How many people speak Afrikaans? Charlize Theron controversy explained as actress faces backlash

Charlize Theron recently came under fire for saying that her mother tongue Afrikaans is a dying language. The actress appeared on the Smartless podcast and spoke to Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett about growing up in South Africa.

During the conversation, she shared that she began speaking English fluently after she moved to the US at the age of 19. Theron revealed that that it was easy for her to “drop” the South-African accent.

She further claimed that Afrikaans is not very popular and only “about 44 people” were “still speaking” the language:

“It’s definitely a dying language, it’s not a very helpful language.”

As her comments made the rounds online, Theron faced immediate criticism from social media users. The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) also called out the actress and said that her remarks were “disheartening,” “disturbing ,” and “inaccurate”:

“These comments made by Ms Theron perpetuate the persistent misconception that Afrikaans is only spoken by white ‘boere’ South Africans, which could not be farther from the truth as 60 per cent of the people that speak the language are black.”

Despite the Bombshell star’s opinion, World Data Info notes that nearly 8.4 million people worldwide speak Afrikaans as their mother tongue:

“With a share of around 14%, it is one of the most widespread language in South Africa. A total of about 8.4 million people worldwide speak Afrikaans as their mother tongue.”

According to The Independent, the Stats South Africa’s 2018 Community Survey notes that Afrikaans is the third most spoken language by household members as 12.2% of people in the country use it while speaking in their homes.

---

Twitter reacts to Charlize Theron’s comment on Afrikaans

Charlize Theron was slammed only for saying Afrikaans is a "dying language" (Image via Getty Images)

Charlize Theron recently landed in hot waters after saying that her mother tongue, Afrikaans, was a “dying language” which is only spoken by approximately “44 people.”

In addition to bashing her, the PanSALB also noted that Charlize Theron is held in “high regard by the country of her birth” and urged the actress to use her platform to highlight the importance of using one’s mother tongue in public:

“We implore her to pay due regard to the Constitutional imperatives that promote social cohesion and continue the commendable work of using her platform to highlight some of the critical socio-economic issues that affect the continent, including the importance of participating in public life using one’s mother tongue.”

The actress faced immediate backlash following her comments, with many taking to Twitter to denounce her claims:

However, some netizens also came to Theron’s defense amid the backlash, writing:

---

South African actor-director Tim Theron commented on Charlize Theron’s podcast remarks on Instagram and stated:

“We’re extremely proud of Charlize and everything she has achieved… but we’re also very proud of our diversity and our amazing and beautiful official languages, of which Afrikaans is one.”

He also noted that millions of people spoke Afrikaans in their households:

“It’s not a ‘dying language’, and it’s not only spoken by 44 people. It’s spoken by millions of people, there are new songs and poems being written every day, movies made, etc.”

As reactions continue to pour in online, it remains to be seen if Charlize Theron will acknowledge the situation and respond to the backlash in the days to come.