Abstract
M.A. (Linguistics)
The gold rush to the Witwatersrand Goldfields in 1886 attracted a diverse
cross-section of European settlers. 10 % of this new community consisted of
Germans.
As Johannesburg developed, the need for education (schools) became acute,
and in 1890 the DSJ (Deutsche Schule zu Johannesburg) was founded for the
children of the German settlers. The founder of this private school was
pastor Herrmann Kuschke, a Berlin missionary. He commenced tuition with only
one pupil and by the end of 1891, the DSJ boasted 20 scholars. In his
endeavour, the pastor not only taught all the sciences and the language
German, but all scholars were expected to learn English, and the then
‘official’ language Dutch. After 1899, teaching Dutch to DSJ pupils was used
to assist and obtain state funding.