The plural society and the problem of order

Pluralism, as a sociological perspective to study multi-ethnic and multi-racial societies, is a popular and well-known approach. It is also an approach which has been repeatedly and effectively criticized. This study focuses upon pluralism and the problem of order in society. Hereby, a new pluralist perspective is developed which avoids the pitfalls of the traditional approach, on the one hand, and yet retains the valid emphasis on pluralism, on the other. By applying this new perspective, it is possible to analyze the changing relationships he tween the cultural (and racial) characteristics in the society, and its structural characteristics. In this way, it is hoped, more may be learnt about the nature of a plural society and about the ways it can change

Coloured migration in the Cape region at the beginning of the twenty-first century

The nature of the urbanisation process among members of the coloured ethnic group in the Western and Northern Cape is changing. Previously, in this region, urbanisation could be described as a process of step-wise gravity flow migration from Cape Town’s hinterland to the metropolitan area. This rural-urban process of migration continues, but the favoured destinations are now regional towns rather than Cape Town itself

Language, residential space and inequality in Cape Town: Broad-brush profiles and trends

This article uses South African census data for 1996, 2001 and 2011 to explore the relationship between language and demographic change in the metropolitan region of Cape Town. We begin with a conceptual and methodological discussion of the use of ‘language’ as a demographic variable, before commencing with a GIS based analysis of the changing relationship between ‘household language’ and selected census variables associated with post-apartheid demographic change. We focus particular attention on variables selected to shed light on urban inequality, such as education level, income, race and in-migration. Data on adults at ward level in Cape Town is used to develop a comparative spatial context for this analysis. Our main finding is a significant level of continuity between 1996 and 2011 with respect to the geo-social patterning of the three main languages in the metro: Afrikaans, English and isiXhosa. We argue that English and Afrikaans have retained status through proximity to key development corridors. We explain this trend in terms of different streams of migrants, settling at different times and in different regions of the city

URBANIZATION: AN INTERDISCIPLINARY APPROACH TO A COMPLEX PHENOMENON

On account of the complexity and universal character of the urbanisation process, many academic disciplines, including Social Work, focus on this phenomenon. Accordingly, definitions tend to diverge, while the key concepts and research methodologies of the various disciplines are typically at variance with one another. Such a situation makes interdisciplinary and comparative international studies on urbanisation challenging to execute. One such comparative study has been initiated by the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa, and Bordeaux, France, promoting both interdisciplinary as well as intercontinental co-operation. The potential success of this interdisciplinary analysis arises mainly from the openness of concepts and methodologies as well as the judicious choice of cities. In addition, the selection of central questions and of shared themes appears to be importantThis paper will reflect on these issues by considering aspects of a recently launched interdisciplinary and international research programme. Some perspective, however, is needed beforehand on the two relevant concepts of interdisciplinarity and urbanisatio