South Africa

Africa

Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa.

Unity In Diversity		27.5667214S 24.1699219E
President Jacob Zuma	Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe

Capital
Pretoria

Government
Constitutional parliamentary republic

Religion
Zion Christian 11.1%, Pentecostal/Charismatic 8.2%, Catholic 7.1%, Methodist 6.8%, Dutch Reformed 6.7%, Anglican 3.8%, Muslim 1.5%, other Christian 36%, other 2.3%, unspecified 1.4%, none 15.1%.

Population
49,109,107

Ethnic groups
Black African 79%, white 9.6%, colored 8.9%, Indian/Asian 2.5%.

National Language
IsiZulu 23.8%, IsiXhosa 17.6%, Afrikaans 13.3%, Sepedi 9.4%, English 8.2%, Setswana 8.2%, Sesotho 7.9%, Xitsonga 4.4%, other 7.2%,Ndebele,Tshivenda ,SiSwati.

National Day
31 May 1910

Currency
Rand (ZAR)

Anthem
National anthem of South Africa

Attractions
Cape Town & Environs, Drakensberg Mountains, Kimberley Diamond Mines,  Kruger National Park,  Panoramic Route,  Phinda, Table,  Mountain National Park 

Website

Art & Cultural

The ICON

Kimberley Diamond Mines (Big Hole)       In 1871, an even larger 83.50 carat (16.7 g) diamond was found on the slopes of Colesberg Kopje on the farm Vooruitzigt belonging to the De Beers brothers. Henry Richard Giddy recounted how Esau Damoense (or Damon), the cook for prospector Fleetwood Rawstone's "Red Cap Party", made the discovery on Colesberg Kopje after he was sent there to dig as punishment. Rawstorne took the news to the nearby diggings of the De Beer brothers — his arrival there sparking off the famous "New Rush" which, as historian Brian Roberts puts it, was practically a stampede. Within a month 800 claims were cut into the hillock which were worked frenetically by two to three thousand men. As the land was lowered so the hillock became a mine – in time, the world renowned Kimberley Mine. As miners arrived in their thousands, the hill disappeared, and became known as the Big Hole. From mid-July 1871 to 1914, 50,000 miners dug the hole with picks and shovels, yielding 2,722 kg of diamonds. The Big Hole has a surface of 17 hectares (42 acres) and is 463 metres wide. It was excavated to a depth of 240 m, but then partially infilled with debris reducing its depth to about 215 m; since then it has accumulated water to a depth of 40 m leaving 175 m visible. Beneath the surface, the Kimberly Mine underneath the Big Hole was mined to a depth of 1097 metres. A popular local myth claims that it is the largest hand-dug hole on the world, however Jagersfontein Mine appears to hold that record.There is currently an effort in progress to register the Big Hole as a World Heritage Site.

Nelson Mandela