How to write an email or letter in Afrikaans: the complete guide

Afrikaans is one of the easier languages for English speakers to learn. What most language learners find difficult is the pronunciation of certain sounds rather than the language itself.

One thing to be aware of, when writing an email or a letter in Afrikaans, is that there is a significant distinction between the informal and the formal tone. In this guide, we will cover common Afrikaans email phrases for both informal and formal correspondences.

How do you start an email or a letter in Afrikaans?

The level of formality depends on the recipient and will vary depending on whether you are writing to your banker, a prospective client, or a friend.

Afrikaans email / letter openings for formal correspondences

It is common for English emails and letters to start with the greeting “Dear”, which translates to “Liewe” in Afrikaans. However, in Afrikaans, the greeting “Liewe” is reserved for informal correspondences. Whereas for formal correspondences in Afrikaans, the greeting “Geagte” is used instead. It means “Honored” or “Honorable”.

When the name of the recipient is unknown, the greeting “Aan wie dit mag raak” (meaning: “To whom it may concern”) may be used instead of the greeting “Geagte”.

While the greeting “Geagte” (Honored) might sound extremely formal, this is the accepted way to start any formal email or letter in Afrikaans. An exception to this rule concerns emails and letters addressed to the press, where the greeting “Mnr./Me.” (Sir/Madam) is used instead.

In Afrikaans, we distinguish between Miss and Mrs with “Mej.” and “Mev.”, but in case you’re unsure of the marital status of the person you are writing to, use “Me.” instead. “Me.” refers to any woman regardless of marital status.

To summarize, here is a list of Afrikaans email / letter greetings for formal correspondences:

• Geagte Mnr. Smith (Honored Mr. Smith)
• Aan wie dit mag raak (To whom it may concern)
• Mnr./Me. Swart (Mr./Miss./Mrs. Swart) – when writing to the press.

Afrikaans email / letter openings for informal correspondences

If you’ve made an Afrikaans friend while traveling and would like to try your hand at corresponding in Afrikaans, you have way less to worry about than with formal writing.

There are several ways to open an informal email. “Liewe (naam)” / “Dear (name)” is often used. You can, however, start with any of the following:

• Hallo (Hello)
• Hi (Hi)
• Goeie more/middag/aand (Good morning/afternoon/evening)
• Beste (Best)

It is also okay to use contractions such as “ek’t – ek het” (I have) which we won’t use in formal Afrikaans emails.

How to end an email or letter in Afrikaans

This section will cover the most appropriate sign-off phrases which are used to end a formal or an informal letter / email in Afrikaans.

How do you end a formal email or letter in Afrikaans?

There are several ways to end a formal email in Afrikaans, and the degree of formality will depend on who the recipient is.

If you are addressing a person who is equal or lower in status, you can close with:

• Die uwe (Yours sincerely) – this is not a direct translation, but there is no English equivalent.

When an Afrikaans email / letter is addressed to someone who has a higher status than the sender, one of the following sign-off phrases can be used:

• Respekvol (Respectfully)
• Met innige dank (With deep gratitude)
• Dankie vir u hulp in hierdie saak (Thank you for your assistance in this matter)
• Dankie vir u oorweging (Thank you for your consideration)
• Byvoorbaat dankie (Thank you in advance)
• Dankie vir u tyd (Thank you for your time)

How do you end a casual email / letter in Afrikaans?

Here is a list of casual sign-offs which are used to end an informal Afrikaans email / letter:

• Groete (Regards)
• Beste wense (Best wishes)
• Hoop om jou gou weer te sien (Hope to see you soon)
• Groete aan almal daar (Regards to everyone there)

The sign-offs listed above are friendly, but they are not intimate. Below are some intimate Afrikaans sign-offs:

• Liefde (Love)
• Liefde groete (Love and regards)

Other useful Afrikaans email phrases

Here is a list of useful Afrikaans email phrases:

• Die rede vir my e-pos… (The reason for my email…)
• Die aangehegte document… (The attached document…)
• Aangaande jou e-pos (Concerning your email…)
• Dankie vir die uitnodiging… (Thank you for the invitation…)
• Ek kan ongelukkig nie die vergadering bywoon nie (I am unable to attend the meeting…)
• Waar is die naaste…? (Where is the nearest…?)
• Kan ons herskeduleer? (Can we reschedule?)
• Ek skakel jou… (I’ll call you…)
• As daar enige iets is waarmee ek kan help… (If there is anything I can assist you with…)
• Wil jy Vrydag ontmoet vir middagete? (Would you like to meet for lunch on Friday?)

Specific types of Afrikaans letters

In this section, we will see the Afrikaans greetings and sign-offs mentioned above, in the context of specific types of letters and emails.

How to write a postcard in Afrikaans

You are traveling and would like to send an Afrikaans friend a postcard.

Translation:

How to write a Thank-You card in Afrikaans

Someone had you over for a barbeque at their home and you would like to send them a thank you note. Barbecues are such a part of Afrikaans culture that if you’ve spent any time around an Afrikaans community, you’ve either had a “braai” (barbecue) or the subject came up. South Africans, even English-speaking ones, all use the word “braai”.

You’ve been to James’ house for a “braai” and you would like to say thank you for the hospitality.

Translation:

How to write a birthday card in Afrikaans

A standard birthday card greeting written in Afrikaans would look something like this:

Translation:

You can get poetic if you want to, but this is a fairly standard and safe birthday wish in Afrikaans.

What do you write in an Afrikaans wedding card?

The fact that you’re making the effort to write a card in Afrikaans will be appreciated and you don’t have to try to write an essay or make it too complicated. Stick to something short and sincere.

Translation:

Afrikaans email/ letter examples

Afrikaans Formal email example

Here is an example of a formal email written in Afrikaans. You have reached out to a company for collaboration and you need to confirm the time for your appointment to go and see the owner.

In the subject line: «Bevestiging van afspraak»

Translation:

In the subject line: «Confirmation of appointment»

Something to pay attention to is that in formal writing in Afrikaans, we don’t use “you/your” (jy/jou) but instead we use “u”. There is no equivalent in English, but it is the formal version of “you/your”.

Afrikaans Informal email example

Here’s an example of an informal email to someone you’ve met at a party and had agreed to exchange recipes with.

Translation:

A discussion of cultural norms and etiquette regarding the Afrikaans language

When Afrikaans-speaking people are speaking to friends and family, we have a habit of changing our language to make things more personal. While you would normally say “my family” in English, we might change that to “my people” (my mense).

In Afrikaans, we also don’t usually just use a word like “little” to specify size, but instead add a suffix to the word to create a diminutive form of the word.

For instance, the word for “tree” in Afrikaans is “boom”. When referring to a little tree, we might say “klein boompie”. In essence, it means “little little tree” but it’s just the way Afrikaans people speak and you’ll quickly notice that in speaking or emailing with someone that considers you a friend.

It’s like when someone asks a small child where their blanket is – “Where is your blanky?” It’s never meant condescendingly, but it’s a sign that someone feels close to you or likes you.

Afrikaans words that are used to address your seniors

When addressing an older person in Afrikaans, you can stick to “Meneer” or “Mevrou” when it’s a more formal situation, but as soon as you are in an informal situation you will be expected to call an older gentleman or lady, “Oom” or “Tannie”.

In English, “Oom” (Uncle) and “Tannie” (Aunty) are only used for family members, but in Afrikaans, it’s also used as a sign of respect for anyone older.

The rule of thumb is to call anyone 10 years older than yourself “Oom” or “Tannie” and it can be used with or without their actual name. These days you can get away with moving that to 15-20 years.

With someone much older than you, you also won’t use the pronouns “you/your” but use the terms “oom” and “tannie” again.

This may sound confusing, so let’s look at an example:

• Oom Piet, kan oom my asseblief help met iets? (Uncle Piet, can uncle please help me with something?)

Notice how the pronoun “you” is replaced by the use of “oom” again.

The Afrikaans term «nou-nou»

Something that my Canadian husband found very confusing was the Afrikaans term “nou-nou”. Directly translated “nou-nou” (pronounced no-no), it means “just now” or “now-now”.

When someone in English says, “just now” they usually mean right away. In Afrikaans, “nou-nou” can mean anything from 5 minutes to 5 hours.

So be careful that when you’re communicating in Afrikaans, you don’t use “nou-nou” when you mean right away.

Conclusion

While it’s good to know how to write a formal email in Afrikaans, South Africa has 9 official languages and therefore in most business situations, we stick to English.

Most people understand English well, but the older Afrikaans generation might sometimes be a little hesitant to express themselves in English. This is where your attempts to meet them halfway will be much appreciated.

Afrikaans-speaking people love their language and they’re happy to share it with everyone and will have fun teaching you and helping you. If you meet the right friends, you might even learn a few precocious words.