“Can’t Wear My Short Shorts”: Afrikaner Man’s Cold-Weather Complaint Humours South Africa

• Stefan van der Merwe, an Afrikaner man, took to his TikTok account to complain about the cold weather South Africa is currently experiencing
• The young man showed how the weather prevented him from wearing an article of clothing usually associated with Afrikaners
• Social media users found the clip comical and also expressed their thoughts about the cold conditions

With winter weather showing no signs of leaving Mzansi anytime soon, an Afrikaner man, Stefan van der Merwe, shared, like many South Africans, how he could not stand the cold. He even showed how the weather affected his sense of stereotypical Afrikaner fashion.

On 4 June, 2025, Stefan, who was wearing long pants and a jacket, uploaded a video on his TikTok account and comically complained:

"Haibo, South Africa, man. Who did this? As an Afrikaans boy, I can't even wear my short shorts anymore."

Afrikaners on the farm (typically called Boers) are stereotypically known for wearing summer clothing, such as shorts, no matter the weather.

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Stefan, who didn't share which part of South Africa he was in, also showed how his "poor baby," his Hilux bakkie, had a thin layer of ice.

SAWS predicts more cold weather

On 7 August, 2025, Briefly News reported that the South African Weather Service (SAWS) warned South Africans to expect a major cold front to sweep parts of the country, bringing snow and a drop in temperatures.

Residents in the eastern and north-eastern parts of South Africa, including provinces such as Gauteng, Limpopo, and Mpumalanga, should prepare themselves for scattered showers.

KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape, and mountainous areas in the Free State will also experience snow.

Afrikaner humours Mzansi

Stefan's viral video had thousands of South Africans entering the comment section to share messages about the weather. Other online community members also sent other unrelated comments and wondered if the man was single.

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@adee2029, who lives in KwaZulu-Natal, shared:

"Durban is still in March. There is zero winter happening here!"

@monkeymaddie.0 stated with a laugh:

"Yoh, I'm lying under three blankets, and I'm still getting cold."

A humoured @dubsy_mshika wrote in the comment section:

"It’s my first time seeing a White man on a farm wearing long pants."

@vicksenjulie said to people on the internet:

"When the Hilux feels it, you know it's unbearable. The short shorts are usually a winter extreme sport for our Afrikaans boets. So, yoh, conditions are bad!"

@mr_mvffins jokingly added in the comments:

"The Afrikaans boy is wearing long pants. Whoever did this has gone too far. This is unacceptable."

@mab_2377 told the online community:

"If Afrikaans people are complaining, then it's freezing."

Take a look at the TikTok video below:

3 Other stories about Mzansi's weather

• In another article, Briefly News reported that a British content creator in Cape Town questioned the city's winter weather and asked locals what she should expect.
• At the beginning of July, SAWS predicted that a cold front would hit the Western Cape and the Northern Cape, the third one in a week.
• Also in July, hundreds of Cape Town homes were destroyed as a result of the floods that accompanied the severe weather.

Source: Briefly News