Swakopmund, Namibia
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Swakopmund (german: Mouth of the Swakop) is a city on the coast of western Namibia, west of the Namibian capital Windhoek via the B2 main road. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. The town has 44,725 inhabitants and covers of land. The city is situated in the Namib Desert and is the fourth largest population centre in Namibia. Swakopmund is a beach resort and an example of German colonial architecture. It was founded in 1892 as the main harbour for German South West Africa. Buildings in the city include the '' Altes Gefängnis'', a prison designed by Heinrich Bause in 1909. The ''Woermannhaus'', built in 1906 with a prominent tower (Damara tower), is now a public library. Attractions in Swakopmund include a Swakopmund Museum, the
National Marine Aquarium National Marine Aquarium may refer to: * National Marine Aquarium of Namibia * National Marine Aquarium, Plymouth The National Marine Aquarium, located in Britain's Ocean City Plymouth is the largest Aquarium in the UK. It is home to over 4,0 ...
, a crystal gallery, and spectacular sand dunes near Langstrand south of the
Swakop River The Swakop River ( naq, Tsoaxaub) is a major river in western central Namibia. Its river source is in the Khomas Highland. From there it flows westwards through the town of Okahandja, the historic mission station at Gross Barmen, and the set ...
. Outside the city, the Rossmund Desert Golf Course is one of only five all-grass desert golf courses in the world. Nearby is a farm that offers camel rides to tourists and the '' Martin Luther'' steam locomotive, dating from 1896 and abandoned in the desert.


History


Etymology

The
Herero Herero may refer to: * Herero people, a people belonging to the Bantu group, with about 240,000 members alive today * Herero language, a language of the Bantu family (Niger-Congo group) * Herero and Namaqua Genocide * Herero chat, a species of b ...
called the place ''Otjozondjii''. The name of the town is derived from the Nama word ''Tsoakhaub'' ("excrement opening") describing the
Swakop River The Swakop River ( naq, Tsoaxaub) is a major river in western central Namibia. Its river source is in the Khomas Highland. From there it flows westwards through the town of Okahandja, the historic mission station at Gross Barmen, and the set ...
in flood carrying items in its riverbed, including dead animals, into the Atlantic Ocean. However, Professor Peter Raper, Honorary Professor: Linguistics, at the University of the Free State points out that the name for Swakopmund is based on the San language, specifically from ''xwaka'' (rhinoceros) and ''ob'' (river). The German settlers changed it to ''Swachaub'', and when in 1896 the district was officially proclaimed, the version ''Swakopmund'' (
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
: ''Mouth of the Swakop'') was introduced.


Until World War I

Captain Curt von François founded Swakopmund in 1892 as the main harbour for the
Imperial German ', literally translated "Germans of the ", is an archaic term for those ethnic Germans who resided within the German state that was founded in 1871. In contemporary usage, it referred to German citizens, the word signifying people from the Germ ...
colony—the natural deep sea harbour at Walvis Bay belonged to the British. The founding date was on August 8 when the crew of gunboat erected two beacons on the shore. Swakopmund was chosen for its availability of fresh water and a relatively easy connection into the centre of the South West African territory, particularly the Otjimbingwe and Windhoek. Other sites such as
Sandwich Harbour Sandwich Harbour ( pt, Porto d'Ilhéu), also known as Sandwich Bay, Sandvishawe, Sandvisbaai and Sandfisch Bai is an area on the Atlantic coast of Namibia that includes a bay in the north and a lagoon at the southern end. The name could be aft ...
and
Cape Cross Cape Cross (Afrikaans: ''Kaap Kruis''; German: ''Kreuzkap''; Portuguese: ''Cabo da Cruz'') is a headland in the South Atlantic in Skeleton Coast, western Namibia. History In 1484, Portuguese navigator and explorer Diogo Cão was ordered by Ki ...
were found unsuitable due to dune belts that block the way to the hinterland. The Swakop site did, however, not offer any natural protection to ships lying off the coast, a geographical feature not often found along Namibia's coast. When the first 120 '' Schutztruppe'' soldiers and 40 settlers were offloaded at Swakopmund in 1893, they had to dig caves into the sand for shelter. The offloading was done by Kru tribesmen from
Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...
who used special boats. Woermann-Linie, the operator of the shipping route to Germany, employed 600 Kru at that time. Swakopmund quickly became the main port for imports and exports for the whole territory, and was one of six towns which received municipal status in 1909. Many governmental departments for German South West Africa had offices in Swakopmund. During the Herero Wars a concentration camp for
Herero people The Herero ( hz, Ovaherero) are a Bantu ethnic group inhabiting parts of Southern Africa. There were an estimated 250,000 Herero people in Namibia in 2013. They speak Otjiherero, a Bantu language. Though the Herero primarily reside in Namibia, t ...
was operated in town. Inmates were forced into slave labour; approximately 2,000 Herero died. Soon, the harbour created by the " Mole" (breakwater) silted up, and in 1905, work was started on a wooden jetty, but in the long run this was inadequate. In 1914, construction of a steel jetty was therefore commenced. Trading and shipping companies founded branches in Swakopmund.


Until Namibian Independence

Early in World War I in 1915, German South West Africa was taken over by the Union of South Africa. With this, the logistic and political barriers disappeared to use the harbour in Walvis Bay for South West Africa. In Swakopmund all harbour activities ceased, central government services disappeared, the jetty became a pedestrian walkway. Businesses closed down, the number of inhabitants diminished, and the town fell in decline. However, Swakopmund had been guaranteed a lifeline in a 1923 treaty in London negotiating the
aftermath of World War I The aftermath of World War I saw drastic political, cultural, economic, and social change across Eurasia, Africa, and even in areas outside those that were directly involved. Four empires collapsed due to the war, old countries were abolished, ne ...
. Its moderate climate and location on the Atlantic made it suitable as a holiday resort for the white population of the territory, and the town was re-shaped into a tourism destination. Having lost its military importance, Swakopmund was used for recreation even during World War II, and in the 1940s and 1950s it was expanded to serve more and more tourists. With the opening of the Rössing uranium mine in 1976, Swakopmund changed its shape once again. While this mine to the east eventually got its own town built, Arandis, logistics and workers' accommodation were first supplied by Swakopmund.


Since 1990

After Namibian independence from South Africa in 1990 many street names were changed from their original German, or in some cases, Afrikaans names, to honour Namibians, predominantly Namibians of black heritage. For example, in 2001, then-president of Namibia Sam Nujoma renamed the main street (Kaiser-Wilhelm-Straße) Sam Nujoma Avenue in honour of himself.


Economy


Mining

The discovery of uranium at Rössing outside town led to the development of the world's largest opencast uranium mine and the foundation of Arandis. This had an enormous impact on all facets of life in Swakopmund which necessitated expansion of the infrastructure of the town to make it into one of the most modern in Namibia. ''Salt Company Swakopmund'' produces approximately 120,000 tons of table salt per year through solar evaporation of sea water. The salt is marketed as "Light Flow".


Tourism

The city has scattered coffee shops, night clubs, bars, and hotels. There are balloon rides, skydiving, quad biking, and small marine cruises. The Swakopmund Skydiving Club has operated from
Swakopmund Airport Swakopmund Airport is a non-towered airport serving Swakopmund, a city in the Erongo Region of Namibia. There are no runway lights. Activities at Swakopmund Airfield There are numerous charter companies operating in and out of Swakopmund on a da ...
since its founding in 1972. There are three museums, the Swakopmund Museum, the Kristall Galerie ( en, Crystal gallery) and the
Martin Luther (steam locomotive) Martin Luther is an 8 NHP Compound J & H McLaren steam-driven traction engine Works No 527 built in November 1895 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK and abandoned in the desert of Skeleton Coast outside of the town of Swakopmund in Namibia, ca. 4  ...
museum outside town. As of the 1970s, German influences remained evident, including German street names, a German daily newspaper, and the German language being spoken by some residents, prompting ''The New York Times'' to describe it as "more German than Germany". A 2008 ''New York Times'' article describes the town as having "the dislocating feel of a Baltic Sea resort set in the tropics."


Technology

In October 2000, an agreement was signed between the Namibian and People's Republic of China governments to build a satellite tracking station at Swakopmund. Construction was completed in July 2001 at a site north of Swakopmund to the east of the Henties Bay-Swakopmund road and opposite the Swakopmund Salt Works. The site was chosen as it was on the orbital track of a crewed spacecraft during its re-entry phase. Costing N$12 million, the complex covers 150m by 85m. It is equipped with five metre and nine metre satellite dishes.


Transport

Swakopmund lies on the B2 road, and on the Trans-Namib Railway from Windhoek to Walvis Bay. It is served by
Swakopmund Airport Swakopmund Airport is a non-towered airport serving Swakopmund, a city in the Erongo Region of Namibia. There are no runway lights. Activities at Swakopmund Airfield There are numerous charter companies operating in and out of Swakopmund on a da ...
and Swakopmund Railway Station.


Education

The German school Regierungsschule Swakopmund was previously located in the city. There are four secondary schools,
Secondary School Swakopmund Secondary School Swakopmund is a school in Swakopmund in the Erongo Region of central Namibia. Established in 1967 It is one of the oldest schools in Erongo Region. The school taught in German and Afrikaans before Namibian Independence but has ...
,
Namib High School Namib High School is a secondary government school in Swakopmund, Namibia. It has 640 learners and 28 teachers. Founded as ''Städtische Realschule mit Grundschule'' (''Municipal High School with Primary School'') during the colonial time of German ...
, Private School Swakopmund and
Coastal High School The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones ...
. West Side High School, Atlantic High School and Private School Swakopmund include both primary and secondary grades. Other Primary schools include Hanganeni Primary, Tamariskia Primary, Festus ǃGonteb Primary, Swakopmund Primary, Namib Primary and Vrede Rede Primary Schools.


Health

The main healthcare provider in the city is the Cottage Medi-Clinic, a hospital with 70 beds. The other public health facilities found in Swakopmund, are Swakopmund State Hospital and Tamariskia Clinic.


Politics


Administrative divisions

There are the following districts and
suburbs A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...
in Swakopmund: *Town Centre * Vineta *Mile 4 *Ocean View *Kramersdorf *Vogelstrand * Waterfront *
Mondesa Mondesa is a suburb of Swakopmund in central western Namibia. The residential area is located in the northeast of the town. In the northwest, it borders on the neighbourhood Tamariskia and in the south on the industrial area. Otherwise, Mondes ...
*Matutura *Industrial Area *Tamariskia *
Democratic Resettlement Community The Democratic Resettlement Community (DRC) is an informal settlement in Swakopmund, Erongo Region, Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It sha ...
(DRC) , an informal settlement founded in 2001 as temporary housing for people waiting for subsidized housing in the city. Most inhabitants of the town live in the suburbs of Vineta, Tamariskia, Mondesa and Vogelstrand. Both black and white people, mostly well-to-do, live in Vineta. Tamariskia was originally a neighbourhood for the coloured people, built in the early 1970s, to replace the shacks the coloureds earlier had between the town centre and Vineta. Mondesa existed already in the 1960s, and it was a neighbourhood for the
black people Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often in s ...
, and it was a considerable distance from the town centre in the early days.


Local authority elections

Swakopmund is governed by a municipal council that has ten seats. Namibia's ruling
SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (, SWAPO; af, Suidwes-Afrikaanse Volks Organisasie, SWAVO; german: Südwestafrikanische Volksorganisation, SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former ind ...
party won the 2010 local authority election with 4,496 votes, followed by the local
Swakopmund Residents Association Swakopmund (german: Mouth of the Swakop) is a city on the coast of western Namibia, west of the Namibian capital Windhoek via the B2 main road. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. The town has 44,725 inhabitants and covers ...
(SRA, 1,005 votes), the United Democratic Front (UDF, 916 votes), the Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP, 666 votes), and the National Unity Democratic Organisation (NUDO, 280 votes). The 2015 local authority election was again won by SWAPO which gained six seats (5,534 votes). One seat each was won by the UDF (1,168 votes), the SRA (790 votes), the
Democratic Turnhalle Alliance The Popular Democratic Movement (PDM), formerly the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA), is an amalgamation of political parties in Namibia, registered as one singular party for representation purposes. In coalition with the United Democratic ...
(DTA, 497 votes), and NUDO (296 votes). The 2020 local authority election was won by the
Independent Patriots for Change The Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) is a political party in Namibia. It was founded by Panduleni Itula in August 2020. As an independent presidential candidate in the 2019 Namibian general election, November 2019 election, Itula won the b ...
(IPC), an opposition party formed in August 2020. The IPC obtained 3,458 votes and gained three seats. SWAPO was the runner-up, obtaining 2,745 votes and also gaining three seats. The SRA obtained 1,575 votes and two seats, and one seat each went to the
Landless People's Movement The Landless People's Movement was an independent social movement in South Africa. It consisted of rural people and people living in shack settlements in cities. The Landless People's Movement boycotted parliamentary elections and had a history ...
(LPM, a new party registered in 2018, 1,059 votes) and the UDF with 641 votes.


Geography


Climate

Surrounded by the Namib Desert on three sides and the cold Atlantic waters to the west, Swakopmund has a desert climate (''BWk'', according to the Köppen climate classification) with mild conditions year round. The average temperature ranges between . Rainfall is less than per year, making gutters and drainpipes on buildings a rarity. The cold Benguela Current supplies moisture for the area in the form of
fog Fog is a visible aerosol consisting of tiny water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. Reprint from Fog can be considered a type of low-lying cloud usually resembling stratus, and is heavily influ ...
that can reach as deep as inland. Fogs that originate offshore from the collision of the cold Benguela Current and warm air from the Hadley Cell create a fog belt that frequently envelops parts of the Namib desert. Coastal regions can experience more than 180 days of thick fog a year. While this has proved a major hazard to ships – more than one thousand wrecks litter the Skeleton Coast – it is a vital source of moisture for desert life. The fauna and flora of the area have adapted to this phenomenon and now rely upon the fog as a source of moisture.


Notable people

*
Rosina ǁHoabes Rosina ǁHoabesThe ǁ character represents a tenuis lateral click in the Khoisan languages and is sometimes rendered as // in text is a Namibian politician. Career Rosina ǁHoabes was a full-time advisor on biology, life sciences and natural sc ...
, former mayor *
Werner Schulz (footballer) Werner Schulz (22 June 1913 – 3 May 1947) was a German professional footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, Ameri ...
*
Razundara Tjikuzu Razundara Tjikuzu (born 12 December 1979) is a Namibian former professional footballer who spent most of his career playing in Germany and Turkey and who represented Namibia at international level. Career In Germany Born in Swakopmund, South ...
, former professional footballer, played in the German Bundesliga for Werder Bremen (1998–2003), Hansa Rostock (2003–05)
MSV Duisburg Meidericher Spielverein 02 e. V. Duisburg, commonly known as simply MSV Duisburg (), is a Football in Germany, German association football club based in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. Nicknamed ''Die Zebras'' for their traditional striped jers ...
(2005–06) before going on to play in the Turkish Super League


In popular culture

Swakopmund was the filming location for '' Mad Max: Fury Road''. In August 2008, filming commenced in Swakopmund on the AMC television series '' The Prisoner'' starring Jim Caviezel and Sir
Ian McKellen Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. His career spans seven decades, having performed in genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. Regarded as a British cultural i ...
. Swakopmund was used as the film location for The Village. In 2002, the city appeared on ''
The Amazing Race 2 ''The Amazing Race 2'' is the second season of the American reality television show ''The Amazing Race''. It featured eleven teams of two in a race around the world. The season premiered on CBS on March 11, 2002, and ended on May 15, 2002. Lifel ...
'' and was visited again in ''
The Amazing Race 26 ''The Amazing Race 26'' is the twenty-sixth season of the American reality television show ''The Amazing Race''. In this season, eleven teams of dating couples (six existing couples and five blind date teams who met for the first time at the star ...
''. In 2019, MTV's '' The Challenge: War of the Worlds'' was filmed in Swakopmund, including the dunes of the Namib Desert and Swakopmund's coast.


References


Notes


Literature

*


External links

* {{Authority control Cities in Namibia Populated places in the Erongo Region Populated coastal places in Namibia Populated places established in 1892 Regional capitals in Namibia Port cities and towns in Namibia 1892 establishments in German South West Africa