The initiative was founded in 2017 by Khanyi Mpumlwana and Nobantu Sibeko who realised how difficult it was to have inclusive, representative and meaningful discourse when the only words that exist add to the stigma and 'othering' of LGBTQQIAP+ communities.

"The existing words, such as istabane or imoffie, are insulting, violent and are based in ostracism and a culture of shaming," says Mpumlwana.

"In TshiVenda for example, people are labelled as matula/matudzi [bad omen/something unacceptable]. So we need to create or reclaim LGBTQQIAP+ identifying words and phrases in South Africa’s languages that are humanising, instead of offensive," Mpumlwana adds.

The initiative recently aired a commercial for a fake washing powder called Scoop using the word istabane. The aim of the commercial was to gauge if there would be a reaction from the nearly 10 million people who watched it; the only reaction coming from a few members of the LGBTQQIAP+ communities on social media.

"If this was something racist, the whole country would have been up in arms," says Mpumlwana. "There might be sensitivities around istabane, but using it is not illegal. We want to change that."

The search to find new words started earlier this year with workshops held across the country with academics, historians, anthropologists, sociologists and communities throughout South Africa to suggest non-offensive replacement terms.

Suggestions included changing verbs into nouns or combining two words together. During one workshop, for example, a group proposed the term Sekgele sa Mookodi for queer, which is derived from the words ‘umbrella’ and ‘rainbowinitiative'.

Mpumlwana adds, "To date, we’ve found over 150 words in eight of our 11 languages, and now want all South Africans to add their new words, or vote for their favourite ones via our website."

"Once that process is complete, we’ll engage with academics and linguistic experts to commence the process of vetting and refining the words to make them suitable for use in language," Mpumlwana says.

"We need positive words in our own languages," concludes Mpumlwana. "This will help change the narrative around what it means to be LGBTQQIAP+, and start to break the cycle of micro-aggression and prejudice that we experience every single day."

For more information, visit www.findnewwords.org. You can also follow '#FindNewWords' on Facebook or on Twitter.