Trevor Noah was born in 1984 in South Africa during Apartheid to a white Dutch father and black Xhosa mother. As a mixed-race person, he was considered "coloured" but identified as black. He grew up speaking several African languages with his black relatives. Noah addresses issues of identity, language, and discrimination in his memoir Born a Crime. During Apartheid, South Africa enforced racial segregation and mixed relationships were illegal. Language was used to determine social status, education levels, and intelligence. By code-switching between languages, Noah was able to navigate different social situations and reduce the effects of racial discrimination, showing how language can act as a bridge across racial boundaries.

1. BORN A CRIME
Shamsa, Antonio & Asri
“I didn't look like you, but if I spoke like
you, I was you” - Trevor Noah

2. Introduction: Who is
Trevor Noah?
● Noah was born into this world in 1984. His
father was a white man of Dutch descent, and
his mother was a Black woman of the Xhosa
tribe.
● Noah may have been considered “coloured,”
or a mix of black and white, but he thought of
himself as black. He spoke several African
languages and grew up among African
relatives
● He released a memoir titled Born A Crime on
November 15, 2016. It is a book that addresses
many of his life's greatest lessons, mainly, due
to being born during Apartheid Trevor Noah
a South African comedian, television
host, actor, and political commentator

3. Colonialism and Apartheid in Relation to
Language, Race and Ethnicity
Linguistic Imperialism
● Languages in South Africa
& their roles
● The deterioration of the
mother tongue
Identity(ies)
● Dual Identity
● How certain factors collectively
influence identities
White Supremacy & Racism
● Aparthied, Segregation and how
language is mobilized to
overcome discrimination

4. Race and Language: The Language Bridge

5. Languages in South Africa
● One of the main characteristics of ethnicity is language. In South Africa, there are more than
ten languages. Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, Venda, Ndebele, Tsonga, Pedi, Sotho, Nguni and so
on.
● Language has the power to change people’s perspective and becauses Noah saved
his own life while walking down the street.
● Language has been used to determine our social status, occupation, education, and even
Level of intelligence.
“English is the one thing that can give
you a leg up. English is the language
of money. English comprehension is
equated with intelligence”
“If you're looking for a job, English is the
difference between getting the job or staying
unemployed; English is the difference between
getting off with a fine or going to prison”

6. History: Race & Ethnicity in South Africa
1. Prior
Colonialism
2. During
Apartheid
Concept of ethnicity was rooted
in the ideas of bonds in kinship,
biology & ancestry. Division into
different tribes that corresponded
with the different languages
Legislative basis for segregation &
racial classification implemented to
divide the population into three main
racial groups. Mixed marriages and
relations were prohibited and were
considered a criminal offense. Power
dynamics were different between the
racial groups

7. The Role of Language On the Natives’ Fate
in South Africa
“I quickly learned that the quickest
way to bridge a race gap was
through language”
“I saw how she used language to
cross boundaries, handle situations,
navigate the world”
● Assimilating to a dominant
language imposed by white
colonizers can likely reduce the
subjection to racial discrimination.
● Analogizing language to a bridge to
show how ‘easy’ and ‘quick’ it is to
avoid the consequences of the race
gap by simply speaking the
imposed language.
● Displays how the sense of
belonging is achieved through
speaking the language, no matter
the race.
“Because of my color, they thought
I was a colored person, but
speaking the same languages meant
that I belong to their tribe”

8. Identity: Chameleon

9. Identity
● South Africa’s division into tribes that speak different languages and identify themselves
with them is an example of inter-speaker variation, determined via ethnicity.
● Trevor’s ability to switch between Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, and so forth for his social
belonging is an example of intra-speaker variation: code-switching to adapt to different
people and, in some cases literally, negotiate his identity as a Black person.
● His description of the fact that he would be considered Black once he spoke a Black
person’s language is an example of metalinguistic conversation, representing how his
identity is discriminated through language.
“Some colored people hated me
because of my blackness. My hair was
curly and I was proud of my Afro. I
spoke African languages and I loved
speaking them.”
“Other colored people hated me because of my
whiteness. I could speak perfect English, and I
barely spoke Afrikaans, the language colored
people are supposed to speak. So colored people
thought that I thought I was better than them.”

10. “I didn't look like
you, but if I spoke
like you, I was you”
- Trevor Noah