What Does SBWL Mean in South Africa

Some time back, the hashtag #sbwl started trending on social media.

Nobody initially seemed to know what it meant, and a search on Google did not have relevant results. This is nothing unusual on Twitter in particular, where one thing catches on before most people are let on the real meaning.

There was a lot of confusion with some using the hashtag incorrectly. And who would blame them. Afterall, a search on Google told them that the initials stood for ‘Site-Based Waiting List’.

One person tweeted, “#sbwl to be loved by someone’s daughter.”

Well, that does not really make any sense when you go with Google’s definition.

Anyway, the matter was soon settled when the real meaning was revealed.

Apparently, the clever mind that came up with the initials was just shortening the word ‘Sabaweli’.

It is a Xhosa word that means crave or desire.

Now you know. Strip Sabaweli off all the vowels and you get #sbwl.