VIDEO: Meet Pretoria’s ‘linguistic genius’

Meet 47-year-old Pretoria man who speaks more languages than you can imagine.

Linguistic genius Frikkie Mulder speaks more than 12 languages including isiZulu and Russian.

“My TshiVenda and Xitsonga are pretty basic, but I am getting there,” he said.

The father of five speaks all of the country’s official languages, isicamtho (also known as “tsotsi taal”), sePitori (an informal language, which is commonly a mixture between Setswana and Sepedi used in Pretoria) as well as two foreign languages.

ALSO READ: What are South Africa’s most spoken languages in 2019?

It all started in 1989 when Mulder found out that he could matriculate without the much challenging mathematics so he decided to take on German.

“I think taking a third language prepared me for the idea of multilingualism,” he said.

After missing his opportunity to go to the army, he took on a BA degree with the University of Pretoria, where his love for languages grew bigger.

He took on IsiZulu, using it to speak with any person he could.

“When I first said ‘Sawubona’ the people I was speaking to gave me a very warm and accepting reaction,” he said.

“You’re entering a world that you know absolutely nothing about, but it’s amazing, it is colourful, you hear a sound that you don’t expect and everything is new.”

His Zulu name is “Themba Khumalo”, he even recites the clan names like a natural.

“I got drawn into the culture as well,” he said.

ALSO READ: What are South Africa’s most spoken languages in 2019?

He said learning the South African languages helped him challenge stereotypes that were perpetuated often by the apartheid government.

“In the 80s, I would see basadi (women) sitting, legs outstretched, with their heads covered talking to one another just after work.”

It was until he started understanding the languages that he realised that what basadi and many other black people were speaking, was not some secret language.

When learning African culture was not a popular thing of the time, Mulder’s love for languages saw him learn isiSwati, Sepedi and isiXhosa from listening to public radio stations.

“I was oblivious to any criticism that came from people from the Afrikaner community as well as some black people who think I was committing cultural appropriation,” he said.

Albeit coming from conservative Afrikaner home, Mulder said his family was always open to people of different cultures and races.

Mulder is also a talented musician, which could easily see him described as the Pretorian Johnny Clegg.

He has songs recorded in isiZulu and plays the guitar.

“That’s also how I got to learn languages, through music,” he said.

“I bought all the Juluka, Ladysmith Black Mambazo CDs and iMbizo by Phuzekhemisi and Khethani and that became my world.”

ALSO READ: I love you in 11 official languages

He offers isiZulu classes in Hillcrest, a job he said he loved a lot.

“I always tell my students that if they want to learn isiZulu they got to want to learn in the first place.

“There’s got to be something in you that says, ‘I’ve got to do this.’”

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