Xhosa

Xhosa is one of the official languages of South Africa. Xhosa is spoken by approximately 7.9 million people, or about 18% of the South African population. Like most Bantu languages, Xhosa is a tonal language, that is, the same sequence of consonants and vowels can have different meanings when said with a rising or falling or high or low intonation. One of the most distinctive features of the language is the prominence of click consonants; the word "Xhosa" begins with a click.

Xhosa is written using a Latin alphabet. Three letters are used to indicate the basic clicks: c for dental clicks, x for lateral clicks, and q for post-alveolar clicks . Tones are not indicated in the written form.
[From Wikipedia]

Here is a short video about Xhosa Tongue Twisters; a good introduction to the three types of basic clicks in the language:

Touching Moment

 

1964 | TANZANIA - A touching moment between primatologist and National Geographic grantee Jane Goodall and young chimpanzee Flint at Tanzania’s Gombe Stream Reserve. (Photo by Hugo van Lawick).

From Boston Globe's 125 Years of National Geographic. Thanks for sharing, PR.

RSA Factfile

Here is a beautiful map of South Africa. Let's get some basic facts about the nation together:

1. The Republic of South Africa is divided into nine provinces: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West, Northern Cape and Western Cape

2. While the executive capital is Pretoria, Blomfontein is the judicial capital and Cape Town the legislative.

3. Population is about 52 million (2011 census)

4. The largest cities are Johannesburg and Soweto in Gauteng Province and Cape Town in Western Cape Province, in that order.

Meanwhile, H has been sending me some excellent information about South Africa. Read on:

• This is South Africa, a photo essay by a traveler.
• Article: Five Words To Know Before You Visit South Africa 
• Video: Financial Times' Johannesburg: rewards and tensions
• Video: A taxi driver's tour of Durban, South Africa