Die waterbottel, sonbrandroom en noodhulpkissie is in die rugsak.

In Afrikaans, the present tense of to be is always is.

So:

• Ek is = I am
• Jy is = you are
• Hy/Sy is = he/she is
• Ons is = we are
• Hulle is = they are

That means is is used with both singular and plural subjects. Unlike English, Afrikaans does not change this verb to are.

So Die waterbottel, sonbrandroom en noodhulpkissie is in die rugsak is completely normal.

Die is the definite article in Afrikaans, and it means the.

It appears:

• before the list: Die waterbottel, sonbrandroom en noodhulpkissie
• before rugsak: in die rugsak

Afrikaans uses die for:

• singular nouns
• plural nouns
• all grammatical genders

So unlike languages that have different words for masculine, feminine, neuter, singular, or plural, Afrikaans just uses die.

When Afrikaans lists several nouns together, it is very common to use die only once before the first noun if all the items are definite.

So:

• Die waterbottel, sonbrandroom en noodhulpkissie
  is a natural way to say
• the water bottle, sunscreen, and first-aid kit

You can repeat die before each noun:

• die waterbottel, die sonbrandroom en die noodhulpkissie

That is also grammatical, but it sounds a bit more separate or emphatic. In ordinary speech and writing, using die just once is very common.

Each noun in the list is singular because the sentence refers to:

• one water bottle
• one sunscreen
• one first-aid kit

Together they form a plural idea, but each item itself is singular.

So Afrikaans is doing the same thing English does in:

• The water bottle, sunscreen, and first-aid kit are in the backpack

Each noun is singular, even though the whole list refers to more than one thing.

Afrikaans main clauses usually follow a verb-second pattern. That means the finite verb normally comes early in the clause, typically in the second main position.

Here the structure is:

• Die waterbottel, sonbrandroom en noodhulpkissie = subject
• is = finite verb
• in die rugsak = prepositional phrase

So the sentence pattern is:

Subject + verb + rest

If you moved in die rugsak to the front, Afrikaans would still keep the verb in second position:

• In die rugsak is die waterbottel, sonbrandroom en noodhulpkissie.

That is a very useful Afrikaans pattern to notice.

Sonbrandroom is a compound noun. Afrikaans very often joins words together into one longer noun.

It breaks down as:

• son = sun
• brand = burn
• room = cream

So literally it is something like sun-burn-cream, which corresponds to sunscreen or sun cream.

This kind of noun-building is very common in Afrikaans, just as it is in Dutch and German.

This is another compound noun.

It breaks down as:

• nood = emergency
• hulp = help / aid
• kissie = little box / case

So noodhulpkissie literally means emergency-aid little box, which is why it means first-aid kit.

Afrikaans usually writes these combinations as one word, not as separate words. That is one of the most important spelling habits for English speakers to get used to.

Kissie is a diminutive form. In Afrikaans, diminutives are extremely common and often describe small objects.

Here:

• kis = chest / box
• kissie = little box / small case

The exact diminutive ending can vary depending on the word, and Afrikaans has several patterns such as:

• -jie
• -tjie
• -kie
• -pie
• -ie

So noodhulpkissie contains a noun meaning a small box or case, which fits the idea of a first-aid kit.

Because Afrikaans strongly prefers compound nouns to be written as one word.

So:

• waterbottel
• sonbrandroom
• noodhulpkissie
• rugsak

are all normal Afrikaans compound spellings.

English often writes similar expressions as:

• water bottle
• sun cream / sunscreen
• first-aid kit
• backpack

This is a very common difference between English and Afrikaans. If an English speaker separates the words too often, the Afrikaans can look unnatural or incorrect.

Rugsak is also a compound:

• rug = back
• sak = bag

So it literally means back-bag, which corresponds to backpack or rucksack.

This is another nice example of how transparent many Afrikaans compounds are once you learn the parts.

No. Afrikaans does not use grammatical gender the way many European languages do.

You do not need to learn nouns as masculine, feminine, or neuter. That is why the article stays simply die for definite nouns.

This makes Afrikaans easier for many English speakers:

• no noun gender to memorize
• no gender-based article changes for words like these

Yes, and that would sound very natural too.

The sentence with is simply states location:

• ... is in die rugsak = ... is in the backpack

Using lê adds the idea of lying or being situated there:

• ... lê in die rugsak = ... are lying in the backpack

Afrikaans often uses verbs like:

• lê = lie
• staan = stand
• sit = sit

to describe where things are, sometimes more often than English does. But is is still perfectly correct and simple.

Usually, no.

Afrikaans normally writes lists like this:

• Die waterbottel, sonbrandroom en noodhulpkissie

without a comma before en.

That is the standard style. A comma before en is not usually needed unless the sentence structure makes it necessary for clarity.

So the punctuation here is normal Afrikaans punctuation.