Of Chisels and Jackhammers: Afrikaans Poetry, 2000-2009

The article offers a critical survey of Afrikaans poetry of the years 2000 to 2009. It is written against the climate of concern that Afrikaans, no longer one of two official languages but one of eleven, will be increasingly marginalised, particularly as English is the effective lingua franca of contemporary South Africa. The considerable output of poetry, however, suggests that the Afrikaans language is adapting creatively to new circumstances and challenges. Never supine before apartheid officialdom, the poets -both white and coloured -show a range and diversity of expression from the 'chisel' of the finely honed lyric to the 'jackhammer' of the popular voice.