Champion of ancient San language Ouma Katrina awarded honorary doctorate by UCT

Cape Town - “Genocide is at the heart of why first-nation people, in our case San and Khoi people, don’t speak their languages and why these languages are almost extinct.”

These were the words of Anthony Phillip Williams from Indigenous First Nation Advocacy South Africa as an honorary doctorate was bestowed on Her Excellency ǂXuu Katrina Esau during a recent graduation ceremony at UCT.

More than 5 200 students were capped during the institution’s March graduation season.

Esau, affectionately known as Ouma Katrina, is a fluent speaker of the critically endangered N|uu language and one of South Africa’s living legends.

Thought to be extinct until fairly recently, N|uu – an ancient San language from the Tuu family – re-emerged in the Northern Cape during the late 1990s when people who were able to speak the language fluently were encouraged to contribute to its survival and revival.

Ouma Katrina, now aged 90, has made it her life’s mission to preserve the language for the future by educating young people from her community in a tiny classroom at her house in Rosedale, near Upington in the Northern Cape.

“There were only 20 of us who could speak the language and when no one else wanted to teach it to others, I decided that I would,” said Ouma Katrina.

Her granddaughter, Claudia Snyman, is one of her keenest protégés and co-authored “Qhoi n|a Tijho” (Tortoise and Ostrich), a N|uu children’s book with her grandmother in 2021.

“Who would have thought that a woman who never saw the inside of a school, who looked after sheep and cleaned kitchens on her hands and knees, would be here today?” said an emotional Ouma Katrina, with Snyman by her side, during a special ceremony held in the Centre for African Studies Gallery on upper campus.

“Thank you, UCT, for seeing your way clear to include me, an elderly woman who never learnt to read.”

The event encompassed the unveiling of a N|uu-language dictionary, compiled with critical input from Ouma Katrina, as well as her capping by UCT Chancellor Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe.

“The work that we built on to create this publication, the N|uu language dictionary is actually a 25-year labour of love where we had multiple community members contributing their voices in audio format to the project,” said Dr Kerry Jones, the director of the African Tongue professional linguistics consultancy.

Apart from the hard copy, a digital version of the N|uu dictionary also exists, as well as the Saasi Epsi mobile app. These resources are available for free thanks to funding from the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture.

Williams appealed to researchers to ensure that the lived experiences of communities are held in high regard and asked the university to assist first nations in reviving their roots, cultures and traditions.

“We call on UCT as the San and Khoi communities: won’t you take our hand as we navigate one of the most difficult things, because in the language, our identity is located,” he said.