South Africa is a country located in the southern part of the African continent. This country borders Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Namibia. Besides the amazing and ancient history, the country has a simply unique geography and incomparable natural conditions. In addition, South Africa is considered one of the most developed countries the entire African continent. There are many universities, schools, museums that often attract attention foreign students and ordinary tourists.
South Africa on the world map
Geography of the country and its features.
If we talk about the area of the country, it is slightly more than 1,200,000 kilometers square. At the same time, the country is in 24th place in terms of area in the world. The most highest point South Africa is Mount Njesuti.
There are many rivers throughout the country. In addition, from the east, the country is washed by the Indian Ocean. Among similar large rivers can be called: Limpopo, Komati, Vaal, Great Fish, Orange, Tugela and many others.
By the way, the climate in the country is truly amazing. Here you can find and subtropical zones, and deserts, and temperate climates.
Thus, the largest desert in the country is called the Namib.
Administrative division of the country.
On this moment, South Africa has three levels of administrative division that need to be researched to understand the features political system.
The first stage is the provinces. At the moment there are 9 of them, and they proportionally divide the entire country into parts.
The second stage is the districts. They can be rural or urban.
The third stage is small areas where not too many people live. Such places are called territories of regional subordination.
There are essentially three capitals in the country.
Cape Town is the legislative center of the country;
Pretoria – administrative center;
Bloemfontein - judicial.
In addition, among major cities Countries include Johannesburg and Durban.
If speak about political structure, then at the moment a parliamentary republic reigns in South Africa.
Due to the multinational population, there are many official languages, but the most popular ones are English and Afrikaans.
Map Republic of South Africa in Russian
Attractions
When visiting South Africa, every tourist should visit certain attractions that are literally saturated with the spirit of history, culture and politics of this country.
Such attractions include:
1).Reserves
If a person goes to South Africa to enjoy the pristine nature, then such reserves will only help him in this. Among the largest of them, it is worth noting the National Parks of Pilansberg, Eddo and many others.
2) Robben Island
Political landmark. It was here, in a local prison, that Nelson Mandela served 18 years.
3) Stellenbosch
Second oldest city in the country, founded in the 17th century. The main attraction is the wine route, along which you can visit 44 cellars with alcohol.
The country has many interesting sights, historical facts and events about which there is still much to tell. Photo materials used from Wikimedia © Foto, Wikimedia Commons
The Republic of South Africa (RSA) is a country in southern Africa. Area 1219000 km 2. Population 439 million people (2000), including Africans (76%; Zulu, COSATU others), mestizos (9%), people from Europe (13%), mainly Afrikaners (Boers) and the British . Urban population 53% (1998). official languages- Afrikaans and English. Believers are mostly Christians and adherents of local traditional beliefs. The capital is Pretoria, the seat of parliament is Cape Town. Administrative division: 9 provinces. The head of state is the president. Legislature- bicameral parliament (Senate and National Assembly).
South Africa occupies the southern tip of the South African plateau, slightly elevated at the edges (the Drakensberg Mountains in the east, individual peaks over 3000 m) and limited by the steep slopes of the Great Escarpment. To the south are the Cape Mountains. The climate is tropical and subtropical. average temperature January 18-27 ° C, July 7-10 ° C. Precipitation from 60 mm on the coast, 650 mm on the plateau, up to 2000 mm per year on the eastern slopes of the Drakensberg Mountains. The main rivers are the Orange and Limpopo. In the east there is savannah, south of 30°S. w. - Subtropical forests and hard-leaved evergreen shrubs, on the mountain slopes - subtropical and monsoon forests; in inland areas savannah, steppe, shrub semi-desert and Karoo Desert. National parks - Kruger, Kalahari-Gemsbok and others, numerous nature reserves and reserves.
South Africa is an industrial-agrarian country with high level economic development, most developed in economically African state. Share in GDP (1998%): mining 9, manufacturing 19, agriculture 3.8. South Africa occupies one of the first places in the world in the production of gold, platinum, chromite, manganese ore, antimony, and diamonds. Uranium, iron ore, copper, asbestos, etc. are mined. Electricity production +192010 million kWh (1998). Ferrous metallurgy, mechanical engineering, chemical, oil refining, cement, textile, food industry. IN agriculture commercial products are provided by large farms. The basis of agriculture is animal husbandry; livestock (1997, million): sheep and goats 31.1, cattle 13.6. Main crops: corn, wheat, sugar cane. Sorghum, peanuts, tobacco, tea, and citrus fruits are also grown. Length (1996, thousand km) railways 21.6, paved roads 63. The most important sea ports: Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East London. Export: mineral and agricultural raw materials, agricultural products, diamonds, mining equipment. Main foreign trade partners: Great Britain, USA, Germany, Japan. Currency unit- South African rand.
Form of government and territorial structure. Presidential-parliamentary republic, federal state. Consists of nine provinces. The head of state is the president. The legislative body is a bicameral parliament ( National Council provinces and the National Assembly).
Capital: Pretoria (1.5 million).
Before the arrival of Europeans, the Hottentot and Bantu tribes lived in the country. In the 17th century The lands of the Hottentots came into the possession of Dutch settlers - the Boers (Afrikaners). In 1814 the entire territory became British possession. In 1910 the country gained independence.
Geographical position. The extreme south of Africa. Borders with Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Swaziland; in the eastern part of the country there is an enclave - the kingdom of Lesotho. It is washed by the Atlantic and Indian oceans.
Area: 1221 thousand km 2 (twice more area Ukraine).
Large reserves of diamonds, coal, gold, platinum; There are ores of non-ferrous metals, manganese ore, uranium, antimony.
Population. 45 (40.2) million. Bantu Negroids (Zulu, Swazi, Xhosa) - 75%, ethnic Europeans (Boers and English) - 14%, mestizos, etc. Density 37 people / km 2. Average annual increase 6 people. per 1000 inhabitants. Balance of migration -0.35 people. per 1000 inhabitants. Unemployment 37%. Age composition 33-61-6, average age 24.5 years, life expectancy 48 years.
Religion: Christianity (77%), traditional beliefs, Hinduism, Islam.
Urban population 59%, largest cities: Cape Town (Kapstad), Johannesburg, Durban.
Official languages: Afrikaans, English, as well as local dialects.
Economy. GDP per capita 2550 (10 000) US dollars. GDP structure 4.4% - 28.9% - 66.7%. Industry: mining, ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy(including steel, copper, tin, nickel), chemical, mechanical engineering, transport, heavy), food, light. Agriculture: crop production (corn, wheat, sugar cane, fruits, grapes), livestock (cattle, sheep, goats, poultry). Tourism (about 4 million tourists per year).
International trade. Export: $31.8 billion (with population $707). Gold, diamonds, platinum and other metals, minerals, machinery and equipment (UK 13%, USA 13%, Germany 9%, Japan 7%, Italy 6%).
Imports: $26.6 billion (per capita $591). Machinery and equipment, chemical products, petroleum products, scientific instruments, food (Germany, USA, UK, Japan).
Recreational resources, attractions. In the country: shopping mall Sandton, Botanical Garden, « Big Hole"(the world's largest man-made vertical hole for diamond mining), National parks: (including Ch. Kruger, Kalaharism Khama), mountain and sea resorts.
SMP: 103rd place, after Moldova, before El Salvador.
South Africa - South African Republic. Perhaps the most economically developed state African continent. Started around Dutch colony strategically located important point- Cape of Good Hope. Its other name is Cape of the Winds, because it is truly a surprisingly windy place. In those ancient times, the entire coast was strewn with the wreckage of ships - victims of shipwrecks.
At first these places were inhabited by Germans and Dutch. They fought with nomads like farmers with cattle breeders. And the farmers here were better armed - they fought back. Then the British took these places after the wars. They began to systematically push back the nomads by installing one fort after another. Ultimately, they established their own order in this territory.
Map of South Africa in Russian
South Africa is known for its specific policy - apartheid. It was built strictly on the superiority of the white minority over the black majority. Blacks were deprived of the right to participate in elections, the right to study, the right to intermarriage, the right to citizenship. Of course, this was subject to severe criticism from the international community and human rights organizations. However, South Africa ignored the demands until the 90s of the 20th century, despite the fact that economic sanctions were applied.
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However, this is a state rich in minerals, now the most powerful in the region. South Africa is not yet classified as a developed country, however, when testing with artificial intelligence based on economic and social data, estimates were obtained that unambiguously interpret South Africa as a developed state. So, the persistent denial of this by the world community is only an echo of apartheid.
SOUTH AFRICA
(South Africa)
Geographical position. The Republic of South Africa (RSA) is located in the southern part of the African continent, washed by the waters of the Atlantic and Indian oceans. On the territory of South Africa there are small independent states of Swaziland and Lesotho, in the north the republic borders on Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia.
Square. The territory of South Africa occupies 1,223,410 square meters. km.
Home towns, Administrative division. The capital of South Africa is Pretoria, the seat of parliament is Cape Town. Largest cities: Cape Town (2,000 thousand people), Johannesburg (1,800 thousand people), Pretoria (1,000 thousand people), Durban (1,000 thousand people),
Port Elizabeth (400 thousand people), Germiston (200 thousand people), Bloemfontein (180 thousand people). Administrative division of the country: 9 provinces.
Political system
South Africa Republic. The head of state is the president. The legislative body is a bicameral parliament (Senate and National Assembly).
Relief. The rather monotonous terrain of South Africa consists of a central plateau and several ranges in the east, in particular the 400 km long Drakensberg Mountains.
The height of the central plateau of Namaqualand above sea level is 1200-1800 m. Coast Indian Ocean descends in terraces. Along Atlantic coast the plain stretches. The most high mountains on the territory of South Africa - Cathkin Peak (3,660 m) and Mont aux Sources (3,299 m).
Geological structure and minerals. The country's subsoil contains rich reserves of gold, uranium, diamonds, platinum, chromium, less significant reserves of coal, iron ore, natural gas, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, copper.
Climate. On the territory of the country there are twenty climatic zones. The province of Natal is characterized by high humidity, inherent in a hot tropical climate, in which about 1200 mm of precipitation falls per year. The Cape Town area is dominated by a Mediterranean climate - dry, hot summers, not very Cold winter, precipitation is 600 mm per year. The rest of the country falls within the zone tropical climate. Due to the sufficient altitude above sea level and proximity ocean currents The climate in South Africa is more moderate than in countries located at the same latitudes.
Inland waters. The main rivers are the Orange and Limpopo.
Soils and vegetation. The Transvaal and Orange provinces contain 52% of all the country's forests; in general, at least 20 thousand plant species grow in South Africa. Many flowers that are now common in Europe were exported back in the 17th century. from South Africa - these include geranium, gladiolus, and narcissus. In the vicinity of Cape Town there are more than 5 thousand species of plants that no longer grow in any country in the world.
Animal world. South Africa is home to elephant, rhinoceros, zebra, lion, giraffe, cheetah, aardvark, antelope, hyena, golden mole, tarsier, and various birds.
Population and language
The population of South Africa is 41 million people. Blacks make up about 76% of the population and belong to many tribes of several linguistic groups. The Zulus are a large group of tribes from the province of Natal, known for their warlike behavior. The Xhosa, or Kaffirs, occupy the Transkei region on the east coast of South Africa. Swazis are concentrated or in independent state Swaziland is in South Africa or near its borders. The Ndebele are the original inhabitants of the Transvaal. The Suto tribe occupies the territory from Pretoria to the border with Mozambique and is divided into northern and southern Suto, having various languages and customs. Tswana are residents of the state of Botswana, which became part of South Africa in 1994. Representatives of the Venda tribe live in the Northern Transvaal, still leading an isolated life and maintaining bizarre customs. In addition to the Negroid tribes, two aboriginal tribes live in South Africa, called Bushmen and Hottentots by Europeans. They engage in hunting, gathering and herding, and are distinguished by yellowish, wrinkled skin and a Mongoloid type of face. The number of Bushmen and Hottentots is no more than 50 thousand people. Another 9% of the South African population are mestizo, descendants of white colonists and slaves taken from Malaysia and India. Among white South Africans (13%), two groups can be distinguished: Afrikaans-speaking Afrikaners and English-speaking whites. Afrikaners make up 60% of the white population of South Africa and are of Dutch, German, French or English origin. English-speaking South Africans are mainly from the UK, Portugal and Greece. In 1860, another group joined the population of South Africa - Indians brought from Madras to grow sugar cane. Most Indians live in the province of Natal. Overall, Indians make up 2.6% of South Africa's population.
Religion
More than 80% of the population of South Africa are adherents of Christianity: independent African churches unite more than 8 million believers, the second place in terms of the number of parishioners is occupied by the Reformed Church, and the third by the Roman Catholic Church. A small percentage of believers are distributed among the Methodist, Anglican, Apostolic, Lutheran and Presbyterian Churches. More than 400 thousand people profess Hinduism, 300 thousand - Islam.
Brief historical essay
The very first inhabitants of this region of Africa were the San tribes (Bushmen) and the related Khoikhoi (Hottentots). Migrating tribes language group Bantu settled on the northeastern and eastern coasts in the 11th century, and by the 15th century. settled the eastern half of southern Africa. These tribes were primarily farmers and pastoralists, but carried out intensive trade throughout the region. The first European settlement appeared on the cape Good Hope in 1652 and served as a trading base for the Dutch East India Company. The resettlement quickly took on the character of colonization, and the Khoi-San tribes were expelled from their lands. The settlers formed their own close community with their own Afrikaans dialect and a Calvinist sect (the Dutch Reformed Church). The slave trade developed, slaves were exported from both coasts of Africa.
Over the next 150 years, the colonists spread further east, brutalizing the local Bantu tribes. In 1779, the expansion of the Boers (farmers of Dutch origin) was temporarily stopped by the Xhosa tribes in the First Bantu War. Boer settlement was further hindered by Britain's annexation of the Cape of Good Hope in 1806 and the abolition of slavery in 1834. The Boers perceived the abolition of slavery as an unacceptable interference in their affairs, which led to their migration across the Orange River two years later. The Zulu wars were interrupted by the appearance of the Boers, who settled further inland in search of new lands, and the Boers were followed by the British, more and more of whom appeared in the Cape Province and Natal. The Zulus were eventually forced to submit, but relations between the Boers and the British remained tense. Armed conflicts broke out frequently, especially after the formation of the independent Boer republics-Freedom Orange State and Transvaal.
When diamond deposits were discovered in Kimberley in 1867, and gold in the Witwatersrand in 1886, the Boer republic was flooded with an influx of British capital and
immigrants who displeased Boer farmers. One of the conflicts led to the Anglo-Boer War in 1899-1902. The war ended with the defeat of the independent Orange and Transvaal republics and the establishment of British rule throughout the country.
In 1910 the Union of South Africa was created, political power was completely in the hands of the white population. This caused black resistance in the form of strikes and the establishment political organizations. In 1948, the Afrikaner National Party won the elections. The new government took special pains to exclude blacks from political or economic influence, resorting to the help of troops. One of the most significant black political organizations arose as a result of racist legislation and was called the African National Congress. The only way out The African National Congress became a guerrilla war.
The apartheid regime received more greater development in the early 70s, after the creation of the so-called reserves in Transkei, Ciskei, Bophuthatswana and Venda, which were theoretically considered “independent”. By creating reservations, the Pretoria regime declared that every black person in South Africa reserved for whites, must live on a reservation, and therefore, as a foreign worker, has no political rights. It was not until June 1991 that Parliament voted to abolish all forms of apartheid. After that massacres blacks and their political leaders did not stop, but nevertheless, the date of the first general elections was set - 1992. The leader of the African National Congress, Nelson Mandela, became the president of the country, who officially announced the abolition of the apartheid policy and amended the constitution of South Africa.
Brief Economic Sketch
South Africa is an industrial-agrarian country with a high level of economic development, the most economically developed state in Africa. South Africa occupies one of the first places in the world in the production of gold, platinum, chromite, manganese ore, antimony, and diamonds. They mine uranium, iron ore, copper, asbestos, etc. Ferrous metallurgy, mechanical engineering, chemical, oil refining, cement, textile, food industries. In agriculture, marketable products are provided by large farms. The basis of agriculture is animal husbandry; They raise sheep and goats and cattle. Main crops: corn, wheat, sugar cane. Sorghum, peanuts, tobacco, and citrus fruits are also cultivated. Export: mineral and agricultural raw materials, agricultural products, diamonds, mining equipment.
The currency is the South African rand.
Brief essay culture
Art and architecture. Cape Town. Castle of Good Hope (the first building built here by European settlers (1666-1679). Inside there are several museums of antiques and paintings); South African Museum (discoveries on display) archaeological excavations in the surrounding area and examples of Bushmen rock art).
Literature. Nadine Gordimer (b. 1923) – writer, laureate Nobel Prize, author of anti-racist works (collections “Surely on Monday”,