Kimberley, Northern Cape

Location and Geography

• Kimberley is the capital and largest city of the Northern Cape province of South Africa.
• It is located approximately 110km east of the confluence of the Vaal and Orange Rivers.
• The city has an elevation of 1,184m (3,885ft).
• Kimberley covers an area of 212.64km (82.10sqmi).
• The population of Kimberley in 2011 was 225,160, with a density of 1,100/km (2,700/sqmi).

Historical Significance

• Kimberley has historical significance due to its diamond mining past.
• The city was sieged during the Second Anglo-Boer war.
• Cecil Rhodes and Barney Barnato made their fortunes in Kimberley.
• Rhodes established the De Beers diamond company in the early days of the mining town.
• Kimberley was the first city in the Southern Hemisphere and the second in the world to integrate electric street lights into its infrastructure.

Discovery of Diamonds

• In 1866, Erasmus Jacobs found a small brilliant pebble on the banks of the Orange River.
• The pebble was sold and proved to be a 21.25-carat (4.3g) diamond, known as the Eureka.
• In 1869, the Star of South Africa, an 83.5-carat (16.7g) diamond, was found nearby.
• The Star of South Africa was sold for £25,000 in the London market.
• Esau Damoense, the cook for prospector Fleetwood Rawstornes Red Cap Party, found diamonds in 1871 on Colesberg Kopje, sparking the famous New Rush.

Ownership and Naming

• The Cape Colony, Transvaal, Orange Free State, and Griqua leader Nicolaas Waterboer all laid claim to the diamond fields.
• The Keate Award went in favor of Waterboer, who placed himself under British protection.
• Griqualand West was proclaimed on 27 October 1871.
• The place was initially named Vooruitzigt before being renamed New Rush.
• Finally, it was named Kimberley, after Lord Kimberley, the British Secretary of State for the Colonies.

Cultural and Linguistic Diversity

• The racial makeup of Kimberley in 2011 was 63.1% Black African, 26.8% Coloured, 1.2% Indian/Asian, 8.0% White, and 0.9% Other.
• The first languages spoken in Kimberley in 2011 were Afrikaans (43.2%), Tswana (35.8%), English (8.7%), Xhosa (6.0%), and Other (6.3%).
• Kimberley operates on the South African Standard Time (UTC+2).
• The postal code for street addresses in Kimberley is 8301, and the PO box code is 8300.
• The area code for Kimberley is 053.

Kimberley, Northern Cape Data Sources