Peter E Raper - Dictionary of Southern African Place Names

The Dictionary of Southern African Place Names now in its 4th edition helps you sort your Komkhulu from your Kommetjie with the most comprehensive glossary of Southern African towns, villages, railway stations, mountains, rivers and beaches. The 9 000 short entries incorporate data from sources dating as far back as 1486, encapsulating the linguistic and cultural heritage of all the peoples of the subcontinent, past and present.

In this highly readable book the expert authors take you on a fascinating journey of the highways and byways of Southern Africa. Whether you are a motorist, an adventurer or merely an armchair traveller, this book has a multitude of facts and details that will amuse and interest you.

This is much more than a reference book it gives an insight into what shapes a place and its people through our heroes, events, beliefs, values, fears and aspirations.

Peter E Raper , Professor Extraordinaire and Research Fellow in the Unit for Language Facilitation and Empowerment of the University of the Free State, member of the South African Academy of Science and Art, member of the Steering Board of the IGU Commission/ICA Working Group on Toponymy, and member of the International Council of Onomastic Sciences and the American Name Society. He was Chairman of the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names, Chairman of the National Place Names Committee of South Africa, President of the Names Society of Southern Africa, and member of the South African Geographical Names Council. He is currently an honorary member of the Names Society of Southern Africa, and serves on the editorial boards of Names and Nomina Africana . An internationally recognized authority on geographical names, he has co-presented ten United Nations training courses in Southern Africa, and his work has been translated into Arabic and Chinese.

Dr Lucie A Mller , Research Fellow of the Unit for Language Facilitation and Empowerment of the University of the Free State and member of the South African Academy for Science and Art. A geographical names expert by profession, she was a delegate of South Africa to the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names (UNGEGN); secretary of the Africa South Division of this Group, and member of the South African Geographical Names Council. She co-presented ten training courses on geographical names in Moambique, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland; participated in numerous international conferences on names, and is author and co-author of books, articles and other publications. She was active in the Executive Committee of the Names Society of Southern Africa for many years, serving as editorial secretary and secretary-treasurer, and is now an honorary member. She remained on the Editorial Advisory Committee of the journal Nomina Africana of the Society; was guest editor of two recent special editions of this journal, and co-edited A World of Names with Professor JU Jacobs.

Theodorus du Plessis is Professor of Linguistics (Language Policy and Planning) and Director of the Unit for Language Facilitation and Empowerment at the University of the Free State. He is the editor-in-chief of the Studies in Language Policy in South Africa series, as well as of the South African Language Rights Monitor/Suid-Afrikaanse Taalregtemonitor . He also serves on the editorial boards of the journals Language Matters: Studies in the Languages of Africa , Language Policy and Language, Culture and Curriculum . He is a member of the International Academy of Linguistic Law and of three South African specialist associations.

Peter E Raper, Lucie A Mller and L Theodorus du Plessis

JONATHAN BALL PUBLISHERS

JOHANNESBURG & CAPE TOWN

The publication of this Dictionary of Southern African Place Names was encouraged by the enthusiasm with which the first three editions were received, and necessitated by the increase in the number of provinces from four to nine, and the implementation of the South African Geographical Names Council Act, which has resulted in numerous new names being standardised.

The Dictionary has been expanded, with the addition of many new entries. In this regard our appreciation is expressed to Dr BA Meiring, Mr Trueman Khubekha and Mrs Thulile Mthembu, who made the data of the South African Geographical Names Council available for inclusion in the Dictionary. Permission of the editors of the journals Acta Academica, Language Matters, Names, Nomina Africana and Onoma to use material published in these journals is acknowledged with gratitude.

Thanks are also due to Dr Peter Alcock, Mr TE Andrews, Mrs E Aphane, Revd JJE Barrow, Mr Hendrik Bohnen, Mrs Pauline Bohnen, Mr Hans Bornman, Prof TJR Botha, Dr KFR Budack, Dr M Burden, Dr Alfred W Burton, Mr D Clarke, Dr CE Claus, Mr J-R Bernhardt, Mr H Dys, Mrs CF de Jager, Mr JF Dick, Dr Franco Frescura, Mr AJ Greeff, Dr Joh Groenewald, Mr MJ Hall, Mr CJ Henry, Mr FJ Horak, Mr NSH Hughes, Dr JJ Kloppers, Mr D Kopke, Prof Adrian Koopman, Ms Chrismi Kotze, Mr D Krause, Ms Ruth Labuschagne, Mrs E le Roux, Mr JC Loock, Mr R Martin, Dr DL Milne, Mr P le S Milstein, Dr LA Mller, Mr PD Morant, Prof PT Mtuze, Mrs PN Mtintsilana, Mrs JC Mulder, Mr L Nel, Mrs A Nicolaides, Professor GS Nienaber, Professor PJ Nienaber, Mr J Orford, Brig-Gen Dr JH Picard, Dr G Quinting, Dr Richard R Randall, Dr IR Raper, Mr WV Read, Dr CJ Skead, Dr D Sleigh, Miss AH Smith, Dr PD Toens, Mrs DF van Breda, Mrs P van der Westhuizen, Mr GJ van Eck, Mrs M van Niekerk, Mr Theuns van Rensburg, Prof EB van Wyk, Mr WP Venter, Mrs Jo Walker, Mr WC Watson, Dr A Wessels, Dr TCW Wessels, Mrs M Wright and all others who supplied information and documentation. Improvements and amendments suggested by readers and colleagues have also been incorporated with gratitude. The authors express their sincere thanks to the editor, Frances Perryer, and proofreader, Valda Strauss.

Cognisance has been taken of resolutions of the United Nations, and each entry complies with the minimum requirements recommended. As this is a dictionary of Southern African place names , names of major features in neighbouring countries have also been included, specifically in Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Swaziland, as well as names of features on Marion Island. However, it has not been the intention to cover all southern African countries. There has been no attempt at comprehensiveness, and in cases where essential information could not be provided, the name has been omitted.

The authorship of the Dictionary has been extended to include Dr Lucie A Mller and Professor L Theodorus du Plessis, and is a project of the Unit for Language Facilitation in association with the Department of Linguistics and Language Practice of the University of the Free State, and will be a continuing project of that University. I have pleasure in expressing my sincere gratitude to Professor du Plessis for this important initiative, which will ensure the continuation of one of the most comprehensive collections of the common heritage of the peoples of southern Africa.

Peter E Raper

Pretoria, October 2014

Bots Botswana

CSIR Council for Scientific and Industrial Research

EC Eastern Cape Province

ESKOM Electricity Supply Commission

FS Free State Province

GP Gauteng Province

HSRC Human Sciences Research Council

ICA International Cartographic Association

IGU International Geographical Union

km kilometre(s)

KZN KwaZulu-Natal Province

Les Lesotho

Lim Limpopo Province

m metre(s)

Mar Marion Island