Is English considered my native language if it’s the language I’m most proficient in?
I’ve been applying for jobs lately and it got me thinking about language proficiency and what actually counts as a “native” language in South Africa.
English is technically not my mother tongue — I’m not English/White, and isiXhosa is the main language spoken at home. But growing up, almost everything I consumed was in English: TV, movies, books, internet, school content, games, etc. Honestly, I’ve probably been exposed to English more than any other language in my life. And obviously I'm learned in English, the only language I consistently studied in school, and studied other subjects with.
What complicates things more is that I’m actually more proficient in isiZulu than isiXhosa academically, because I took HL isiZulu in high school and grew up predominantly around Zulu speakers in KZN.
That said, I still think and dream in English just as much as isiXhosa (rarely in isiZulu). And sometimes English feels easier for expressing complex thoughts because the vocabulary comes more naturally to me.
Normally I wouldn't care, but I just want to make sure I'm declaring this honestly/accurately when job-hunting, so now I’m genuinely curious:
Would English count as a native language for someone like me, or is it more accurate to say I’m just fully fluent/proficient in it? How do other South Africans usually classify this?
TL;DR: isiXhosa is my home language, but English is the language I’m most exposed to and comfortable expressing myself in. Does that make it native or just fluent?