What is the Afrikaans word which means "separateness"?

This term, which literally translates to "separateness" or "apart-hood" in English, comes directly from the Afrikaans language. The word is a compound of "apart," meaning separate, and the suffix "-heid," which is equivalent to the English suffixes "-ness" or "-hood." While its literal meaning is simply the state of being apart, the word became infamous globally for the political system it named.

Adopted as official state policy in South Africa by the National Party government in 1948, this system of institutionalized racial segregation was designed to cement the power of the white minority. It classified all citizens into racial groups and enforced strict separation in all aspects of life, creating separate housing, schools, medical care, and public facilities. The policy severely restricted the rights, movements, and opportunities of non-white South Africans.

The system faced decades of fierce internal resistance, led by figures like Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress, as well as widespread international condemnation and economic sanctions. After years of struggle, the legislative framework of this policy was finally dismantled in the early 1990s, culminating in the country's first fully multiracial democratic election in 1994.