Spelling error spotted on new South African R100 note – AWKWARD

The new R100 banknote that was unveiled by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) last Wednesday reportedly contains a spelling error in the Xitsonga translation of ‘Reserve Bank’.

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As reported by the SAPeople website, the SARB launched the country’s latest coins and banknotes together with the Nelson Mandela Foundation last week.

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The new coins and banknotes come with enhanced security features and new designs, even if they don’t stray too far from what is currently in circulation.

The new banknotes have kept the “Big Five” animals and Nelson Mandela’s face.

However, the SARB opted to emphasise family, and the notes now depict adult animals and their offspring.

There are also changes to the colour of the notes.

Important to remember, existing coins and banknotes will continue to be recognised.

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However, embarrassingly, a mistake has been picked up among the Xitsonga-speaking communities.

A quick look at the ‘old’ R100 banknotes currently in circulation denotes the Xitsonga spelling of Reserve Bank as ‘Banginkulu’ – as below.

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However, on the new R100 note, the Xitsonga translation of ‘Reserve Bank’ has changed, with the second ‘N’ dropped. The word now reads Bangikulu.

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Somewhat confusingly, the Pan South African Language Board, responsible for the translation, says the extra ‘N’ was incorrect on the ‘old’ notes – explaining that the ‘N’ is only used when referring to a person and not an institution.

However, Xitsonga-speaking communities have disagree with the change.

According to the BusinessTech website, these communities said that the explanation for the change is wrong, and removing the ‘N’ changes the meaning of the word.

They have blamed the lack of consultation with language experts as the cause for the misspelling.

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Have you seen any of the new South African banknotes?

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SOUTH AFRICA’S NEW BANKNOTES

R10 front

R10 back

R20 front

R20 back

R50 front

R50 back

R100 front

R100 back

R200 front

R200 back

All pictures via South African Reserve Bank website