[28][29][30] Archaeologists have recovered extensive fossil remains from a series of caves in Gauteng Province. "[117] The country's three branches of government are split over different cities. [16] It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World, and the most populous country located entirely south of the equator. Up to 1945, more than 4900 species of fungi (including lichen-forming species) had been recorded. South Africa is the only African country to have successfully developed nuclear weapons. Note the course of the Great Escarpment to the north of these mountain ranges.) Winters in South Africa occur between June and August. [78] The targets were mainly legal and illegal migrants, and refugees seeking asylum, but a third of the victims were South African citizens. Which means "South African"; the Dutch for "South Africa" is "Zuid-Afrika." [9]:21 The first census in South Africa in 1911 showed that whites made up 22% of the population; this had declined to 16% by 1980. Sydney Brenner won most recently, in 2002, for his pioneering work in molecular biology. The white population is estimated at 4,7 million, the coloured population at 5,2 million and the Indian/Asian population at 1,5 million. Members of remaining Christian churches accounted for another 36% of the population. Winters in this region are cold, although snow is rare. [141][142] South Africa is one of the founding members of the African Union (AU), and has the third largest economy of all the members. In 1931, the union was fully sovereign from the United Kingdom with the passage of the Statute of Westminster, which abolished the last powers of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to legislate on the country. South African cuisine is heavily meat-based and has spawned the distinctively South African social gathering known as the braai, a variation of the barbecue. It has been classified by the World Bank as a newly industrialised country, with the second-largest economy in Africa, and the 33rd-largest in the world. There are 23 public universities in South Africa: 11 traditional universities, 6 universities of technology and 6 comprehensive universities. [201] These unofficial languages may be used in certain official uses in limited areas where it has been determined that these languages are prevalent. [9] The two next ones are of European origin: Afrikaans (13.5%) developed from Dutch and serves as the first language of most Coloured and White South Africans; English (9.6%) reflects the legacy of British colonialism, and is commonly used in public and commercial life. Encyclopædia Britannica (1975); Micropaedia Vol. [52] The Boers' inability to subdue Sekhukhune and the Pedi led to the departure of Burgers in favour of Paul Kruger and the British annexation of the South African Republic (Transvaal) on 12 April 1877 by Theophilus Shepstone, secretary for native affairs of Natal. Johannesburg, in the centre of the Highveld, is at 1,740 m (5,709 ft) above sea level and receives an annual rainfall of 760 mm (29.9 in). [53], Within the country, anti-British policies among white South Africans focused on independence. Under apartheid, schools for black people were subject to discrimination through inadequate funding and a separate syllabus called Bantu Education which only taught skills sufficient to work as labourers. [54][55][56][57][58], Eight years after the end of the Second Boer War and after four years of negotiation, an act of the British Parliament (South Africa Act 1909) granted nominal independence, while creating the Union of South Africa on 31 May 1910. The Boer Republics successfully resisted British encroachments during the First Boer War (1880–1881) using guerrilla warfare tactics, which were well-suited to local conditions. This region is also particularly known for its wind, which blows intermittently almost all year. Notable white South African authors include Alan Paton, who published the novel Cry, the Beloved Country in 1948. South Africa’s Constitution recognises 11 official languages: Sepedi (also known as Sesotho sa Leboa ), Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa and isiZulu. Members of the middle class, who are predominantly white but whose ranks include growing numbers of Black, Coloured and Indian people,[230] have lifestyles similar in many respects to that of people found in Western Europe, North America and Australasia. The country is a middle power in international affairs; it maintains significant regional influence and is a member of both the Commonwealth of Nations and G20. Mark Shuttleworth founded an early Internet security company Thawte, that was subsequently bought out by world-leader VeriSign. [43] Some of the earliest mixed race communities in the country were formed between vrijburgers, enslaved people, and indigenous peoples. It followed the 1995 Rugby World Cup by hosting the 1996 African Cup of Nations, with the national team, Bafana Bafana, going on to win the tournament. [84] It is about the same size as Colombia, twice the size of France, three times as big as Japan, four times the size of Italy and five times the size of the United Kingdom.[85]. During the Dutch and British colonial years, racial segregation was mostly informal, though some legislation was enacted to control the settlement and movement of indigenous people, including the Native Location Act of 1879 and the system of pass laws. Cape Town, as the seat of Parliament, is the legislative capital; Pretoria, as the seat of the President and Cabinet, is the administrative capital; and Bloemfontein, as the seat of the Supreme Court of Appeal, is the judicial capital, while the Constitutional Court of South Africa sits in Johannesburg. Different methods of transport in South Africa include roads, railways, airports, water, and pipelines for petroleum oil. [175] However, the statistics which purport to show a brain drain are disputed and also do not account for repatriation and expiry of foreign work contracts. With approval from the white electorate in a 1992 referendum, the government continued negotiations to end apartheid. South Africa's national blind cricket team also went on to win the inaugural edition of the Blind Cricket World Cup in 1998. Most of the plants are evergreen hard-leaf plants with fine, needle-like leaves, such as the sclerophyllous plants. In 2015, the Oliver Hermanus film The Endless River became the first South African film selected for the Venice Film Festival. It also hosted the 2003 Cricket World Cup, the 2007 World Twenty20 Championship. South Africa has a mixed economy, the second largest in Africa after Nigeria. Some of these SOEs have not been profitable, such as SAA, which has required bailouts totaling R30 billion ($2.08 billion) over the 20 years preceding 2015. This relatively well-watered area is home to a great proportion of the country's commercial farmlands and contains its largest conurbation (Gauteng). Several important scientific and technological developments have originated in South Africa. (This etymology is missing or incomplete. [9] Estimates based on the 1991 census suggest just under half of South Africans can speak English. In 1874, Henry Bartle Frere was sent to South Africa as the British High Commissioner to bring such plans into being. Female | Imka, meaning “water”, is an Afrikaans name of Frisian derivative. A significant extent of the Bushveld exists in the north-east including Kruger National Park and the Sabi Sand Game Reserve, as well as in the far north in the Waterberg Biosphere. [167], The 2020 Financial Secrecy Index (FDI) ranks South Africa as the 58th safest tax haven in the world. [81][82], South Africa is located at the southernmost region of Africa, with a long coastline that stretches more than 2,500 km (1,553 mi) and along two oceans (the South Atlantic and the Indian). [113], Climate change is expected to bring considerable warming and drying to much of this already semi-arid region, with greater frequency and intensity of extreme weather events such as heat waves, flooding and drought. It is bounded to the south by 2,798 kilometres (1,739 mi) of coastline of Southern Africa stretching along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans;[14][15][13] to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini (former Swaziland); and it surrounds the enclaved country of Lesotho. No President may serve more than two terms in office. South Africa hosted the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and FIFA president Sepp Blatter awarded South Africa a grade 9 out of 10 for successfully hosting the event.[237]. While South Africa has a great wealth of flowering plants, only one percent of South Africa is forest, almost exclusively in the humid coastal plain of KwaZulu-Natal, where there are also areas of Southern Africa mangroves in river mouths. The powers of provincial governments are limited to topics listed in the Constitution; these topics include such fields as health, education, public housing and transport. The metropolitan municipalities, which govern the largest urban agglomerations, perform the functions of both district and local municipalities. In the first two decades of the 19th century, the Zulu people grew in power and expanded their territory under their leader, Shaka. The KwaZulu-Natal–Lesotho international border is formed by the highest portion of the Great Escarpment, or Drakensberg, which reaches an altitude of over 3,000 m (9,800 ft). Vegetation becomes even more sparse towards the northwest due to low rainfall. Over 27,000 Boer women and children died in the British concentration camps. The struggle to control these important economic resources was a factor in relations between Europeans and the indigenous population and also between the Boers and the British.[51]. In 1939, the party split over the entry of the Union into World War II as an ally of the United Kingdom, a move which the National Party followers strongly opposed. About 80% of South Africans are of Black African ancestry,[9] divided among a variety of ethnic groups speaking different African languages. [89] This is hotter, drier and less intensely cultivated than the Highveld above the escarpment. South Africa is a biodiversity hotspot, with a diversity of unique biomes and plant and animal life. 'free citizens'), former company employees who stayed in Dutch territories overseas after serving their contracts. In 2012, Oscar Pistorius became the first double amputee sprinter to compete at the Olympic Games in London. Famous current cricket players include Kagiso Rabada, AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander, and Faf du Plessis; most also participate in the Indian Premier League. It is the country's legislative capital. While whites enjoyed the highest standard of living in all of Africa, comparable to First World Western nations, the black majority remained disadvantaged by almost every standard, including income, education, housing, and life expectancy. [77] The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions estimated that over 100,000 people were driven from their homes. The executive, legislature and judiciary are all subject to the supremacy of the Constitution, and the superior courts have the power to strike down executive actions and acts of Parliament if they are unconstitutional. p. 19. Other sites include Swartkrans, Gondolin Cave, Kromdraai, Coopers Cave and Malapa. This is not a province, but an independent country formally called the Kingdom of Lesotho. It was believed that many of the persons who claimed no affiliation with any organised religion adhered to traditional African religion. According to the 2001 census, Christians accounted for 79.8% of the population, with a majority of them being members of various Protestant denominations (broadly defined to include syncretic African initiated churches) and a minority of Roman Catholics and other Christians. The deep interior of mainland South Africa has the hottest temperatures: a temperature of 51.7 °C (125.06 °F) was recorded in 1948 in the Northern Cape Kalahari near Upington,[98] but this temperature is unofficial and was not recorded with standard equipment, the official highest temperature is 48.8 °C (119.84 °F) at Vioolsdrif in January 1993.[99]. Other sites include Swartkrans, Gondolin Cave, Kromdraai, Coopers Cave and Malapa. SiSwati (also known as Swati, Swazi or Siswati) is a Bantu language of the Nguni Group, spoken in Eswatini and South Africa. The mid-eastern, and highest part of the plateau is known as the Highveld. [199] It is the second most commonly spoken language outside of the household, after Zulu.[200]. [184] However, water supply and sanitation in South Africa has come under increasing pressure in recent years despite a commitment made by the government to improve service standards and provide investment subsidies to the water industry. After unification in 1910, South Africa had its own parliament which passed laws specific for South Africa, building on those previously passed for the individual member colonies. [162] During the presidency of Jacob Zuma, the government increased the role of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). These systems have been widely criticised due to their large capital and operating costs. White South Africans may also speak European languages, including Italian, Portuguese (also spoken by black Angolans and Mozambicans), Dutch, German, and Greek, while some Indian South Africans speak Indian languages, such as Gujarati, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu. Most foreign embassies are located in Pretoria. Queen Elizabeth II lost the title Queen of South Africa, and the last Governor-General, Charles Robberts Swart, became State President. South Africa has no legally defined capital city. The extreme southwest has a climate remarkably similar to that of the Mediterranean Sea with wet winters and hot, dry summers, hosting the famous fynbos biome of shrubland and thicket. While all the languages are formally equal, some languages are spoken more than others. The country has three capitals for different purposes. [150] South Africa undertook a nuclear weapons programme in the 1970s[150] According to former state president FW de Klerk, the decision to build a "nuclear deterrent" was taken "as early as 1974 against a backdrop of a Soviet expansionist threat. The country is a member of the Group of 77 and chaired the organisation in 2006. This area also produces much of the wine in South Africa. The plays of Athol Fugard have been regularly premiered in fringe theatres in South Africa, London (Royal Court Theatre) and New York. III, p. 655. [13] According to the 2011 census, the two most spoken first languages are Zulu (22.7%) and Xhosa (16.0%). The legally institutionalised segregation became known as apartheid. It is famous for the most extensive areas of indigenous forests in South Africa (a generally forest-poor country). By the early 17th century, Portugal's maritime power was starting to decline, and English and Dutch merchants competed to oust Lisbon from its lucrative monopoly on the spice trade. [180], The Human Rights Watch reported on 26 August 2019 about foreign national truck drivers being subjected to deadly attacks carried out by South African truck drivers. Durban surfer Jordy Smith won the 2010 Billabong J-Bay Open making him the highest ranked surfer in the world. The South African media sector is large, and South Africa is one of Africa's major media centres. In the first quarter of 2011, confidence levels for graduate professionals were recorded at a level of 84% in a Professional Provident Society (PPS) survey. Nelson Mandela was an international icon and a role model to many. He was born in Mvezo South Africa on the 18th of July,, 1918, and he passed away on the 5th of December, 2013. [41][42] In time, the Cape became home to a large population of vrijlieden, also known as vrijburgers (lit. The then Prime Minister Jan Smuts wrote the preamble to the UN Charter. [66] Apartheid became increasingly controversial, and several countries began to boycott business with the South African government because of its racial policies. They migrated to the future Natal, Free State, and Transvaal regions. [32][33], Settlements of Bantu-speaking peoples, who were iron-using agriculturists and herdsmen, were already present south of the Limpopo River (now the northern border with Botswana and Zimbabwe) by the 4th or 5th century CE (see Bantu expansion). South Africa produced Formula One motor racing's 1979 world champion Jody Scheckter. [192][193], Statistics South Africa asks people to describe themselves in the census in terms of five racial population groups. [74] This is in large part attributable to the South African HIV/AIDS pandemic which saw South African life expectancy fall from a high point of 62.25 years in 1992 to a low of 52.57 in 2005,[75] and the failure of the government to take steps to address the pandemic in its early years. For 2019, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) estimates the mid-year population at 58,78 million. It is often referred to as an 'enclave of South Africa' because it is surrounded by the larger nation. [196], South Africa has 11 official languages:[197] Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans, English, Pedi,[198] Tswana, Southern Sotho, Tsonga, Swazi, Venda, and Southern Ndebele (in order of first language speakers). The black African population is in the majority (47,4 million) and constitutes approximately 81% of the total South African population. South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. Olive Schreiner's The Story of an African Farm (1883) was a revelation in Victorian literature: it is heralded by many as introducing feminism into the novel form. Readers Digest Association, Cape Town, Atlas of Southern Africa. Free State … South African popular musicians that have found international success include Johnny Clegg, rap-rave duo Die Antwoord, and rock band Seether. There are eleven official names of South Africa,[1] one in each of its eleven official languages. The President and the Cabinet may be removed by the National Assembly by a motion of no confidence. If your name is selected, you could win free travel for a year. The coldest place on mainland South Africa is Buffelsfontein in the Eastern Cape, where a temperature of −20.1 °C (−4.2 °F) was recorded in 2013. The National Party imposed apartheid in 1948, institutionalising previous racial segregation. The most prevalent biome in South Africa is the grassland, particularly on the Highveld, where the plant cover is dominated by different grasses, low shrubs, and acacia trees, mainly camel-thorn (Vachellia erioloba). Penny Heyns won Olympic Gold in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. The capital is N’Djamena. In 2004, the swimming team of Roland Schoeman, Lyndon Ferns, Darian Townsend and Ryk Neethling won the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Athens, simultaneously breaking the world record in the 4×100 Freestyle Relay. In Mpumalanga Province, several stone circles have been found along with the stone arrangement that has been named Adam's Calendar, and the ruins are thought to be created by the Bakone, a Northern Sotho people.[34][35]. 15.1% had no religious affiliation, 0.6% were "other" and 1.4% were "unspecified. Council for Geoscience, Geological Survey of South Africa. They have been joined by black or white South African converts as well as those from other parts of Africa. [65] The three rival resistance movements also engaged in occasional inter-factional clashes as they jockeyed for domestic influence. "[170] Official affirmative action policies have seen a rise in black economic wealth and an emerging black middle class. pop_jop/Getty Images. [129] Many emigrants from South Africa also state that crime was a major factor in their decision to leave. The severity of this wind made passing around the Cape of Good Hope particularly treacherous for sailors, causing many shipwrecks.

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