The Reverend Stephanus Jacobus du Toit (9 October 1847 – 29 May 1911) was a controversial South African

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

and failed

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, ...

. In his younger years Du Toit did much to promote the

Afrikaans language Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gr ...

as a symbol of

Afrikaner nationalism Afrikaner nationalism ( af, Afrikanernasionalisme) is a nationalistic political ideology which created by Afrikaners residing in Southern Africa during the Victorian era. The ideology was developed in response to the significant events in Afri ...

. Apart from the years 1882-8 when he was

Superintendent of Education In the American education system, a superintendent or superintendent of schools is an administrator or manager in charge of a number of public schools or a school district, a local government body overseeing public schools. All school principal ...

in the

South African Republic The South African Republic ( nl, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, abbreviated ZAR; af, Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek), also known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer Republic in Southern Africa which existed from 1852 to 1902, when i ...

, he lived in or near the town of

Paarl Paarl (; Afrikaans: ; derived from ''Parel'', meaning "pearl" in Dutch) is a town with 112,045 inhabitants in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is the third-oldest city and European settlement in the Republic of South Africa (after ...

in the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with ...

. Disillusionment with the Kruger regime led him, in later years, to moderate his views. He was instrumental in initiating the translation of the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

into Afrikaans and was a proponent of the Afrikaans language. He died an outcast.

Early years

He was born in 1847 near

in the

at ''Plaas Kleinbos'', a farm that had been in the family's possession since their arrival in the Cape as

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

refugees in 1688. He was educated at

Paarl Gimnasium Paarl Gimnasium is a public Afrikaans medium co-educational high school situated in the city of Paarl in the Western Cape province of South Africa. History Rev. van der Lingen founded the school in the centre of town in 1858. The school ha ...

and studied theology at the Theological Seminary at

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronounc ...

, completing his studies in 1872 and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

as a minister in the

Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk The Dutch Reformed Church (, abbreviated NGK) is a Reformed Christian denomination in South Africa. It also has a presence in neighbouring countries, such as Namibia, Eswatini, and parts of Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

(Dutch Reformed Church) (NGK) the same year. Theologically his view were much influenced by the

Abraham Kuyper Abraham Kuyper (; ; 29 October 1837 – 8 November 1920) was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands between 1901 and 1905, an influential neo-Calvinist theologian and a journalist. He established the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands, which u ...

the Dutch

Neo-Calvinist Neo-Calvinism, a form of Dutch Calvinism, is a theological movement initiated by the theologian and former Dutch prime minister Abraham Kuyper. James Bratt has identified a number of different types of Dutch Calvinism: The Seceders, split into ...

thinker. This made many congregations reluctant to invite him to be their minister. In 1875, he became the minister of a new congregation based close to the family farm – that of North Paarl, a post that he held until 1881.

Promoting the Afrikaans language

At the time, the better-educated Dutch settlers in the Cape Colony regarded the Afrikaans language as a

patois ''Patois'' (, pl. same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon o ...

that was used by the less-educated. Du Toit however regarded the Afrikaans language as a symbol of Afrikaner Nationalism. In the early 1870s two Dutch schoolteachers, Arnoldus Pannevis and C.P. Hoogenhout made a number of pleas in ''

De Zuid-Afrikaan ''De Zuid-Afrikaan'' was a nineteenth-century Dutch language newspaper based in Cape Town that circulated throughout the Cape Colony, published between 1830 and 1930. The paper was founded by the advocate Christoffel Johan Brand on 9 April 1830 ...

'' newspaper that, for the benefit of the

Cape Coloured Cape Coloureds () are a South African ethnic group consisted primarily of persons of mixed race and Khoisan descent. Although Coloureds form a minority group within South Africa, they are the predominant population group in the Western C ...

community and also for the lesser-educated Afrikaner community, the

should be translated into Afrikaans. In 1874, Pannevis addressed his concerns to the

British and Foreign Bible Society The British and Foreign Bible Society, often known in England and Wales as simply the Bible Society, is a non-denominational Christian Bible society with charity status whose purpose is to make the Bible available throughout the world. The So ...

while Du Toit's articles in ''De Zuid-Afrikaan'' added support to Pannevis and Hoogenhout. On 14 August 1875, Hoogenhout, Du Toit and others established the '' Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners'' (Society of True Afrikaners) which has as its objectives the promotion of the Afrikaans language, nation and country. Initially this was to be achieved by the publication of a monthly journal and as soon as was possible, a dictionary and grammatical rules (''spraakkuns''). Du Toit was elected president of the association and within a year had compiled a set of grammatical rules. In 1876, he launched the first Afrikaans language newspaper ''

Die Afrikaanse Patriot ''Die Afrikaanse Patriot'' was the first Afrikaans-language newspaper. The first issue was published in Paarl on 15 January 1876. Initially a monthly magazine, it became a weekly two years later. Even though the first edition had just 50 subscrib ...

''. Initially the paper, a monthly publication, had 50 subscribers, in its second year of publication 400 and by 1881 3000 subscribers, having in 1877 become a weekly publication. Although Du Toit could not openly control ''Die Afrikaanse Patriot'' without the consent of his church council, he was the driving force behind the paper, while his brother D.F. du Toit (known as ''Oom Lokomotief'') was officially the paper's editor. The British annexation of the Transvaal in 1877 caused considerable anger among the Dutch community in all of Southern Africa. ''Die Afrikaanse Patriot'' published a scathing attack and Du Toit proposed a boycott of British goods and services, and in October 1880 ''Die Patriot'' argued that the time had come for decisive action-—many Transvaal leaders state that this was the trigger for the start of the

First Boer War The First Boer War ( af, Eerste Vryheidsoorlog, literally "First Freedom War"), 1880–1881, also known as the First Anglo–Boer War, the Transvaal War or the Transvaal Rebellion, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881 betwee ...

which led, in 1881, to the Transvaal regaining its independence. In 1879, Du Toit proposed the formation of the

Afrikaner Bond The Afrikaner Bond (Afrikaans and Dutch for "Afrikaner Union"; South African Dutch: Afrikander Bond) was founded as an anti-imperialist political party in 19th century southern Africa. While its origins were largely in the Orange Free State, ...

, an anti-British organisation in which all Afrikaners could feel at home. ''Die Patriot'' urged a boycott of British products. Jan Hofmeyr, who had founded the ''Zuidafrikaansche Boeren Beschermings Vereeniging'' (South African Farmers' Protection Association) as a vehicle of protest against a proposed excise duty on wine agreed to merge the two organisations and by skilful manoeuvring gained control of the merged organization.

Later years

In 1882, after the Transvaal (now the

) regained its independence, its president

Paul Kruger Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (; 10 October 1825 – 14 July 1904) was a South African politician. He was one of the dominant political and military figures in 19th-century South Africa, and President of the South African Republic (or ...

invited Du Toit to become

, a post that he held until 1889. He assisted in drawing up the Republic's education law of 1882 which embodied Christian national principles. While he was secretary of state both the number of schools and the number of children attending school increased substantially. In 1883–4, he was part of Kruger's delegation to Europe and helped negotiate the London Convention. In 1875, while in the Transvaal, he was appointed official translator of the Bible by the GRA, a task for which he received official encouragement from the government of the South African Republic. He resigned in 1888 due to a personality clash with

Willem Johannes Leyds Willem Johannes Leyds (1 May 1859 – 14 May 1940) was a Dutch lawyer and statesman who served as state attorney and state secretary of the South African Republic. From 1898 to 1902, during the crucial period of the Second Boer War, he was ...

, a newly appointed advisor to Kruger. After his resignation, he returned to the Cape Colony and publicly took over the post of editor of ''Die Patriot'', breaking with his brother and other members of the Afrikaner Bond. He was personally

bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

, having lost money in speculation while in the Transvaal. Under his editorship ''Die Patriot'' adopted a much more conciliatory stance towards the British Government, possibly as a result of financial backing he received from

Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes (5 July 1853 – 26 March 1902) was a British mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. An ardent believer in British imperialism, Rhodes and his Bri ...

, though this is disputed. He continued his translation of the Bible into Afrikaans, following the principals of translation laid down by the

Synod of Dordrecht The Synod of Dort (also known as the Synod of Dordt or the Synod of Dordrecht) was an international Synod held in Dordrecht in 1618–1619, by the Dutch Reformed Church, to settle a divisive controversy caused by the rise of Arminianism. The firs ...

requiring the use of the original

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

where appropriate. He succeeded in translating the

Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, ( "In the beginning" ...

, the

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

, the

Songs of Solomon ''Songs of Solomon'' () is a 2019 period biographical drama film directed by Arman Nshanian, depicting the life and music of Komitas Vardabet, who was an Armenian composer, ethnomusicologist and priest, who lived during the years of the Armenia ...

Book of Joshua The Book of Joshua ( he, סֵפֶר יְהוֹשֻׁעַ‎ ', Tiberian: ''Sēp̄er Yŏhōšūaʿ'') is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament, and is the first book of the Deuteronomistic history, the story of Isra ...

, the Gospel according to Matthew, the

Gospel according to Mark The Gospel of Mark), or simply Mark (which is also its most common form of abbreviation). is the second of the four canonical gospels and of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells of the ministry of Jesus from his baptism by John the Baptist to h ...

, the

Acts of the Apostles The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...

and the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of ...

. Du Toit's translation program was not well received—neither the

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mean ...

of the NGK in Orange Free State in 1885 nor the synod of the NGK in the South African Republic in 1886 supported Du Toit's efforts. By 1890 the ''Eerste Taalbeweging'' (first language movement) was all but dead. His son Jakob Daniël du Toit, known by the

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

''Totius'', a member of the ''Tweede Taalbeweging'' (second language movement), completed the translation in 1933 with assistance from his own son Stephanus du Toit (1905–1982). The

Jameson Raid The Jameson Raid (29 December 1895 – 2 January 1896) was a botched raid against the South African Republic (commonly known as the Transvaal) carried out by British colonial administrator Leander Starr Jameson, under the employment of Cecil ...

of 1896 caused the ''Afrikaner Bond'' to break with Rhodes. Du Toit broke with the ''Afrikaner Bond'' and through ''Die Afrikaanse Patriot'' backed Rhodes both in the Jameson Raid and in the

Second Anglo-Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

. He stood for the

Cape Parliament The Parliament of the Cape of Good Hope functioned as the legislature of the Cape Colony, from its founding in 1853, until the creation of the Union of South Africa in 1910, when it was dissolved and the Parliament of South Africa was establis ...

in 1898 but failed to get elected. In 1904, following financial problems ''DF du Toit & Co'', the company that owned ''Die Afrikaanse Patriot'' was sold and the paper was succeeded by the ''Paarl Post''. Du Toit died on 25 May 1911 as a result of injuries sustained in August the previous year when the cart in which he was travelling overturned while he was journeying to

Calvinia Calvinia is a regional town in the Northern Cape province of South Africa named after the French religious reformer Jean Calvin. The town falls under the Hantam Local Municipality which forms part of the Namakwa District Municipality. The Calvin ...

to visit one of his congregations.

Legacy

Du Toit was a prolific writer – the anonymous author of the epitaph on his tombstone described him as "The father of the Afrikaans language", though this honour has also be given to Pannevis, to Hoogenhout or to all three. His contributions to Afrikaans literature included: * 1876 – ''Erste Beginsels van die Afrikaanse Taal'' undamentals of the Afrikaans language(A joint work of which Du Toit was the main contributor). *1877 – (With Hoogenhout and Malherbe) ''Die Geskiedenis van ons Land in die Taal van ons Volk'' he history of our country and the language of our people * 1889 – ''Die Bybel in Afrikaans'' he Bible in Afrikaans(A brochure with a translation of the first three chapters of the

). * 1893 – ''Genesis'' (translation of the Book of Genesis) * 1895 – ''Mattheus'' (translation of the Gospel according to St Mathew) * 1898 – ''Openbaring'' (translation of the

) * 1902 – ''Patriot woordeboek: Afrikaans-Engels'' atriot dictionary: Afrikaans-Englishref> * 1907 – ''Die Psalms'' (translation of the

)

Sources

This Day in South African History''Encyclopædia Britannica''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Du Toit, Stephanus Jacobus Afrikaner people South African politicians Translators of the Bible into Afrikaans Afrikaner nationalists 1847 births 1911 deaths Cape Colony people South African journalists 19th-century South African politicians 19th-century translators