not stay there, but dispersed over the whole colony. By 1825 an eighth of the colonists were English-speaking, and in that year English was forced on the Dutch as the official language of the colony.

Growing dissatisfaction with English rule led to the abandonment of their homes by thousands of the Dutch colonists after 1836, and the Great Trek began, beyond the Orange River and into the Transvaal, and down to Natal. Settlement in Natal was prevented by British occupation in 1842. To fill the place of some of those who had left, four or five thousand English, Scottish, and Irish labourers were brought into the colony by a system of state-aided immigration.

Trouble with the emigrant farmers continued, and in 1848 they were defeated in a battle at Boomplaats. This led to the withdrawal across the Vaal River of all who were inveterately opposed to British rule, and their places were filled by fresh emigrants from the Cape Colony, many of whom were Englishmen, so that the Orange Territory now contained a good percentage of English speakers. In 1852 the independence of the South African Republic was granted by the Sand River Convention.

Although Dutch was habitually spoken by three-fifths of the white population of the Cape Colony and by a still larger proportion of the coloured inhabitants exclusive of the Bantu tribes, the English language only could be used in debate in Parliament, in the proceedings of the courts of justice, and in transactions in the public offices. In 1882, however, the same rights were secured for Dutch as for English.

A new chapter in Dutch and English relations in South Africa opened with the discovery of the great mineral wealth. Diamonds were discovered in 1867. In 1877 the South African

Republic was annexed without opposition; the villages inhabited by English and Germans had appealed for it as the only remedy against anarchy. In 1880, however, the flag of the Republic was again hoisted and, after a short war disastrous to the British arms, independence was again restored.

The opening up of the immense goldfields of the Transvaal began in 1886. The city of Johannesburg arose as if by magic. The thousands of immigrants who were brought into the country by the attraction of gold were almost all English-speaking. There was a great difference between their interests and those of the Dutch farmers, and friction was soon engendered between the Boers and the Uitlanders. One of its main causes was the question of language in public schools frequented by the English children; the Republic, quite forgetting the resentment which this question had caused among the Dutch colonists when an attempt had been made to force the use of English upon them, made Dutch the principal medium of instruction.

The grievances of the Uitlanders caused a declaration of war in October 1899 against the two Republics, and the struggle did not end till 1902. England employed considerably over 300,000 fighting men, and a knowledge of South African conditions and affairs and of Afrikander words and phrases was widely disseminated in Great Britain. It must be remembered that the English soldiers mixed with the Dutch civilians and became acquainted with the Boers as prisoners of war; moreover, some Boers actually fought on the British side. The English newspapers, too, made Dutch terms quite familiar to the Englishman at home.

14. 2.

One of the largest groups of words borrowed from Afrikaans is that for the names of members of the South African fauna. Most of the beasts, birds, and reptiles of South Africa were new to the English and had no English names. The Dutch, however, had named them before the English arrived, and the latter were usually content to borrow the Dutch name. The word was generally taken over in its purely Dutch form, but sometimes, when the English language had words which almost coincided in form, the Dutch word was adapted to the corresponding English form, e.g. Dutch water-bok became English water-buck; Dutch zand-moll became English sand-mole.

Perhaps the most characteristic genus of the South African

fauna, both in numbers and variety, is that of the antelopes. The numerous species were unknown to European zoology, and the Dutch named them, sometimes after the European animals which they resembled, but mostly with a compound name, the second element of which was Dutch bok, buck, and the first descriptive of some peculiarity of appearance or habitat.

Reebok (1775) is the Du. reebok, roebuck, so named from its resemblance to the European deer so called. Springbok (1775) is from Du. springen, to spring, and bok, from the animal's characteristic of springing almost directly upward when excited or disturbed. Duiker, Duyker (1777), or as it is more fully named duikerbok, is from Du. duiker, ducker or diver. Gemsbok (1777) is another antelope named from its resemblance to a European animal; from Du. gemsbok, ad. G. gemsbock, chamois buck, from G. gemse, chamois. Klipspringer (1785) is named from its habitat, from Du. klip, rock, and springer, springer. Reitbuck (1785) is named from its habitat, Du. reitbok, from reit, reed, and bok. Blauwbok (1786) is named from its colour, blue, an effect produced by its black hide showing through its ashy-grey hair; from Du. blauw, blue, and bok. The word is also found in the English translation Bluebuck (1834). Bontebok (1786) is named from its pied colour; from Du. bont, pied, and bok. Boschbok (1786) is named from its habitat; from Du. bosch, bush, and bok. It is also found in the Anglicized form Bushbuck (1852). Eland (1786), the largest of the South African antelopes; it is very naturally named after the largest of the European deer, the elk; ad. Du. eland, elk, ad. G. elend. Grysbok (1786) is ad. Du. grijsbok, so named from its colour, Du. grijs, grey, and bok. Hartebeest, Hartbeest (1786) from Du. hert, hart, from its resemblance to the European hart, and beest, beast. Oribi, Orebi (1795) is from the Afrik. word of the same forms, apparently a borrowing from Hottentot. Kleenebok (1834) is named from its size, from Du. kleene, little, and bok. Reedbuck (1834) is a translation of the Du. rietbok. Wildebeest (1838) another name for the gnu; it means ‘the wild beast’, from Du. wilde, wild, and beest, beast. Waterbok (1850) is named from its habitat, from Du. water, water, and bok. It is also found in the Anglicized form Waterbuck (1850). Blesbok (1824) is named from the white blaze on the animal's face; Du. bles, blaze, and bok. Buck (1879), the generic term for any male of the antelope kind, is a natural use of the English word for the male

of any ‘deer’, but O.E.D. suggests that in South Africa it is after Du. bok, buck, he-goat.

The Dutch names for other animals peculiar to South Africa were adopted. Ratel (1777), a carnivorous animal, the honey-badger; Afrik. ratel is of uncertain origin and seems to have no connexion with Du. ratel, rattle. Das (1786), the daman or rock-badger; the Dutch named the beast from its resemblance to the European badger; Du. das, a badger. Dauw (1802), a species of zebra; dauw is the Afrik. form of the native name. Aard-vark (1833), a quadruped about the size of a badger; the Dutch colonists saw in this beast some resemblance to a pig, and so named it from the Du. aarde, earth, and vark, pig. Aard-wolf (1833), a carnivore about the size of a fox; so named by the Dutch colonists from its burrowing habits and wolfish appearance; from aarde, earth, and wolf, wolf. Sand-mole (1850), a South African mole; Anglicized form of the Du. zand-moll, from zand, sand, and moll, mole. Bosch-vark (1854), a species of wild pig; so named from its habitat, from Du. bosch, bush, and vark, pig.

A few names for South African birds were borrowed. Knorhan (1731), a species of bustard; the bird was named from its cry; Du. knor, from knorren, to growl, and haan, cock. The bird is also called Koran (1775), the first element of which has been sought in Du. korren, to coo; but it is probably an adaptation of korhaan, the name in Holland for the woodcock, because of the similarity in sound between korhaan and knorhaan. Paauw (1850), the name of another species of bustard; this is the Du. paauw, a peacock. Aasvogel (1887), a South African vulture; ad. Afrik. aasvogel, from aas, carrion, and vogel, bird. Berghaan (1867), a South African eagle, esp. the black eagle; ad. Afrik. berghaan, from berg, mountain, and haan, cock. Sprew (1897), a bird belonging to the genus Spreo, a glossy starling; ad. Du. spreeuw, starling.

There are three names of South African reptiles. Geitje (1786), a venomous lizard; ad. Du. geitje, the diminutive of geit, goat, perhaps from the horned appearance of the reptile; O.E.D., however, suggests that it is an etymologizing perversion of a native word. Puff-adder (1824), a very venomous viper; it is the Anglicized form of Du. pof-adder, from pof, from poffen, to puff, from the snake's habit of puffing out its neck when disturbed, and adder, adder, viper. Berg-adder (1867), an

adder found on high ground and on hill-sides; from Du. berg, mountain, and adder, adder.

Two names of South African fish were borrowed from Afrikaans. Sand-creeper (1731) is the Anglicized form of Du. zandkruiper, from zand, sand, and kruiper, creeper. Snoek (1853), so named from its resemblance to the European pike, Du. snoek, pike.

14. 3.

In the names of members of the South African flora borrowed from Dutch several principles of nomenclature can be observed. Most of the words are descriptive of the properties of the plant, as pyp-grass and hack-thorn, or of the uses to which it may be put, as wagenboom. A few are adaptations of the name in the native Hottentot or Bantu, as karree. One or two of the scientific generic terms are from Dutch sources, as babiana.

The following are descriptive names. Wait-a-bit (1785), the name given to various plants, esp. to various species of mimosa, in humorous reference to their hooked thorns; it is the Eng. translation of the Du. wacht-een-beetje, from wachten, to wait, and beetje, a little bit, the diminutive of beet, bit; the word is further Anglicized as wait-a-while. Wagenboom (1822), a tree so called because its wood was found suitable for making the fellies of wagon wheels; from Du. wagen, wagon, and boom, tree. Sneezewood (1834), a timber tree; the word is a translation of the Du. nieshout, from nies, from niezen, to sneeze, and hout, wood; there existed already in Du. the parallel combs. nieskruid, nieswortel, hellebore. Spekboom (1823), the South African purslane tree; from Du. spek, bacon, fat, and boom, tree. Pyp-grass (1854), a tall-growing species of grass; apparently from Du. pyp, pipe, an earlier form of Du. pijp, and grass. Hackthorn (1863), a thorny shrub, so called from the hooked thorns; this is the Anglicized form of the Du. haakedorn, from haake, hook, and dorn, thorn.

The following are adapted from the native names, or named after the native locality in which they grow. Karree (1822), a tree resembling the willow and used by the natives for making bows; Afrik. karree is from the Hottentot name; sometimes found in the extended forms karree-hout or karree-boom. Tambouki-grass and Tambouki-wood (1858), so named because they grow in Tembu-land; Afrik., from the tribal name Tembu and the diminutive ending -kje; another form of the word

Tambootie shows the use of the diminutive -tje. Kaffir-boom (1880), a leguminous tree; from Kaffir, the common name for the South African coloured people, and Du. boom, tree.

Scientific terms of Dutch basis are Stapelia (1785), a genus of plants remarkable for the fetid smell of the flowers; named by Linnaeus after Jan Bode van Stapel, a 17th-century Dutch botanist; this word should properly come under scientific words of Dutch origin. Babiana (1835), a genus of bulbotuberous Iridaceae with handsome purple, yellow, or scarlet flowers; the modern Latin name is an adaptation of the Afrik. babianer, i.e. baboon plants, so named because their tubers are eaten by baboons.

One plant name was borrowed by the Dutch from the Portuguese, who were their predecessors in some parts of South Africa. Mealie (1853), a name for maize, chiefly found in the plural mealies; from Afrik. milje, ad. Pg. milho, millet, in milho grande or milho da India, maize; this word probably came into Afrik. through Bantu.

14. 4.

The Dutch colonists found in South Africa a country markedly different in geographical features from their native land. They found names for the characteristic features of karroo and veldt landscape, and these names were largely borrowed by the later English settlers.

Kloof (1731), a deep, narrow valley, a ravine or gorge between mountains; ad. Du. kloof, a cleft. Saltpan (1785), the peculiar salt lakes or marshes which dry up to beds of salt; the Dutch name was zoutpan, from zout, salt, and pan, pan; this was Anglicized as saltpan. Sweet-veld (1785), land of good quality for food plants suitable for pasturing; the Afrik. name was zoetveld, from zoet, sweet, and veld, field; in sweet-veld the first element has been Anglicized, while the form sweetfield shows both elements Anglicized. Krantz or Kranz (1834), a wall of rock encircling a mountain or summit, then more widely applied to any precipitous or overhanging wall of rocks; this geographical feature was aptly named in Afrik. krantz, coronet, chaplet (Du. krans, older Du. krants, in Kilian); this is an example of Afrik. preserving an older form of Du.

Nek (1834), a neck or saddle between hills; ad. Du. nek, neck. Poort (1834), a mountain pass; ad. Du. poort, gate. Zuurveldt (1834), a district covered with sour pasturage; from Du. zuur, sour, and veld, field. Drift (1849), a passage of a river, a ford;

ad. Afrik. drift, Du. drift, passage for cattle, drove (M.Du. drift). Sluit (1863), a channel, ditch, or gulley, usually one formed by heavy rain, and dry during the greater part of the year; ad. Du. sloot, a ditch; it is hard to explain the form sluit, for sloot; perhaps it is by analogy with the common vb. sluiten, to shut, or more probably by analogy with spruit of the same meaning. Spruit (1863), a small stream or watercourse usually almost or altogether dry except in the wet season; from Du. spruit, sprout, perhaps from its sudden gushing into activity after rain. Overberg, adj. (1879), over a mountain or mountains, that passes over the mountains; ad. Afrik. overberg, from over, over, and berg, mountain.

Kopje (1881), a small hill; ad. Afrik. kopje, the diminutive of kop, head; the form koppie represents the colloquial pronunciation, the diminutive ending -je having sunk to -i. Bush (1780), woodland, country more or less covered with natural wood, applied to the untilled and uncleared districts; in South Africa probably directly ad. Du. bosch, wood, bush; the word was also borrowed in Guiana. Berg (1902), a mountain or hill; ad. Du. berg, mountain.

14. 5.

South Africa is a country of vast spaces and scattered isolated communities. Before the coming of the railway - and indeed it is even now the case in the less developed districts - the only means of transport was by the slow and primitive wagon drawn by many yoke of oxen. For long journeys the wagons are fitted up as caravans for sleeping and living in. Many terms of wagon transport were borrowed into English, and most of them entered at or after the time of the Great Trek, which was carried out almost entirely by means of the ox-wagon.

Pont (1775), a large ferry-boat attached to an iron or steel cable; this is the Du. pont, ferry-boat, pontoon (M.Du. ponte). Span (1812), a team of oxen or other draught animals consisting of two or more yokes; ad. Du. span, from spannen, to span, bend, put horses to. Outspan (1824), to unyoke or unhitch oxen from a wagon; ad. Du. uitspannen, from uit, out, and spannen. Inspan (1852), to yoke oxen in a team to a vehicle, to harness (a wagon); ad. Du. inspannen, from in, in, and spannen.

Sjambok (1830), a strong and heavy whip made of rhinoceros or hippopotamus hide and used for driving cattle and sometimes

for administering punishment; the Afrik. forms are sambok, tjambok, sjambok, and this is one of the few words brought into Afrik. from the East Indies; it is the Malay samboq, chamboq, a whip, and was perhaps introduced by the Malay slaves brought to Capetown, whose descendants are the Cape Malays of to-day.

Trek-tow (1834), the central chain or cable of twisted hide attached to a wagon-pole to which the yokes of the oxen are fastened; ad. Afrik. trek-tow, from Du. trek, draw, tug, pull, and touw, rope, cord. Trek, sb. and vb. (1849), a stage of a journey in travelling by ox-wagon, also all the journey or expedition; as vb. to make such a stage or journey; ad. Du. trek, draw, pull, tug, march, from trekken, to draw, pull. Riem (1849), a long strip or thong of undressed leather; ad. Du. riem, strap. Rheim (1850), a long strip of prepared hide with a noose at the end, also used attrib., as in rheim-chain; also as vb., to secure with a rheim; ad. Du. riem (M.Du. riem(e)). For the spelling with -h- compare rheaboc, rheebok, variants of reebok.

Off-load (1850), to unload; Anglicized from the Du. afladen, from af, off, and laden, to load. Skey (1850), one of a pair of wooden bars passing through each end of an ox-yoke, to which the neck-straps are fixed; ad. Afrik. skey, from Du. schei, transom. Forelooper (1863), a boy who walks with the foremost pair of a team of oxen to guide them; ad. Du. voorlooper, from voor, fore, in front, and looper, runner, from loopen, to run. Offsaddle (1863), to take the saddle off horses for a rest and feeding, to unsaddle; Anglicized from Afrik. afzadelen, from af, off, and zadelen, to saddle; compose the comb. above, off-load, of similar formation.

Reim (1865), a strip of oxhide, thong, strap; it must be considered as a spelling variant only of riem; the pronunciation of the two words would be the same. Kartel (1880), the wooden bed or hammock in an ox-wagon; ad. Afrik. kartel, one of the few words brought in by the East Indian trade and apparently ad. Pg. catel, catle, catre, little bed; according to Schuchardt a ‘South Indian word, Tamil kaṭṭil, bedstead, adopted and diffused by the Portuguese’.

14. 6.

On their arrival at the Cape the Dutch found two native races in possession, the Hottentots and the Bushmen. Later they encountered the various Bantu tribes which were pressing down from the North. The Dutch gave names to the two former races, and the English borrowed those names; but

the Dutch simply took over the Bantu tribal names. English also borrowed from Afrikaans several words descriptive of native dress, weapons, and manner of life. It is noticeable that two of these are of Portuguese origin.

Hottentot (1677), a member of a native South African race, the first met by the Dutch; Du. Hottentot is supposed to mean ‘stutterer or stammerer’, and was applied to them because of the frequency of clicks in their speech. Bushman (1785), a member of a very primitive race of South African aborigines; the Du. name is boschjesman, and the Eng. seems to be a translation of this. The later form Boschman (1854) is nearer the original Dutch. The early equivalent Buschie (1731), applied to a sort of Hottentot bandit, still shows the form of the Du. boschjesman in having preserved the -schje-.

Kaross (1731), a mantle or sleeveless jacket made of the skins of animals with the hair on, used by the Hottentots and other natives; it is not a Bantu word and is apparently not Hottentot; it has been suggested that kaross represents Du. karas or Pg. couraça, cuirass; a Pg. origin is far from improbable, as Afrik. has a group of words borrowed from Pg. Kraal (1731), a Hottentot or Kaffir village of huts surrounded by a stockade; Afrik. kraal is from Pg. curral or corral and was borrowed from the Pg. either in South Africa or in the East Indies. Knobkerrie (1849), a short, thick stick with a knobbed head used as a weapon or missile by South African tribes; from Afrik. knopkirie or knopkieri, from Du. knop, knob, and kirie; kerrie, kirie, short club, is a Hottentot or Bushman word.

14. 7.

South Africa was a paradise for the big-game hunter, and hunting was practically the only amusement of the Boers. English professional hunters appeared in South Africa in the 19th century, and a few terms of hunting were borrowed from Afrikaans.

Roer (1834), a long-barrelled gun used by the Boers in hunting big game; ad. Du. roer, itself ad. G. rohr, a gun, barrel, reed. Skellum (1850), a rascal, applied to rogue animals; ad. Afrik. schelm, rascal, devil, from Du. schelm, ad. G. schelm. Looper (1889), a kind of large buckshot, called in Du. looper, runner. because of its greater range than the smaller shot. Brill (1863) was used by W. Baldwin in African Hunting for the roaring of wild beasts; it is ad. Du. brullen, to roar.

14. 8.

The Dutch in South Africa came early into conflict with

the native races, and the Boer system of warfare was worked out in numerous native wars. The Boers were always outnumbered and had to resort to war based on fortified camps of interlocked ox-wagons and extended by mounted sharp-shooters. It was this system which they used with such effect against the British in the First and Second Boer Wars.

Commando (1834), a party commanded or called out for military purposes, an expedition or raid, a word applied to quasi-military expeditions of the Portuguese or Boers (esp. the latter) against the natives; in the Second Boer War the word was used by the English for a Boer regiment of the burghers of one district; ad. Afrik. commando, ad. Pg. commando, command, party commanded, from the stem of commandar, to command. Laager (1850), a camp, the typical Boer temporary camp in the open, marked out by an encircling line of wagons; ad. Afrik. lager, corresponding to Du. leger, a camp, which has given the English leaguer. The vb. is Laager (1879), to form such a camp. Scherm (1861), a screen of brushwood to serve as a protection for troops or as an ambuscade from which to shoot game; ad. Du. scherm, screen, protection. Schanse(1880), pronounced (skans); a heap or breastwork of stones used as a protection against rifle fire; ad. Afrik. skans, corresponding to Du. schans, entrenchment, redoubt. Commandeer (1881), to command or force into military service, to seize for military use; ad. Afrik. kommanderen, ad. F. commander, to command.

14. 9.

A number of terms of government and administration were borrowed from Dutch. Two of them refer to the old system of Company administration before the English rule. The rest are those of the independent Boer rule in the two Republics. The words Outlander and Zarp reflect British interest in the conflict between the Boers and the alien gold-miners of the Rand which immediately preceded the Boer War.

Landrost (1731), a kind of magistrate; ad. Afrik. landrost, from Du. land, land, and drost, bailiff. The official residence of a landrost was the Drosty (1812), ad. Afrik. drostij.

The word Boer (1834) came in about the time of the Great Trek; the primary sense is farmer, and it was applied by the English to the Dutch colonists engaged in agriculture and stock-raising; O.E.D. states that since the last quarter of the 19th century the name has been applied, in newspaper language, esp. to the Dutch of the Transvaal and other districts which

were then beyond the British dominions; it is now the accepted popular term for South African Dutch. Africander (1834), a white native of South Africa, esp. one of Dutch descent; ad. Afrik. Afrikander, from Afrikaansch, African, with termination modelled on Hollander, Dutchman.

Three terms were introduced at the time when the Boer Republics were again granted their independence after the First Boer War. Bond (1884), the Afrikander bond; this is the Du. bond, alliance, union. The adherents or members of the Afrikander bond were known as Bondsmen (1884). Bestuur (1885) is from Du. bestuur, government, and was a term borrowed to describe the government or administration in tha Dutch-speaking parts of South Africa as distinct from the English.

Outlander (1892) is the Anglicized form of Du. uitlander, an alien, foreigner, applied by the Boers of the Transvaal to the alien population attracted to the country by the goldfields of the Rand. Zarp (1895) is a made-up word which can be regarded as only indirectly of Dutch origin; the police force of the South African Republic was known as the Zuid Afrikaansch Republikeinsch Politie, and the Outlanders applied the word Zarp, made up of the initials of these four words, to a member of this force, hence a term for a Boer constable.

14. 10.

A number of words borrowed from Afrikaans cannot be included in the eight categories above.

A few are terms descriptive of Dutch farming and village life. Baas (1785), a master, employer of labour; often as a form of address; ad. Du. baas. Werf (1818) is the Afrik. name for a homestead or the space surrounding it; from older and dial. Du. werf or werft, in the same sense; mod.Du. werf has the sense of yard or ship-yard, but originally it meant the raised plot on which a house is built. Bijwoner, Bywoner (1889), an authorized squatter on another man's farm; ad. Afrik. bijwoner, from Du. bijwonen, to be present at. Stad (1896), a town or village; ad. Du. stad.

There are a few shopkeeping terms. Winkel (1839), a store or general shop; ad. Du. winkel, shop. Winkler (1839), a storekeeper; either a separate formation on winkel and -er or ad. Du. winkelier. Smouse (1850), an itinerant trader; ad. Du. smous, a Jewish usurer, this trade being until recently monopolized by the Jewish pedlar. Another term for the travelling trader is

Kurveyor (1885), Anglicized from Du. karweier, from karwei, job (M.Du. corweie, ad. F. corvée).

Biltong (1815), strips of lean meat dried in the sun; ad. Afrik. biltong, from bil, buttock, and tong, tongue, because it is mostly cut from the buttock and in appearance resembles a smoked tongue. Bamboos (1822), a wooden vessel for milk, water, &c.; ad. Du. bamboes, bamboo. Sopie (1834), a drink of spirits, dram; ad. Afrik. sopie, dram, sip (Du. zoopje); the same word as Sopie, p. 51. Scoff (1879), food, also a meal; ad. Afrik. scoff, representing Du. schoft, quarter of a day, hence each of the four meals of the day; during the Boer War scoff was taken into army slang as a term for food and still persists there, whence it has made its way into workmen's slang.

Taal (1896), the Dutch word for language, speech; in English specially applied to Afrikaans. Afrikaans (1908), South African or Cape Dutch; ad. Du. Afrikaansch, African. Yah (1889), used by Rider Haggard in his Boer novels for ja, yes, when representing Afrikaans speech.

Banket (1886), a gold-bearing conglomerate found in the Witwatersrand district of the Transvaal; ad. Du. banket, banquet, also a confection resembling almond hardbake; the rock is so called because of its resemblance to the sweetmeat in appearance.

Slim (1899), crafty, artful; in recent use slim in this sense is a borrowing from Afrik.; it appears as early as 1674 in this sense, but seems to have gone out of use and was re-adopted; cf. Slim, p. 202.