Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors.
Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker.

Responsive image

Portal:South Africa

Portal topics
Activities
Culture
Geography
Health
History
Mathematics
Nature
People
Philosophy
Religion
Society
Technology
Random portal
Welcome to the
South Africa
Portal

Unity in Diversity
edit 

Introduction

Flag of South Africa
Flag of South Africa
Map of the South Africa within Africa.

The Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of the African continent. It borders the countries of Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Eswatini, and entirely surrounds Lesotho.

South Africa has the largest population of people of European descent in Africa, one of the largest Indian population outside of Asia, as well as the largest Coloured (of mixed European, Asian and African descent) community in Africa, making it one of the most ethnically diverse countries on the continent. Racial and ethnic strife between the black majority and the white minority have played a large part in the country's history and politics. The National Party began introducing the policy of apartheid after winning the general election of 1948; however, it was the same party under the leadership of F.W. de Klerk who started to dismantle it in 1990 after a long struggle by the black majority, as well as many white, coloured and Indian South Africans.

The country is one of the few in Africa never to have had a coup d'état, and regular free and fair elections have been held since 1994, making it a regional power and among the most stable and liberal democracies in Africa.

South Africa is ranked as an upper-middle income economy by the World Bank. It has the second largest economy in Africa after Nigeria, and the 34th-largest in the world. By purchasing power parity, South Africa has the 7th highest per capita income in Africa. Although being the second largest economy, South Africa has the most sophisticated economy in the continent, with modern infrastructure common throughout the country. The country is considered to be a newly industrialized country according to the World Bank classifications.

Selected article - show another

Three artillerymen crouch behind a small 2.5 inch "Screw Gun" employed in the defence of Kimberley
British RML 2.5-inch mountain gun employed in the defence of Kimberley during the Second Boer War

The siege of Kimberley took place during the Second Boer War at Kimberley, Cape Colony (present-day South Africa), when Boer forces from the Orange Free State and the Transvaal besieged the diamond mining town. The Boers moved quickly to try to capture the area when war broke out between the British and the two Boer republics in October 1899. The town was ill-prepared, but the defenders organised an energetic and effective improvised defence that was able to prevent it from being taken.

Outside Kimberley, the Boers treated the occupied territory as part of one of the republics, appointing a 'landdrost' (magistrate) and changing the name of the neighbouring town of Barkly West to Nieu Boshof. (Full article...)

edit 

Selected picture - show another

edit 

Did you know... - show different entries

The upper canyon as seen from Bourke's Luck at the Treur-Blyde confluence

  • ...that the Tugela Falls is the second highest waterfall in the world, where the water tumbles down 2,789 feet. First place goes to the Angel Falls in Venezuela at 3,212 feet.
  • ...that Blyde River Canyon (pictured) is the third largest canyon in the world - and the largest green one. The Grand Canyon in the U.S. is the biggest, and the Fish River Canyon in Namibia the second, but both are very dry.
  • ...that South Africa is home to the world's smallest succulent plants (less than 0.39 inches) and the largest (the baobab tree).
edit 

WikiProjects

Good article - show another

This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

Jan Willem Spruyt (4 July 1826 – 8 September 1908), also known as Jan Willem Spruijt and Jan Willem Landskroon Spruijt (birthname), was a South African civil servant, lawyer and statesman of Dutch descent. Spruyt was government secretary (1856–1862) and several times acting state president of the Orange Free State, and state secretary of the South African Republic (1866–1869).

Spruyt grew up in the Netherlands, studied law, but did not complete his studies, and worked as a schoolteacher, before coming to South Africa. Here he practised as law agent in private practice in both Boer republics. Soon after his arrival he was also quickly enrolled in the administration of the Orange Free State, and attained a powerful position as government secretary. In this capacity he stood in for state president M.W. Pretorius several times in the period 1860–1862. In the third quarter of the nineteenth century several many Afrikaner politicians and government officials served in both Boer republics. So did Spruyt, who finished his career as state secretary of the South African Republic. (Full article...)

edit 

Selected biography - show another

Sir Cornelius Hermanus Wessels (26 April 1851 Rietfontein, Winburg, Orange River Sovereignty – 1 March 1924 Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, Union of South Africa) was a South African statesman.

Wessels stemmed from an important Orange Free State family clan, dedicated to farming and the Boer way of life. Mainly self-educated, he turned to politics in his early thirties. As a member of the Volksraad he developed his skills as a diplomat and mediator, and was involved in many of the important political decisions the Orange Free State had to make in the 1880s and 1890s. In 1897 he was appointed president of the Volksraad. (Full article...)

Selected fare or cuisine - show another

A close-up view of a personal-sized Gatsby sandwich prepared with calamari and chips

A Gatsby is a South African submarine sandwich consisting of a bread roll filled with chips (French fries) and a choice of fillings and sauces. It originated in Cape Town and is popular throughout the Western Cape province. The sandwich is typically large and shared by several people. (Full article...)

edit 

Selected quote - show another

edit 

Selected panorama - show another

Panorama from the top of Table Mountain. From left to right are visible Lion's Head, Signal Hill, Robben Island, the Cape Town city centre, Table Bay, and Devil's Peak.
Panorama from the top of Table Mountain. From left to right are visible Lion's Head, Signal Hill, Robben Island, the Cape Town city centre, Table Bay, and Devil's Peak.
Table Mountain in Cape Town.

General images - show another

The following are images from various South Africa-related articles on Wikipedia.
edit 

Topics

edit 

Categories

Category puzzle
Category puzzle
Select [►] to view subcategories
South Africa
South Africa-related lists
Buildings and structures in South Africa
Culture of South Africa
Economy of South Africa
Environment of South Africa
Geography of South Africa
Government of South Africa
Health in South Africa
History of South Africa
Organisations based in South Africa
South African people
Politics of South Africa
Society of South Africa
South Africa stubs
edit 

Recognized content

New articles

This list was generated from these rules. Questions and feedback are always welcome! The search is being run daily with the most recent ~14 days of results. Note: Some articles may not be relevant to this project.

Rules | Match log | Results page (for watching) | Last updated: 2025-02-09 23:13 (UTC)

Note: The list display can now be customized by each user. See List display personalization for details.

edit 

Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

Discover Wikipedia using portals

Previous Page Next Page






Portaal:Suid-Afrika AF بوابة:جنوب إفريقيا Arabic Portal:Südafrika German Portal:Sudáfrica Spanish Portail:Afrique du Sud French Portal:Suráfrica GL Portal:Afrika Selatan Malay Portaal:Zuid-Afrika Dutch Portal:Sør-Afrika NB Portal:África do Sul Portuguese

Responsive image

Responsive image