Native speakers ofAfrikaans comprise a higher percentage of the population in the Northern Cape than in any other province. The Northern Cape's four official languages are Afrikaans,Tswana,Xhosa, andEnglish. Minorities speak the other official languages of South Africa and a few people speak indigenouslanguages such asNama andKhwe.
The provincial motto,Sa ǁa ǃaĩsi 'uĩsi ("We go to a better life"), is in theNǀu language of the Nǁnǂe (ǂKhomani) people. It was given in 1997 by one of the language's last speakers, Ms.Elsie Vaalbooi ofRietfontein, who has since died. It was South Africa's first officially registered motto in aKhoisan language. Subsequently, South Africa'snational motto,ǃKe e ǀxarra ǁke, was derived from the extinctǀXam language.
The Northern Cape was one of three provinces made out of theCape Province in 1994, the others beingWestern Cape to the south andEastern Cape to the southeast. Politically, it had been dominated since 1994 by theAfrican National Congress (ANC).[5] Ethnic issues are important in the politics of the Northern Cape. For example, it is the site of theOrania settlement, whose leaders have called for aVolkstaat for theAfrikaner people in the province.
The Northern Cape is also the home of over 1,000San who emigrated fromNamibia following the independence of the country; they had served as trackers and scouts for theSouth African Defence Force during theSouth African Border War, and feared reprisals from their former foes. They were awarded a settlement inPlatfontein in 1999 by the Mandela government.
The precolonial history of the Northern Cape is reflected in a rich, mainly Stone Age,archaeologicalheritage. Cave sites includeWonderwerk Cave near Kuruman, which has a uniquely long sequence stretching from the turn of the twentieth century at the surface to more than 1 million (and possibly nearly 2 million) years in its basal layer (wherestone tools, occurring in very low density, may beOldowan).[6][7] Many sites across the province, mostly in open air locales or in sediments alongside rivers or pans, document Earlier,Middle andLater Stone Age habitation. From Later Stone Age times, mainly, there is a wealth ofrock art sites – most of which are in the form ofrock engravings such as atWildebeest Kuil and many sites in the area known asǀXam -ka !kau, in theKaroo. They occur on hilltops, slopes, rock outcrops and occasionally (as in the case ofDriekops Eiland near Kimberley), in a river bed.[8] In the north eastern part of the province there are sites attributable to the Iron Age such asDithakong.[9] Environmental factors have meant that the spread of Iron Age farming westwards (from the 17th century – but dating from the early first millennium AD in the eastern part of South Africa) was constrained mainly to the area east of the Langeberg Mountains, but with evidence of influence as far as the Upington area in the eighteenth century. From that period the archaeological record also reflects the development of a complex colonial frontier when precolonial social formations were considerably disrupted and there is an increasing 'fabric heavy' imprint of built structures, ash-heaps, and so on. The copper mines ofNamaqualand and thediamond rush to the Kimberley area resulted in industrial archaeological landscapes in those areas which herald the modern era in South African history.
A waterfall situated a few kilometres north of Nieuwoudtville on the road toLoeriesfontein, in the Northern Cape (Namaqualand region).
The Northern Cape is South Africa's largest province, and distances between towns are enormous due to its sparse population. Its size is just shy of the size of the American state ofMontana and slightly larger than that of Germany. The province is dominated by theKaroo Basin and consists mostly of sedimentary rocks and somedolerite intrusions. The south and south-east of the province is high-lying, 1,200–1,900 metres (3,900–6,200 ft), in the Roggeveld and Nuweveld districts. The west coast is dominated by theNamaqualand region, famous for its spring flowers. This area is hilly to mountainous and consists of granites andmetamorphic rocks. The central areas are generally flat with interspersed salt pans.Kimberlite intrusions punctuate the Karoo rocks, giving the province its most precious natural resource,diamonds. The north is primarilyKalahari Desert, characterised by parallel red sand dunes and acacia tree dry savanna.[citation needed]
Northern Cape has a shoreline in the west on the South Atlantic Ocean. It borders the following areas of Namibia and Botswana:
The major river system is theOrange (orGariep) River Basin, draining the interior of South Africa westwards into the Atlantic Ocean. (The political philosopherNeville Alexander has used the idea of the 'Garieb' as a metaphor for nationhood in South Africa, a flowing together, in preference to the rainbow metaphor where the diverse colours remain distinct).[10]The principal tributary of the Orange is theVaal River, which flows through part of the Northern Cape from the vicinity ofWarrenton. The Vaal, in turn, has tributaries within the province: theHarts River and theRiet River, which has its own major tributary, theModder River.
Mostly arid to semiarid, few areas in the province receive more than 400 mm (16 in) of rainfall per annum and the average annual rainfall over the province is 202 mm (8.0 in).[11] Rainfall generally increases from west to east from a minimum average of 20 mm (0.79 in) to a maximum of 540 mm (21 in) per year. The west experiences most rainfall in winter, while the east receives most of its moisture from late summer thunderstorms. Many areas experience extreme heat, with the hottest temperatures in South Africa measured along the Namibian border. Summers maximums are generally 30 °C (86 °F) or higher, sometimes higher than 40 °C (104 °F). Winters are usually frosty and clear, with southern areas sometimes becoming bitterly cold, such asSutherland, which often receives snow and temperatures occasionally drop below the −10 °C (14 °F) mark.
Kimberley averages: January maximum: 33 °C (91 °F) (min: 18 °C (64 °F)), June maximum: 18 °C (64 °F) (min: 3 °C (37 °F)), annual precipitation: 414 mm (16.3 in)
Springbok averages: January maximum: 30 °C (86 °F) (min: 15 °C (59 °F)), July maximum: 17 °C (63 °F) (min: 7 °C (45 °F)), annual precipitation: 195 mm (7.7 in)
Sutherland averages: January maximum: 27 °C (81 °F) (min: 9 °C (48 °F)), July maximum: 13 °C (55 °F) (min: −3 °C (27 °F)), annual precipitation: 237 mm (9.3 in)
As of the2022 census, the Northern Cape had a population of 1,355,629, an increase of 18.3% from the prior census in2011. It is least populous and by a considerable margin the least densely populated of South Africa's nine provinces. The median age is 27, an increase of 2 years from 2011.[12]
In the 2022 census, 50.1% of the population described themselves asBlack African, 41.6% asColoured, 7.3% asWhite and 0.8% asIndian/Asian. Coloureds form a higher proportion of the population in the Northern Cape than in any other province except for theWestern Cape.[12]
In the 2022 census, 54.6% of the population reported theirfirst language asAfrikaans, 35.7% asSetswana, 4.5% asXhosa, and 2.4% asEnglish. The Northern Cape is the only province in which native Afrikaans-speakers form a majority of the population. It is also the province with the second-highest proportion of Setswana speakers, afterNorth West province.[12]
The population of the Northern Cape is overwhelminglyChristian. As of the 2022 census, 97.8% of the population described themselves asChristians, the highest proportion among South Africa's provinces. Among other religions, 0.8% of the population described themselves asMuslim, and 0.7% of the population stated that they practicedTraditional African religions. Only 0.3% of the population described themselves as being atheist, agnostic, or having no religious affiliation.[12]
The provincial legislature is elected every five years by a system ofparty-list proportional representation. In the most recent provincial election, held in2024, the ANC won a plurality of the vote but failed to win an overall majority of seats. After the election, the ANC declined to form a formal coalition, but the ANC's Zamani Saul was reelected as premier with support from thePatriotic Alliance andFreedom Front Plus.[13] TheDemocratic Alliance (DA) is the second largest party in the province and forms theofficial opposition.
The results of the most recent provincial election in 2024 are as follows:
The ANC consistently has been the largest party in the Northern Cape since the end of Apartheid, although its position has been less dominant than it traditionally has been in most other provinces. In the first democratic provincial elections in1994, the ANC emerged as the largest party but failed to win an overall majority of seats. In order to form a majority in the provincial legislature, the ANC reached an agreement with theDemocratic Party (DP), which voted for the ANC'sManne Dipico as premier in exchange for the election of the DP's sole MLP, Ethne Papenfus, as speaker of the legislature.[14] TheNational Party formed the official opposition.
In the1999 provincial election, the ANC substantially increased its vote share and won an overall majority in the provincial legislature. Thereafter the ANC would continue to maintain a majority in the legislature until2024.
The2014 election saw the ANC returned to power once again with an increased mandate, while DA once again became the official opposition, after the collapse of COPE. The newly formedEconomic Freedom Fighters (EFF) also entered the legislature for the first time.Sylvia Lucas was re-elected to her first full term as premier.[15]
In the2019 election, the Northern Cape was considered competitive, with the DA hoping to win the province. In the end, the ANC returned as the majority party, albeit with a reduced majority. The DA was once again the official opposition with an increased seat total. The EFF made gains, while theFreedom Front Plus (FF+) won a seat in the legislature for the first time since 2004. Zamani Saul replaced Lucas as premier after the election.[16]
Northern Cape districts and local municipalitiesSign along R354 welcoming motorists into the Northern Cape from theWestern Cape. The sign is in Afrikaans (top left), English (bottom left), Tswana (top right), and Xhosa (bottom right)
As reported by the Northern Cape Provincial Government, unemployment still remains a big issue in the province. Unemployment was reported to be at 24.9% during Q4, 2013. Unemployment also declined from 119,000 in Q4, 2012 to 109,000 in Q4, 2013.[17]
The economy of the Northern Cape relies heavily on two sectors, mining and agriculture, which employ 57% (Tertiary Sector) of all employees in the province.[citation needed]
Most famous for the diamond mines aroundKimberley, it also has mining activities for Manganese and iron ore.
The Northern Cape also has a substantial agricultural area around theOrange River, including most of South Africa'ssultana vineyards. SomeWine of Origin areas have been demarcated. The Orange River also attracts visitors who enjoy rafting tours aroundVioolsdrif. Extensive sheep raising is the basis of the economy in the southernKaroo areas of the province.
^sahoboss (31 March 2011)."Northern Cape".www.sahistory.org.za. Retrieved13 July 2017.
^Beaumont, P.B.; Vogel, J.C. (2006). "On a timescale for the past million years of human history in central South Africa".South African Journal of Science (102):217–228.hdl:10204/1944.
^Chazan, Michael; Ron, Hagai; Matmon, Ari; Porat, Naomi; Goldberg, Paul; Yates, Royden; Avery, Margaret; Sumner, Alexandra; Horwitz, Liora Kolska (2008). "Radiometric dating of the Earlier Stone Age sequence in Excavation I at Wonderwerk Cave, South Africa: preliminary results".Journal of Human Evolution.55 (1):1–11.Bibcode:2008JHumE..55....1C.doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2008.01.004.ISSN0047-2484.PMID18501953.
^Parkington, J. Morris, D. & Rusch, N. 2008.Karoo rock engravings. Clanwilliam: Krakadouw Trust
^Morris, D. & Beaumont, P. 2004.Archaeology in the Northern Cape: some key sites. Kimberley: McGregor Museum.
^Dent, M.C., Lynch, S.D. & Schulze, R.E. 1989.Mapping Mean Annual and Other Rainfall Statistics over Southern Africa. Water Research Commission, Petoria. WRC Report 109/1/89.
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