S. Africa 101

South Africa 101

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Affectionately called

The Rainbow Nation (coined by Desmond Tutu)

Not 1, not 2, but... 11 Official languages

Afrikaans

English

Xhosa

Zulu

Southern Ndebele & Northern Sotho, Southern Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda

Ethnic groups

79.5% Black

9.2% White

8.9% Coloured

2.5% Asian

Government

Constitutional democracy since 1994

Population

2008 estimate 47.9 million

Currency

ZAR or South African Rand (see left photo)

Drives

on the left side of the road

Land Size

South Africa is the 25th-largest country in the world (after Mali).

It is comparable in size to Colombia.

Climate

The climatic zones vary, from the extreme desert of the southern Namib in the farthest northwest to the lush subtropical climate in the east along the Mozambique border and the Indian ocean.

Religion

According to the latest 2001 national census, Christians accounted for 79.7% of the population. Islam accounted for 1.5% of the population, Hinduism about 1.3%, and Judaism 0.2%. Rest were “unidentified” whatever that means.

African Indigenous Churches were the largest of the Christian groups. It was believed that many of these persons who claimed no affiliation with any organized religion adhered to traditional indigenous religions. Many peoples have syncretic religious practices combining Christian and indigenous influences.

Creation

Its the only place on earth where a great white shark jumps out of the water! Home to lions, penguins, elephants, cape buffalo, rhinos, giraffes, hippos, and anything your safari or underwater heart desires.