Abstract
D.Litt. et Phil.
This thesis constitutes an investigation into the complexity of Afrikaans legal language and
explores the challenges of plain language in South Africa. It argues that language is a
powerful tool, which can either be used for inclusion or exclusion. The requirement for the
use of plain language as stipulated in the National Credit Act and the Consumer Protection
Act is intended to improve the quality and accessibility of consumer-related documents, with
vulnerable consumers in mind. South African businesses, organisations and suppliers are
required to make their consumer documents available in plain and understandable language.
This requirement has far-reaching implications for both the consumer industry and the
language industry.
Although the definition of plain language in the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 and the
Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 is comprehensive and theoretically sound, its practical
implementation remains a challenge.
Some empirical work has been done on the comprehensibility of institutional and other
documents in South Africa, but these studies are mainly limited to health texts and the focus
is primarily on English. In light of the language distribution and the fact that less than 10% of
South Africans speak English as a home language, coupled with alarming educational
attainment rates, it does not automatically follow that consumer documents that are written in
plain English will be accessible to all consumers. In the framework of plain language
legislation in South Africa, there is now a pressing need to extend plain language research to
the other official languages as well, and to find ways to incorporate South Africa’s language
distribution into a plain language policy. This study is in Afrikaans, about Afrikaans and for
Afrikaans. Morever, in the absence of guidelines for methods or standards of assessing whether a
consumer-related document satisfies the requirements for plain and understandable
language, plain language practitioners are working in a vacuum, without any indication of the
assessment criteria that will be applied to measure compliance.