‘Spelling error’ on new banknotes

GAUTENG – Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago says that the new print of South African banknotes does not contain a spelling error but has corrected an error that existed before. Xitsonga-speaking South Africans flagged an apparent spelling error in the South African Reserve Bank’s newest banknotes this week.

On the R100 note, the Xitsonga translation of “Reserve Bank” was changed, with the second ‘N’ in Bangi Nkulu dropped. The word now reads as Bangi Kulu. Some Xitsonga speakers said that this is incorrect and the previous version of “Bangi Nkulu” was the accepted form. The Pan South African Language Board, responsible for the translation, disagreed, saying 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.