How to write an email or letter in Afrikaans: the complete guide

This guide to writing emails and letters in Afrikaans will start with openings and sign-offs in the case of formal and informal messages.

Then, we will cover specific examples of emails and letters, including postcards, thank-you cards, birthday cards, and wedding cards.

Then, we will see full examples of a formal email and an informal one.

How to start an email or a letter in Afrikaans

Openings for formal messages

It is fairly common for English messages to start with the greeting “Dear”, which translates to “Liewe” in Afrikaans. However, in Afrikaans, the greeting “Liewe” is reserved for informal messages.

For formal correspondences in Afrikaans, the greeting “Geagte” is used instead. It means “Honored” or “Honorable”.

Openings for informal messages

If you’ve made an Afrikaans friend while traveling and would like to try your hand at corresponding in Afrikaans, you have way less to worry about than with formal writing.

There are several ways to open an informal email. “Liewe (naam)” / “Dear (name)” is often used. You can, however, start with any of the following:

• Hallo (Hello)
• Hi (Hi)
• Goeie more/middag/aand (Good morning/afternoon/evening)
• Beste (Best)

How to end an email or letter in Afrikaans

Sign-offs for formal messages

There are several ways to end a formal email in Afrikaans, and the degree of formality will depend on who the recipient is.

If you are addressing a person who is equal or lower in status, you can close with:

• Die uwe (Yours sincerely) – this is not a direct translation, but there is no English equivalent.

When a message is addressed to someone who has a higher status than the sender, one of the following sign-off phrases can be used:

• Respekvol (Respectfully)
• Met innige dank (With deep gratitude)
• Dankie vir u hulp in hierdie saak (Thank you for your assistance in this matter)
• Dankie vir u oorweging (Thank you for your consideration)
• Byvoorbaat dankie (Thank you in advance)
• Dankie vir u tyd (Thank you for your time)

Sign-offs for informal messages

Here is a list of casual sign-offs which are used to end an informal Afrikaans email / letter:

• Groete (Regards)
• Beste wense (Best wishes)
• Hoop om jou gou weer te sien (Hope to see you soon)
• Groete aan almal daar (Regards to everyone there)

The sign-offs listed above are friendly, but they are not intimate. Below are some intimate Afrikaans sign-offs:

• Liefde (Love)
• Liefde groete (Love and regards)

Other useful Afrikaans email phrases

Here is a list of useful Afrikaans email phrases:

• Die rede vir my e-pos… (The reason for my email…)
• Die aangehegte document… (The attached document…)
• Aangaande jou e-pos (Concerning your email…)
• Dankie vir die uitnodiging… (Thank you for the invitation…)
• Ek kan ongelukkig nie die vergadering bywoon nie (I am unable to attend the meeting…)
• Waar is die naaste…? (Where is the nearest…?)
• Kan ons herskeduleer? (Can we reschedule?)
• Ek skakel jou… (I’ll call you…)
• As daar enige iets is waarmee ek kan help… (If there is anything I can assist you with…)
• Wil jy Vrydag ontmoet vir middagete? (Would you like to meet for lunch on Friday?)

Specific types of Afrikaans letters

In this section, we will see the Afrikaans greetings and sign-offs mentioned above, in the context of specific types of letters and emails.

How to write a postcard in Afrikaans

Here is an example of the text of a postcard written in Afrikaans:

Translation:

How to write a Thank-You card in Afrikaans

Someone had you over for a barbeque at their home and you would like to send them a thank you note. Barbecues are such a part of Afrikaans culture that if you’ve spent any time around an Afrikaans community, you’ve either had a “braai” (barbecue) or the subject came up. South Africans, even English-speaking ones, all use the word “braai”.

You’ve been to James’ house for a “braai” and you would like to say thank you for the hospitality.

Translation:

How to write a birthday card in Afrikaans

A standard birthday card greeting written in Afrikaans would look something like this:

Translation:

You can get poetic if you want to, but this is a fairly standard and safe birthday wish in Afrikaans.

What do you write on an Afrikaans wedding card

The fact that you’re making the effort to write a card in Afrikaans will be appreciated and you don’t have to try to write an essay or make it too complicated. Stick to something short and sincere.

Translation:

Examples

Example of a formal email in Afrikaans

In the subject line: «Bevestiging van afspraak»

Translation:

In the subject line: «Confirmation of appointment»

Something to pay attention to is that in formal writing in Afrikaans, we don’t use “you/your” (jy/jou) but instead we use “u”. There is no equivalent in English, but it is the formal version of “you/your”.

Example of an informal email in Afrikaans

Here’s an example of an informal email to someone you’ve met at a party and had agreed to exchange recipes with.

Translation: