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Jaap Steyn: Book pays tribute to leading Afrikaans academic

23 October 2019 | Story Rulanzen Martin | Photo Rulanzen Martin

Prof Angelique van Niekerk, Prof Jaap Steyn, Prof Hennie van Coller and Prof Bernard Odendaal — From the left: Prof Angelique van Niekerk, Prof Jaap Steyn, Prof Hennie van Coller, research fellow and former HOD of Afrikaans and Dutch; German and French and Prof Bernard Odendaal, from the ATKV School for Creative Writing at North West University,after the book launch on 16 October 2019.

The very comprehensive publication, JC Steyn en Afrikaans – ’n viering, pays tribute to a leading figure of the Afrikaans academic world. The book, edited by Profs Angelique van Niekerk, Hennie van Coller, and Bernard Odendaal, was recently launched at the University of the Free State (UFS) as a tribute to Prof Jaap Steyn, research fellow and former colleague at the UFS.

“The publication contains diverse contributions and provides a comprehensive overview of the different types of research in Afrikaans literature and linguistics,” said Prof van Niekerk, Head of the Department of Afrikaans and Dutch, German and French at the UFS.

The scope of the contributions is as wide as the influence Prof Steyn has had on the Afrikaans language landscape. “Creative writing and biographies lexicography and sociolinguistics are addressed in his book,” Prof van Niekerk said.

As mentioned in the title, the publication serves as a celebration of Afrikaans as a language and discipline; it also covers the research areas in which Prof Steyn used to publish research himself.

The book, published by SUN MeDIA, was made possible by a financial donation from the South African Academy for Science and Art. It was officially launched at the UFS on Wednesday 16 October 2019.

More about Prof Steyn

Prof Steyn is a seasoned poet, writer, and one of the leading Afrikaans academics in the country. With more than 100 articles in scientific journals to his name, Prof Steyn is still serving as research fellow in the UFS Department of Afrikaans and Dutch, German and French. He is also the author of, among others, books on language politics, language, and cultural history, such as Tuiste in eie taal, Trouwe Afrikaners: Aspekte van Afrikanernasionalisme en Suid-Afrikaanse taalpolitiek and the recent Ons gaan ’n taal maak. He has also written a number of award-winning biographies and published prose and poetry.

Prof Steyn has been associated with several South African universities, including the University of Johannesburg (the then Rand Afrikaans Universiteit), Nelson Mandela University (the then University of Port Elizabeth), as well as the UFS.

Prof Jaap Steyn signs a copy of the book for Prof Theodorus du Plessis

From the left; Prof Henning Pietersen; Pof Angelique van Niekerk; Prof Jaap Steyn; Prof Hennie van Coller; Prof Bernard Odendaal and Dr Francois Smith

News Archive

Study Abroad Fair presents exciting opportunities

2013-04-23

Staff and students gain a wealth of information at the first Study Abroad Fair hosted on the Bloemfontein Campus.
Photo: Stephen Collett
23 April 2013

Kovsie staff and students gained a wealth of information at the first Study Abroad Fair hosted by the Office for International Affairs on the Bloemfontein Campus.

Representatives from partner universities across the USA, Europe and Asia took part in the fair, giving information on study opportunities abroad. They were joined by representatives of international funding agencies and foreign missions from countries including Canada, Indonesia, France and the Republic of Azerbaijan, who gave information on funding opportunities to study overseas.

Welcoming visitors, Ms Dineo Gaofhiwe-Ingram, Assistant Director: Internationalisation, said international education forms a very important and critical part of the university’s strategy of aiming and working towards becoming a research intensive university.

“I believe all here understand and know the value of an international education, both as a donor agency, as an embassy that has bilateral agreements with the South African government to support education, and as a staff member that is here with students to encourage them to go abroad. It is important that our staff and students get to learn and experience from others and others from them.”

Dr Choice Makhetha, Vice-Rector: External Relations, encouraged Kovsies “to visit the world and bring the world back to the UFS.”

Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector, had a similar message, talking about the advantages of seeing the world. “You never get to be a good leader unless your sense of the world is bigger than yourself. My goal is to make sure that almost every undergraduate student has some experience of studying abroad.“

List of Exhibitors who took part in the Study Abroad Fair:

1. Funding Agencies
Embassy of USA
Embassy of France
Embassy of The Republic of Azerbaijan
European Union
Embassy of Canada
National Research Foundation (NRF)
Embassy of Switzerland
Embassy of Indonesia
Czech Republic Embassy
Research Africa
British Council

2. Partner Universities Abroad
Mahasarakham University (Thailand)
Appalachian State University (USA)
University of Brussels
Radboud University Nijmegen
The Hague University of Applied Sciences
University of Bremen
VU University Amsterdam
University of Groningen
University of Antwerp
University of Leuven
Jönköping University

3. UFS Representation
Postgraduate School (UFS)
Office for International Affairs (UFS)
Faculty of Education (UFS)
Department of Plant Sciences (UFS)
Department of Social Work (UFS)

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