Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items

UFS to present DF Malherbe Memorial Lecture in celebration of 100 years of Afrikaans

24 April 2025 | Story Lunga Luthuli and Lacea Loader

The University of the Free State (UFS) will present the DF Malherbe Memorial Lecture on Thursday 15 May 2025 in celebration of 100 years of Afrikaans as an official language in South Africa. The lecture forms part of the national dialogue on Afrikaans as an official language – the celebration of which will be held on 8 May 2025.

The lecture will be a showcase of Afrikaans in its rich diversity and will provide an opportunity for a sincere dialectical reflection on the history of the language and its achievements.

The keynote speaker is Prof Joan Hambidge, the rejoinder is delivered by Prof Hein Willemse, and entertainment is provided by musician Frazer Barry, the UFS Department of Drama and Theatre Arts, and the Odeion String Quartet.

Prof Joan Hambidge is a well-known literary scholar, award-winning and prolific poet, distinguished academic and critic, and controversial public figure – known for her iconoclastic approach to Afrikaans literary traditions.

Prof Hein Willemse is an academic, literary critic, activist, and author, former head of the Department of Afrikaans at the University of Pretoria who has, among many achievements, co-authored the publication The Arabic Afrikaans Writing Tradition.

Frazer Barry is the front man of the klipkoprock band Tribal Echo, who plays several traditional instruments such as the blikkitaar, teaspoons or seebamboes, and whose highly acclaimed music is informed by his extensive research into the language and culture of his Khoi ancestry.

The DF Malherbe Memorial Lecture originated at the UFS as a way of expediently supporting the arts, as well as the academe. DF Malherbe was the first professor of Afrikaans in South Africa; beyond his literary career, he was also Rector of the UFS from 1929 to 1934 (and again in 1941).

The memorial lecture will be presented on 15 May 2025 at 17:30 in the Economic and Management Sciences Auditorium on the Bloemfontein Campus.

The presentation of the memorial lecture is coordinated by the UFS Department of Afrikaans and Dutch, German and French.

For more information: https://ufsweb.co/dfmml25

News Archive

UFS mourns the death of a great academic

2007-02-27

It is with great sadness that the management of the University of the Free State (UFS) heard of the death of Prof. Dawfré Roode.

Prof. Roode (70) was the first Registrar: Academics at the UFS. He retired in July 1997 and was living in Jeffrey’s Bay with his second wife, Daphne, for the past three years.

Prof Roode’s ties with the UFS stretch over more than fifty years. He registered at the UOFS in 1955 as first-year student and was elected as chairperson of the student representative council in 1958. He also represented the university on the cricket field and as Free State nineteen-year old in the Currie Cup. His academic career at the UOFS started in 1963 when he was appointed as lecturer in Sociology and Social Work. After completing his D Phil in 1964, he was promoted to senior lecturer in 1966. He became the first head of the Department of Sociology in 1972 and in 1989 he was appointed as Registrar: Academics and in 1989 Vice-Rector: Staff and Administration.

“Prof Roode brought professionalism to the administration that did not exist. He not only served the academe as registrar, but also established it as an important function within the UOFS. His ‘institutional memory’ about earlier decisions and events at the UOFS is also legendary,” said Prof Frederick Fourie, Rector and Vice-Chancellor at the UFS.

Prof Roode’s father, the late Prof Dawie Roode, was the first head of the Department of Music at the UFS. Prof Dawfré Roode had a love for music and was closely involved with the establishment of the Odeion String Quartet.

In October 2004 the university honoured him with a Centenary Medal for his outstanding leadership and contribution, as Registrar and Vice-Rector, to the development of the UFS by establishing and developing a strong and professional administrative structure at the UFS.

“Prof Roode left deep footprints at the UFS. I am glad that we could honour him for this in 2004 with a Centenary Medal before he passed away. He also attended the launch of the university’s history book earlier in February,” said Prof Fourie.

“Our sympathies go to Ms Trudie Roode (his first wife) and their three children Ms Frelet Roux and Gerda Daffue, and their son, Mr Dawie Roode. Prof Roode has left a gap in the hearts of the people who knew and worked with him at the UFS,” said Prof Fourie.

A memorial service will be held in Jeffrey’s Bay on Wednesday 28 February 2007 at 10:30. A memorial service will also be held in Bloemfontein on Wednesday 7 March 2007. More details will be made available at a later stage.

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
27 February 2007

Back

Economic and Management Sciences

Education

Health Sciences

The Humanities

Law

Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Theology and Religion

Open Distance Learning

Business School

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept