Die vertaling is letterlik.

Yes, die here is the definite article, so it means the.

A useful thing for English speakers is that Afrikaans is simpler than languages like German or Dutch here:

• die = the for most common uses
• it does not change for masculine, feminine, or plural nouns in the way learners might expect from other European languages

So in Die vertaling is letterlik, die vertaling means the translation.

One thing to watch out for: die can also mean those in other contexts, depending on the sentence. But here it is clearly the article the.

Vertaling is the noun translation.

It is related to the verb vertaal, which means to translate.

So the pattern is roughly:

• vertaal = to translate
• vertaling = translation

The ending -ing is common in Afrikaans for forming nouns, and it often works a bit like English -ing or -tion/-ing depending on the word.

Examples:

• vertaal → vertaling
• beskryf → beskrywing (description)

So if you already know the verb, the noun may feel familiar.

Because Afrikaans and English are related Germanic languages, some very common words look the same.

In this sentence, is is simply the present-tense form of to be, just like English is.

So:

• Die vertaling is letterlik.
• The translation is literal.

This is one of those pleasant cases where Afrikaans looks very familiar to an English speaker.

Because this is a simple main clause, Afrikaans uses a word order that is very close to English:

• Die vertaling = subject
• is = verb
• letterlik = complement

So the structure is:

• Subject + verb + complement

That gives:

• Die vertaling is letterlik.

This is very natural in Afrikaans. In more complex sentences, Afrikaans word order can differ more from English, especially with infinitives, participles, or subordinate clauses, but this sentence is straightforward.

Because letterlik is being used after the verb is, where Afrikaans normally uses the predicative form of the adjective.

Compare:

• Die vertaling is letterlik.
  Here the adjective comes after is.

But before a noun, Afrikaans usually uses the attributive form, often with -e:

• die letterlike vertaling = the literal translation

So the contrast is:

• predicative: Die vertaling is letterlik
• attributive: die letterlike vertaling

This is a very common pattern in Afrikaans adjectives.

Here it is functioning as an adjective, because it describes die vertaling.

It tells you what the translation is.

• Die vertaling is letterlik.
  = The translation is literal.

But the same form can often also work adverbially in Afrikaans, depending on context. Afrikaans often uses the same word form for adjective and adverb, more than English does.

For example, in another sentence:

• Hy praat letterlik.
  Depending on context, that could mean He speaks literally.

So in your sentence, it is best understood as an adjective used after is.

A simple learner-friendly approximation is:

• die → like English dee
• vertaling → fer-TAH-ling or ver-TAH-ling depending on accent
• is → like English iss
• letterlik → LET-er-lik

A few pronunciation notes:

• v in Afrikaans is often pronounced closer to an English f sound
• g at the end of vertaling is not a hard English g; in many accents it is a softer/fricative sound, though learners often start with a simple ng-like ending approximation
• r may be rolled or tapped, depending on the speaker

You do not need perfect pronunciation at first; being consistent and clear matters more.

It is capitalized because it is the first word of the sentence, not because it is a special kind of noun.

In the middle of a sentence, it would normally be lowercase:

• Ek dink die vertaling is letterlik.

So the capital D is just normal sentence capitalization.

Not in the way that German does, and not in a way that you usually need to worry about as a learner.

Afrikaans nouns do not require you to learn separate articles like der / die / das. In ordinary use, you can simply use:

• die for the
• ’n for a/an

So:

• die vertaling = the translation
• ’n vertaling = a translation

This is one reason many learners find Afrikaans grammar relatively approachable.

Yes, absolutely.

That sentence means something like:

• It is a literal translation.

It is a very natural alternative, but the structure is slightly different:

• Die vertaling is letterlik.
  Focuses on the translation and says what it is like.
• Dit is ’n letterlike vertaling.
  Identifies something as a literal translation.

So both are correct, but they are not identical in emphasis.

The negative is:

• Die vertaling is nie letterlik nie.

Afrikaans commonly uses double negation, so you usually get:

• nie ... nie

Structure:

• Die vertaling = subject
• is = verb
• nie = first negative marker
• letterlik = adjective
• nie = second negative marker

This double nie pattern is one of the most important things to get used to in Afrikaans.