South Africa - Languages

South Africa has 11 official languages: English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Swati, Ndebele, Southern Sotho, Northern Sotho, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda and Xhosa. In this regard it is second only to India in number. As a result, there are many official names for the country. The country also recognises eight non-official languages: Fanagalo, Lobedu, Northern Ndebele, Phuthi, South African Sign Language, Khoe, Nama and San. These non-official languages may be used in certain official uses in limited areas where it has been determined that these languages are prevalent. Nevertheless, their populations are not such ...

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South Africa has 11 official languages: English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Swati, Ndebele, Southern Sotho, Northern Sotho, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda and Xhosa. In this regard it is second only to India in number. As a result, there are many official names for the country. The country also recognises eight non-official languages: Fanagalo, Lobedu, Northern Ndebele, Phuthi, South African Sign Language, Khoe, Nama and San. These non-official languages may be used in certain official uses in limited areas where it has been determined that these languages are prevalent. Nevertheless, their populations are not as such ...

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South Africa, South Africa - Languages, South Africa - History, South Africa - Pre-history, South Africa - Dutch settlement, South Africa - British annexation, South Africa - Boer wars, South Africa - Union of South Africa, South Africa - Apartheid era, South Africa - Transfer of power, South Africa - Current issues, South Africa - Government, South Africa - Politics, South Africa - Provinces, South Africa - Geography, South Africa - Flora and fauna, South Africa - Economy, South Africa - Agriculture, South Africa - Demographics, South Africa - Culture, South Africa - Crime, South Africa - Military, South Africa - Media, South Africa - International rankings

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South Africa - Pre-history. Main article: History of South Africa South Africa contains some of the oldest archaeological sites in Africa. Extensive fossil remains at the Sterkfontein, Kromdraai and Makapansgat caves suggest that various australopithecines existed in South Africa from about three million years ago. These were succeeded by various species of Homo, including Homo habilis, Homo erectus and modern man, Homo sapiens. Bantu iron-using agriculturist ...

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South Africa, South Africa - Languages, South Africa - History, South Africa - Pre-history, South Africa - Dutch settlement, South Africa - British annexation, South Africa - Boer wars, South Africa - Union of South Africa, South Africa - Apartheid era, South Africa - Transfer of power, South Africa - Current issues, South Africa - Government, South Africa - Politics, South Africa - Provinces, South Africa - Geography, South Africa - Flora and fauna, South Africa - Economy, South Africa - Agriculture, South Africa - Demographics, South Africa - Culture, South Africa - Crime, South Africa - Military, South Africa - Media, South Africa - International rankings

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South Africa - Pre-history. South Africa contains some of the oldest archaeological sites in Africa. Extensive fossil remains at the Sterkfontein, Kromdraai and Makapansgat caves suggest that various australopithecines existed in South Africa from about three million years ago. These were succeeded by various species of Homo, including Homo habilis, Homo erectus and modern man, Homo sapiens. Bantu iron-using agriculturists and herdsmen moved south of the Limpopo River into modern-day S ...

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South Africa, South Africa - Languages, South Africa - History, South Africa - Pre-history, South Africa - Dutch settlement, South Africa - British annexation, South Africa - Boer wars, South Africa - Union of South Africa, South Africa - Apartheid era, South Africa - Transfer of power, South Africa - Current issues, South Africa - Government, South Africa - Politics, South Africa - Provinces, South Africa - Geography, South Africa - Flora and fauna, South Africa - Economy, South Africa - Agriculture, South Africa - Demographics, South Africa - Culture, South Africa - Crime, South Africa - Military, South Africa - Media, South Africa - International rankings

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The Republic of South Africa is a constitutional democracy with a three-tiered system of government and an independent judiciary, operating under a parliamentary system. However, unlike republics with Westminster-style parliamentary systems, the President is both Head of State and Head of Government. The minimum age for voting in South Africa is 18. In the first post-apartheid elections, permanent residents as well as citizens were allowed to vote. In all ...

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South Africa contains some of the oldest archaeological sites in Africa. Extensive fossil remains at the Sterkfontein, Kromdraai and Makapansgat caves suggest that various australopithecines existed in South Africa from about three million years ago. These were succeeded by various species of Homo, including Homo habilis, Homo erectus and modern man, Homo sapiens. Bantu iron-using agriculturists and herdsmen moved south of the Limpopo River into modern-day South Africa by the 4th or 5th century (the Bantu expansio ...

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South Africa has a bicameral Parliament, comprising the National Council of Provinces (or upper house) with 90 members, and a National Assembly (or lower house) with 400 members. Members of the lower house are elected on a population basis by proportional representation: half of the members are elected from national lists and half are elected from provincial lists. Ten members are elected to represent each province in the National Council of Provinces, regardless of the population of the province. Elections for both chambers are held every five years. The government is ...

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South Africa also has a large, free, and active press that regularly challenges the government. Major scandals have erupted when the press reported charges of corruption that were proven to be true in cases such as that of Schabir Shaik, in which deputy president Jacob Zuma was implicated, and the corruption allegations that led to the dismissal of Winnie Mandela from parliament. The government's stance on the 2005 Zimbabwe parliamentary elections and AIDS h ...

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South Africa, South Africa - Languages, South Africa - History, South Africa - Pre-history, South Africa - Dutch settlement, South Africa - British annexation, South Africa - Boer wars, South Africa - Union of South Africa, South Africa - Apartheid era, South Africa - Transfer of power, South Africa - Current issues, South Africa - Government, South Africa - Politics, South Africa - Provinces, South Africa - Geography, South Africa - Flora and fauna, South Africa - Economy, South Africa - Agriculture, South Africa - Demographics, South Africa - Culture, South Africa - Crime, South Africa - Military, South Africa - Media, South Africa - International rankings

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South Africa is a nation of 44.8 million people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and beliefs. The 2001 Statistics South Africa census provided five racial categories by which people could classify themselves, the last of which, "unspecified/other" drew negligible responses, and these results were omitted. Results for the other categories were: Black—75% White—14% Co ...

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South Africa, South Africa - Languages, South Africa - History, South Africa - Pre-history, South Africa - Dutch settlement, South Africa - British annexation, South Africa - Boer wars, South Africa - Union of South Africa, South Africa - Apartheid era, South Africa - Transfer of power, South Africa - Current issues, South Africa - Government, South Africa - Politics, South Africa - Provinces, South Africa - Geography, South Africa - Flora and fauna, South Africa - Economy, South Africa - Agriculture, South Africa - Demographics, South Africa - Culture, South Africa - Crime, South Africa - Military, South Africa - Media, South Africa - International rankings

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While it may be argued that there is no "single" culture in South Africa because of its ethnic diversity, South Africans of all races and backgrounds are united by a sincere desire to see to it that the horrors and injustices of Apartheid are never again repeated. Today, the diverse cultural foods are enjoyed by all and especially marketed to tourists who wish to sample the large variety of South African cuisine. In addition to food, music and dance are ...

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When apartheid ended in 1994, the South African government had to integrate the formerly independent and semi-independent Bantustans into the political structure of South Africa. To this end, it abolished the four former provinces of South Africa (Cape Province, Natal, Orange Free State, and Transvaal) and replaced them with nine fully integrated provinces. The new provinces are usually much smaller than the former provinces, which theoretically is in order to ...

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South Africa is located at the extreme south of Africa, with a long coastline that stretches more than 2,500 kilometres (1,550 mi) and across two oceans (the Atlantic and the Indian). South Africa has a great variety of climate zones, from the extreme desert of the Kalahari near Namibia to lush subtropical climate along the border with Mozambique. It quickly rises over a mountainous escarpment towards the interior plateau known as the Highveld. Even thou ...

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Crime is a major problem in South Africa. According to a survey for the period 1998 - 2000 compiled by the United Nations, South Africa was ranked first for murder by firearm (both absolute and per capita) and rape per capita. It was also number two for assault and murder (by all means) per capita. On the positive side, total crime per capita is 10th out of the 60 countries in the data set. Nevertheless, crime has had a pronounced effect on society: many wealthier South Africans moved into gated communities, abandoning the central business d ...

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South Africa's armed forces, known as the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), was created in 1994 following South Africa's first post-apartheid national elections and the adoption of a new constitution. Previously known simply as the South African Defence Force (SADF), the new force consists of the old SADF, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), APLA and the TBVC state's defence forces. The SANDF is subdivided into four branches, namely: The South African Army

South Africa also has a large, free, and active press that regularly challenges the government, a habit formed during the apartheid era when the press was the media least controlled by the government. Major scandals have erupted when the press reported charges of corruption that were proven to be true in cases such as that of Schabir Shaik, in which deputy president Jacob Zuma was implicated, and the corruption allegations that led to the dismissal of Winnie Mandela from parliament. The government's ...

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South Africa, South Africa - Languages, South Africa - History, South Africa - Government, South Africa - Politics, South Africa - Provinces, South Africa - Geography, South Africa - Flora and fauna, South Africa - Economy, South Africa - Agriculture, South Africa - Demographics, South Africa - Culture, South Africa - Crime, South Africa - Military, South Africa - Media, South Africa - International rankings

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It may be argued that there is no "single" culture in South Africa because of its ethnic diversity. Today, the diversity in foods from many cultures are enjoyed by all and especially marketed to tourists who wish to sample the large variety of South African cuisine. In addition to food, music and dance feature prominently. South African cuisine is heavily meat-based and has spawned the distinctively South African social gathering known as a braai. South Africa has also developed into a major wine producer, ...

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South Africa is a nation of 44.8 million people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and beliefs. The 2001 Statistics South Africa census provided five racial categories by which people could classify themselves, the last of which, "unspecified/other" drew negligible responses, and these results were omitted. Results for the other categories were: Black—75% White—14% Coloured—9% Indian/Asian—3% By far the major part of the population classified itself as African or black, but ...

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South Africa has more than 20,000 different plants, or about 10 percent of all the known species of plants on Earth, making it particularly rich in plant biodiversity. South Africa's most prevalent biome is grassland, particularly on the Highveld, where the plant cover is dominated by different grasses, low shrubs, and acacia trees, mainly camel-thorn and whitethorn. Vegetation becomes even more sparse towards the northwest due to low rainfall. There are several species of water-storing succulents like aloes and euphorbias in the very ...

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South Africa is a middle-income country with an abundant supply of resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors, a stock exchange (the JSE Securities Exchange), that ranks among the 10 largest in the world, and a modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centres throughout the region. South Africa's per capita GDP, corrected for purchasing power parity, positions the country as one of the 50 wealthiest in the world. In many respects, South Africa is develop ...

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South Africa has a large agricultural sector, and is a net exporter of farming products. There are almost a thousand agricultural cooperatives and agribusinesses throughout the country, and agricultural exports constitute eight per cent of South Africa's total exports for the past five years. The agricultural industry contributes to around 30% of formal employment, relatively low compared to other parts of Africa, as well as providing work for casual labourers and contributing towards arou ...

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South Africa, South Africa - Languages, South Africa - History, South Africa - Government, South Africa - Politics, South Africa - Provinces, South Africa - Geography, South Africa - Flora and fauna, South Africa - Economy, South Africa - Agriculture, South Africa - Demographics, South Africa - Culture, South Africa - Crime, South Africa - Military, South Africa - Media, South Africa - International rankings

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