Upington

For the village in Shropshire, see Uppington.

Town in Northern Cape, South Africa

Upington

ǁKhara hais (Khoekhoe)

Town

Aerial view of Upington's Central Business District

Upington

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Upington

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Upington

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Coordinates: 28°27′S 21°15′E﻿ / ﻿28.45°S 21.25°E﻿ / -28.45; 21.25
Country|  South Africa
Province|  Northern Cape
District| ZF Mgcawu
Municipality| Dawid Kruiper
Established| 1873[1]
Government

• Type| Local Municipality
• Mayor| Limakatso Koloi[2] (ANC)
Area

[3]

• Total

| 580.8 km2 (224.2 sq mi)
Elevation

| 835 m (2,740 ft)
Population

(2011)[3]

• Total

| 74,834
• Density| 130/km2 (330/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)

[3]

• Black African| 25.6%
• Coloured| 62.6%
• Indian/Asian| 0.6%
• White| 10.1%
• Other| 1.1%
First languages (2011)

[3]

• Afrikaans| 85.5%
• Xhosa| 6.1%
• Tswana| 3.2%
• English| 2.1%
• Other| 3.1%
Time zone| UTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)|

8800

PO box|

8800

Area code| +27 (0)54
Website| www.kharahais.gov.za
www.greenkalahari.co.za

Upington (Khoekhoe: ǁKhara hais) is a town founded in 1873 and located in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, on the banks of the Orange River. The town was originally called Olijvenhoutsdrift ('Olive wood drift'), due to the abundance of olive wood trees[clarification needed] in the area, but later renamed after Sir Thomas Upington, Attorney-General and then Prime Minister of the Cape. It originated as a mission station established in 1871 and run by Reverend Christiaan Schröder. The mission station now houses the Kalahari Orange Museum. The museum is also the home of a donkey statue, which recognises the enormous contribution that this animal made to the development of the region during the pioneering days of the 19th century.

The elevation of Upington is 2,742 feet (835 metres). It is the closest large centre to the Augrabies Falls (arguably the greatest of South African waterfalls) and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. The landscape is very arid but the soil is fertile and crops such as fruit are grown in irrigated fields. The area is best known for its export-quality grapes, raisins and wines, which are cultivated on the rich flood plains of the Orange River.

## The Upington 26

[edit]

On 13 November 1985, a black policeman was killed following a disturbance at a political meeting in Paballelo, a black township on the outskirts of Upington. Twenty-six people were charged with the killing, of whom twenty-five were convicted of murder on the basis of common purpose, and one convicted of attempted murder. Fourteen were sentenced to death, although the death sentences were later overturned on appeal.[4][5][6][7] In 2011, a memorial in honour of the Upington 26 was unveiled in Upington by Hazel Jenkins, the Premier of the Northern Cape.[8] In 2014, the Australian film A Common Purpose was made about the case.[9][10]

## Wine industry

[edit]

Upington's most famous wines are produced by an organisation known as Orange River Cellars. The organisation has six depots in the area (all of them on the banks of the Orange River) at Upington, Kanoneiland, Grootdrink, Kakamas, Keimoes and Groblershoop. Their wines are exported, inter alia, to Europe and the USA.

## Transportation

[edit]

Passenger train in Upington station

Upington Airport has scheduled flights provided by SA Airlink.[11] Due to the combination of high elevation and temperature, one of the airport's runways is 4,900 m long[12] (the fourth longest in the world), and thus allows Boeing 747 and other heavy aircraft to use the airport without limitations on take-off weight.

Nelson Mandela Drive in the Upington CBD

In the first half of the 20th century, there was a passenger train service from Cape Town to Upington. Until the 1950s, a narrow-gauge railway line (two-foot gauge) ran from Upington to Kakamas and Keimoes, two nearby towns. The trains carried passengers and freight, being mainly dried fruit. The line to Kakamas was still in use during the November 2010 grape harvest season.[13]

## Public institutions

[edit]

There are four libraries that serve the community in Upington, viz, Rosedale Library, Upington Library, Korrektiewe and Forum Library.[14]

## Geography and climate

[edit]

Upington

Climate chart (explanation)

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█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
█ Precipitation totals in mm
Source: SAWS[15]
| Imperial conversion

J| F| M| A| M| J| J| A| S| O| N| D

0.9

1.4

1.5

0.4

0.2

0.1

0.2

0.2

0.4

0.7

0.7

█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
█ Precipitation totals in inches

Upington is located on the northern banks of the Orange River and is surrounded by irrigated vineyards.[16] The hottest month of the year is January, with average daily temperatures swinging from 36 °C (97 °F) to 20 °C (68 °F), while in the coolest month of July temperatures range between 21 °C (70 °F) and 4 °C (39 °F).[15] Also the driest month of the year, July sees an average rainfall of only 2 millimetres (0.079 in), while the wettest month of March sees 37 millimetres (1.5 in). Upington has been noted as being the sunniest location on the planet for three months of the year, from November through January.[17]

Upington has a hot desert climate (BWh) with long, hot summers and short, mild winters. Precipitation peaks during late summertime.

Climate data for Upington (1991−2020, extremes 1951–1990)

Month  | Jan  | Feb  | Mar  | Apr  | May  | Jun  | Jul  | Aug  | Sep  | Oct  | Nov  | Dec  | Year
Record high °C (°F)  | 42.3
(108.1)  | 44.1
(111.4)  | 42.3
(108.1)  | 38.1
(100.6)  | 33.7
(92.7)  | 30.4
(86.7)  | 29.5
(85.1)  | 33.6
(92.5)  | 39.3
(102.7)  | 40.5
(104.9)  | 42.0
(107.6)  | 44.4
(111.9)  | 44.4
(111.9)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)  | 36.4
(97.5)  | 35.7
(96.3)  | 33.6
(92.5)  | 29.3
(84.7)  | 25.6
(78.1)  | 21.8
(71.2)  | 21.7
(71.1)  | 23.9
(75.0)  | 28.0
(82.4)  | 31.2
(88.2)  | 33.4
(92.1)  | 35.7
(96.3)  | 29.7
(85.5)
Daily mean °C (°F)  | 28.3
(82.9)  | 27.9
(82.2)  | 25.8
(78.4)  | 21.4
(70.5)  | 17.1
(62.8)  | 13.1
(55.6)  | 12.9
(55.2)  | 14.7
(58.5)  | 18.6
(65.5)  | 22.4
(72.3)  | 24.7
(76.5)  | 27.2
(81.0)  | 21.2
(70.2)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)  | 20.2
(68.4)  | 20.0
(68.0)  | 17.9
(64.2)  | 13.4
(56.1)  | 8.6
(47.5)  | 4.3
(39.7)  | 4.1
(39.4)  | 5.4
(41.7)  | 9.2
(48.6)  | 13.5
(56.3)  | 16.0
(60.8)  | 18.6
(65.5)  | 12.6
(54.7)
Record low °C (°F)  | 6.7
(44.1)  | 7.6
(45.7)  | 4.7
(40.5)  | −1.7
(28.9)  | −5.2
(22.6)  | −7.9
(17.8)  | −7.8
(18.0)  | −7.0
(19.4)  | −3.5
(25.7)  | −1.7
(28.9)  | 4.4
(39.9)  | 5.7
(42.3)  | −7.9
(17.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)  | 39.5
(1.56)  | 38.8
(1.53)  | 44.7
(1.76)  | 18.5
(0.73)  | 10.1
(0.40)  | 5.1
(0.20)  | 3.3
(0.13)  | 1.2
(0.05)  | 3.5
(0.14)  | 15.1
(0.59)  | 13.9
(0.55)  | 21.9
(0.86)  | 215.6
(8.49)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 4.1  | 4.0  | 4.4  | 2.6  | 1.2  | 0.6  | 0.6  | 0.4  | 0.6  | 1.8  | 2.2  | 2.6  | 25.0
Average relative humidity (%)  | 33  | 39  | 44  | 49  | 49  | 50  | 45  | 39  | 35  | 33  | 31  | 30  | 40
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 344.3  | 292.3  | 302.3  | 285.4  | 285.7  | 268.6  | 285.7  | 298.6  | 299.5  | 326.5  | 332.1  | 351.8  | 3,672.9
Source 1: NOAA (humidity 1961-1990),[18][19] Deutscher Wetterdienst (extremes)[20]
Source 2: South African Weather Service[15]

## Notable natives and residents

[edit]

* Chris Brink – mathematician, vice-chancellor of Newcastle University in England, vice-chancellor and rector of Stellenbosch University
* Ruben Cloete – footballer for the South Africa national soccer team
* Alice Krige – actress
* Tiaan Strauss \- rugby union player for Western Province and for the South African and for Australian national rugby union teams
* Shaleen Surtie-Richards \- actress
* Christo Wiese \- businessman
* Cobus Wiese \- rugby union player
* Jasper Wiese – rugby union player for the South Africa national rugby union team

## Gallery

[edit]

* 4900 m airport runway

* Golf course

* View from "Die Eiland" holiday resort

## Sport

[edit]

Upington have a professional football club named Upington City F.C.

## See also

[edit]

* Vastrap, South Africa's former nuclear weapons test range.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Upington". Archived from the original on 14 March 2010. Retrieved 27 March 2009.
2. ^ Dawid Kruiper Municipality website
3. ^ a b c d Sum of the Main Places Upington and Paballelo from Census 2011.
4. ^ Wren, Christopher S. (27 May 1989). "Judge Condemns 14 South Africa Blacks". The New York Times.
5. ^ Dicker, Richard (23 June 1989). "South African Justice". The Christian Science Monitor. Boston.
6. ^ Carlin, John (4 December 2004). "Justice served". The Independent. London.
7. ^ "Upington 26". Truth Commission Special Report. SABC. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
8. ^ "Premier Hazel Jenkins and MEC Pauline Williams to unveil the Memorial in honour of the Upington 26". South African Government. 18 March 2011.
9. ^ "A Common Purpose". Icarus Films. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
10. ^ O'Hara, Marguerite (2013). "A Common Purpose - Study Guide" (PDF). Australian Teachers of Media.
11. ^ "flyairlink". flyairlink. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
12. ^ "Upington". World Aero Data. Aviation Networks, Inc. Archived from the original on 19 July 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2008.
13. ^ "FLOOD AT UPINGTON | Railways Africa". Archived from the original on 3 April 2012.
14. ^ "Library Directory". Library Directory. National Library of South Africa. Archived from the original on 11 May 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
15. ^ a b c "Climate data for Upington". South African Weather Service. Archived from the original on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2010.
16. ^ Pinchuck, Tony; Barbara McCrea; Donald Reid (July 2002). Rough guide to South Africa, Lesotho & Swaziland. Rough Guides. pp. 319, 322. ISBN 978-1-85828-853-6. Retrieved 28 May 2010.
17. ^ Osborn, Liz. "Sunniest Places and Countries in the World". Current Results. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
18. ^ "Upington Climate Normals 1961−1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 21 November 2013.
19. ^ "Climate Normals 1991-2020". NOAA. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
20. ^ "Klimatafel von Upington/Oranjefluß, Kapland / Südafrika" (PDF). Baseline climate means (1961–1990) from stations all over the world (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved 7 February 2016.

## External links

[edit]

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Upington.

* Additional information about Upington Airport
* The Orange River Wine Cellars Home Page
* Upington Business Directory
* Racially motivated land dispossession in Gordonia: Memorial lecture on the 1913 Natives Land Act

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Province of the Northern Cape

* Capital and largest city: Kimberley
* Population: 1,096,731 (2011)
* Land area: 372,889 km2

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District seat: Upington

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