Also known as ' tsotsi taal

Tsotsitaal

Tsotsitaals are a variety of mixed languages mainly spoken in the townships of Gauteng province, such as Soweto, but also in other agglomerations all over South Africa...

' or 'township talk', scamto is a new youth language that has formed in South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

. Spoken usually only by the youth, scamto comprises a mix of many languages. Some of the languages include Afrikaans

Afrikaans

Afrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...

, Sotho, Zulu

Zulu language

Zulu is the language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority of whom live in South Africa. Zulu is the most widely spoken home language in South Africa as well as being understood by over 50% of the population...

, English and Xhosa

Xhosa language

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...

. South Africa's large cultural melting pot is the cause of this informal language, because with every new day South Africans are finding different ways in which to interact with each other on different levels. 2 Scamto Dictionaries have been written and published by author, Lebo Motshegoa. The first book was published in 2002 under a title, Scamto Dictionary. The second offering was published in 2005, titled, Township Talk.

Here are some examples of scamto:

Mashesha - right now, or let get there now.

Jigga jigga - movement in terms of dancing, or fornication

Fornication

Fornication typically refers to consensual sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other. For many people, the term carries a moral or religious association, but the significance of sexual acts to which the term is applied varies between religions, societies and cultures. The...

.

Entlik - prefix to pose a question, as in: "Entlik, what's the time?"

Amajita - the boys, the chaps

Askies - regret

Abafana - the boys, the chaps

Blind - exciting/embarrassing

Cheese boy - spoilt brat

Ekse - used as in: "I say, where are we?" or "Waar is ons ekse?"

G-string - BMW (because of the look of the front grill)

Groot man - big man

Harambe - to unite

Harde - an apology

Isigo - culture

Culture

Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...

 or tradition

Tradition

A tradition is a ritual, belief or object passed down within a society, still maintained in the present, with origins in the past. Common examples include holidays or impractical but socially meaningful clothes , but the idea has also been applied to social norms such as greetings...

Last dish - supper

Lalela - listen

Lova - unemployed person

Loxion - township

Township (South Africa)

In South Africa, the term township and location usually refers to the urban living areas that, from the late 19th century until the end of Apartheid, were reserved for non-whites . Townships were usually built on the periphery of towns and cities...

Pantsula - dance movement inspired by Sophiatown.

Peena - unlock/open, used as in "Peena this car man!"

Pluck - bravery

Reverse - a woman's behind

Themba - trust, as in: "No themba, no deal."

Waai - let's cruise, as in: "Come now, let's waai my friend."

Woza - come near

Zozo - shack/hut in township

Township (South Africa)

In South Africa, the term township and location usually refers to the urban living areas that, from the late 19th century until the end of Apartheid, were reserved for non-whites . Townships were usually built on the periphery of towns and cities...

Zala - give birth