A number of p-words have been on the lips of South Africans this year, but it is the dreaded l-word that made this year’s word of the year.
According to research conducted by the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), in association with media research company Focal Point, searches for the term “load shedding” spiked between October 2021 and September this year.
And for good reason.
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Load shedding takes the win
As a result, South Africans’ least favourite activity, load shedding, has beaten Phala Phala to be crowned the 2022 South Africa Word of the Year, Bedfordview Edenvale News reported.
Other trending search terms that made the shortlist were inganekwane, gaslighting and xenophobia.
“It should come as no surprise to many South Africans that load shedding has been the most used word/term in South Africa as the dreaded rolling blackouts instituted by Eskom have largely defined our lived experience in 2022,” said PanSALB CEO Lance Schultz.
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Focal Point analysed data to determine the prominence of the keywords and how often these words were used by credible print, broadcast and online media platforms.
“Ultimately, the SA Word of the Year reflects the preoccupations of South Africans for that given period, and this year South Africans had to contend with the impact of the energy crisis in the country.
“The term ‘load-shedding’ has superseded the first runner-up, Phala Phala, with over 40 000 clip counts and mentions across a broad range of media,” he added.
More notable nominees for this year’s buzzword included immigrant, gender-based violence, iSigaxa sendaba (big story) and wishy wishy.
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