Since Namibia's Independence in 1990, a variety of English words have
come into use, referring predominantly to political developments but
also to changes in society in general. As German is one of the national
languages in Namibia, these vocabulary changes also need to be expressed
in this language. Yet because these terms are specific to the Namibian
context, equivalent words cannot always be found in existing German
dictionaries. Professor Marianne Zappen-Thomson, head of the German
Section at the University of Namibia (UNAM), together with UNAM
post-graduate students and colleagues from the University of
Duisburg-Essen and the University of Bonn, in Germany, have coined
appropriate terminology to express as accurately as possible the given
English vocabulary in German. The aim is not to duplicate what can be
found in existing dictionaries, but rather to elaborate on these with
the unique situation of Namibia in mind, and to standardize the use of
this terminology.