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Johannesburg History, South Africa

Asia is known as the world’s largest continent and has the highest population rate in comparison to other continents. Second on the rank is Africa, which approximately covers six percent of the total Earth’s surface and a land area totaling 20.4%. It holds the world’s 14.2% human population.

Johannesburg has Africa’s largest metropolitan economy and it is dubbed as the most advanced city.

It is located in the southern part of Africa, which is also Gauteng’s provincial capital. According to the inventory made in 1999 by the Globalization and World Cities group, Johannesburg is one of the two global cities in Africa along with Cairo. With its geographical location on the ranging hills of mineral-rich Witwaterstand, it generally yields the largest-scale of diamond and gold industries.

Johannesburg is known for its distinguished and highest Constitutional court in South Africa although it is not one of the three capital cities in South Africa. It is served by the busiest and biggest famed international airport established as O.R Tambo Airport that is used as an international gateway for air travel in and out of the southern African regions.

Originally, the region surrounding Johannesburg was inhabited by myriad rock paintings of the San tribes. The old history dating back from 1200 tells stories of the Nthu group. Its people began to migrate south being bound from Central Africa and merged with the San population.

As years passed after 1860, white trekboers began to enter the area through the Cape Colony and found gold later on in the 1880’s. The discovery of gold was found nearly 400 kilometers east of the new Johannesburg, which is located in Barberton. This started the popular gold rush. However, other gold seekers later on discovered an even larger sanctuary of gold in Witwatersrand and found gold in 1886 at Langlaagte, Johannesburg. It was before a vast settlement of ninety kilometers from the capital of Pretoria known as the Republic of Transvaal. Like any other small settlements, the town slowly lured other people coming from different regions in the country including Europe, North America and United Kingdom.

 

Arguments increased concerning land control and territory that have elevated the tensions between the Pretoria and British government that has culminated with the South African War. The control of the land was won by the British government thus, the conception of many controversies arose from the city’s name origin.

Presently, the Metropolitan Council of Johannesburg continuously leads a wider scale, which will bring back businesses to the inner city, the project is also called Inner City Revival.

 

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  • travelgrove-editorWeather forecast for Africa
    review by travelgrove-editor posted more then 30 days ago
    South Africa - Johannesburg Summers can be very hot so people usually choose the spring time as their choice of travel time. North Africa - Kenya During the drier months of January and February you will find the greatest number of tourists in Kenya. The weather is usually dry and...
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