Uitenhage

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title: "Uitenhage" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["populated-places-in-nelson-mandela-bay", "populated-places-established-in-1804"] topic_path: "general/populated-places-in-nelson-mandela-bay" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uitenhage" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

FieldValue
nameKariega
other_nameUitenhage
image_skyline{{multiple image
borderinfobox
total_width290
image_styleborder:1;
perrow1/2/2
image1Uitenhage (8722220987).jpg
image2Uitenhage Victoria Tower, South Africa.jpg
image39 2 095 0017-Cuyler Manor-Uitenhage-s.jpg}}
image_captionClockwise from Top: View of the town, Cuyler Manor, Victoria Tower.
pushpin_mapSouth Africa Eastern Cape#South Africa#Africa
coordinates
subdivision_typeCountry
subdivision_nameSouth Africa
subdivision_type1Province
subdivision_name1Eastern Cape
subdivision_type2District
subdivision_type3Municipality
subdivision_name3Nelson Mandela Bay
subdivision_type4Main Place
established_titleEstablished
established_date1804
leader_titleCouncillor
area_footnotes
area_total_km275.35
elevation_m103
population_footnotes
population_total103639
population_as_of2011
population_density_km2auto
demographics_type1Racial makeup (2011)
demographics1_footnotes
demographics1_title1Black African
demographics1_info123.8%
demographics1_title2Coloured
demographics1_info254.7%
demographics1_title3Indian/Asian
demographics1_info31.2%
demographics1_title4White
demographics1_info418.4%
demographics1_title5Other
demographics1_info51.8%
demographics_type2First languages (2011)
demographics2_footnotes
demographics2_title1Afrikaans
demographics2_info168.9%
demographics2_title2Xhosa
demographics2_info217.9%
demographics2_title3English
demographics2_info310.4%
demographics2_title5Other
demographics2_info52.9%
timezone1SAST
utc_offset1+2
postal_code_typePostal code (street)
postal_code6229
postal2_code_typePO box
postal2_code6230
area_code_typeArea code
area_code041
::

| name = Kariega | other_name = Uitenhage | official_name = | image_skyline = {{multiple image | border = infobox | total_width = 290 | image_style = border:1; | perrow = 1/2/2 | image1 = Uitenhage (8722220987).jpg | image2 = Uitenhage Victoria Tower, South Africa.jpg | image3 = 9 2 095 0017-Cuyler Manor-Uitenhage-s.jpg}} | image_caption = Clockwise from Top: View of the town, Cuyler Manor, Victoria Tower. | pushpin_map = South Africa Eastern Cape#South Africa#Africa | coordinates = | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = South Africa | subdivision_type1 = Province | subdivision_name1 = Eastern Cape | subdivision_type2 = District | subdivision_type3 = Municipality | subdivision_name3 = Nelson Mandela Bay | subdivision_type4 = Main Place | established_title = Established | established_date = 1804 | leader_title = Councillor | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = 75.35 | elevation_m = 103 | population_footnotes = | population_total = 103639 | population_as_of = 2011 | population_density_km2 = auto | demographics_type1 = Racial makeup (2011) | demographics1_footnotes = | demographics1_title1 = Black African | demographics1_info1 = 23.8% | demographics1_title2 = Coloured | demographics1_info2 = 54.7% | demographics1_title3 = Indian/Asian | demographics1_info3 = 1.2% | demographics1_title4 = White | demographics1_info4 = 18.4% | demographics1_title5 = Other | demographics1_info5 = 1.8% | demographics_type2 = First languages (2011) | demographics2_footnotes = | demographics2_title1 = Afrikaans | demographics2_info1 = 68.9% | demographics2_title2 = Xhosa | demographics2_info2 = 17.9% | demographics2_title3 = English | demographics2_info3 = 10.4% | demographics2_title4 = | demographics2_info4 = | demographics2_title5 = Other | demographics2_info5 = 2.9% | timezone1 = SAST | utc_offset1 = +2 | postal_code_type = Postal code (street) | postal_code = 6229 | postal2_code_type = PO box | postal2_code = 6230 | area_code_type = Area code | area_code = 041

Uitenhage ( ; ), officially renamed Kariega, is a South African town in the Eastern Cape Province. It is well known for the Volkswagen factory located there, which is the biggest car factory on the African continent. Along with the city of Port Elizabeth and the small town of Despatch, it forms part of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality.

History

Uitenhage was founded on 25 April 1804 by landdrost (district magistrate) Jacob Glen Cuyler and named in honour of the Cape's Commissioner-General Jacob Abraham Uitenhage de Mist by the Dutch Cape Colony governor, Jan Willem Janssens. Uitenhage formed part of the district of Graaff Reinet (shortly after its short-lived secession).

The Cape Colony received a degree of independence when "Responsible Government" was declared in 1872. In 1875, the Cape government of John Molteno took over the rudimentary Uitenhage railway site, incorporated it into the Cape Government Railways (CGR), and began construction of the lines connecting Uitenhage to Port Elizabeth and the Southern African interior. Two years later in 1877, Uitenhage was declared a municipality.

Nearly a hundred years later, as part of the Republic of South Africa, Uitenhage became a centre for resistance against apartheid. In 1985, police opened fire on a funeral procession in Uitenhage, killing a number of unarmed people, in an event that became notorious as an example of police oppression in South Africa under apartheid.

In 2001 it was incorporated with Port Elizabeth and Despatch into the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality. On 23 February 2021, Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa approved and gazetted the decision to rename Uitenhage to Kariega along with the neighbouring city of Port Elizabeth, which was renamed Gqeberha.

Geography

Kariega is situated on the banks of the Swartkops River, approximately 30 kilometres (18.6 miles) north-west of Gqeberha. Kariega, along with the city of Gqeberha, the neighbouring town of Despatch, the adjoining township of KwaNobuhle and surrounding areas, form the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality.

Kariega also lies at the start of the Mohair Route which leads along Route 75 towards Graaff-Reinet (the centre for mohair farming in South Africa), 228 kilometres to the northwest via Jansenville on Route 75.

|width = 100% |metric first = yes |single line = yes |location = Uitenhage (normals 1993-2022, elevation: 157m)

| Jan mean C =22.7 | Feb mean C =22.9 | Mar mean C =21.7 | Apr mean C =19.3 | May mean C =16.9 | Jun mean C =14.9 | Jul mean C =14.3 | Aug mean C =14.8 | Sep mean C =16.1 | Oct mean C =18.0 | Nov mean C =19.2 | Dec mean C =21.1 | year mean C =

| precipitation colour = | Jan precipitation mm =60.1 | Feb precipitation mm =33.5 | Mar precipitation mm =31.6 | Apr precipitation mm =53.0 | May precipitation mm =18.5 | Jun precipitation mm =35.2 | Jul precipitation mm =12.4 | Aug precipitation mm =36.7 | Sep precipitation mm =49.8 | Oct precipitation mm =50.1 | Nov precipitation mm =72.4 | Dec precipitation mm =119.7 | year precipitation mm =

| source 1 = Climate Charts

Industries

Kariega is known for the large industries situated there. The largest of these industries are the Volkswagen of South Africa and Goodyear factories. An automotive supplier park, Alexander Park Industrial, has also been created directly next to the Volkswagen factory, thus allowing automotive component manufacturers to construct their manufacturing plants close by. Other industries of note are the food processing giant, Sovereign Foods, located in Kruisrivier industrial area and The Nelson Mandela Bay Logistics Park which hosts several other industries, including Fauricia. These industries are heavily interlinked.

Transport

Roads

The R75 highway, also known as Route 75, bypasses Kariega to the east, heading north–south from Graaff-Reinet to Gqeberha with interchanges at the M19, M6, R334 and Graaff-Reinet Road. The R334 connects Kariega with Coega to the east and with KwaNobuhle and the R102 (near Van Stadens Pass) to the south-west.

The town is also intersected by metropolitan routes such as the M6 (Caledon Street; Union Avenue) to Despatch in the east, the M10 (Durban Street; Algoa Road) to Bethelsdorp in the south-west, the M19 (Botha Street) to Despatch and the M22 (Marconi Street; Mel Brooks Avenue) to KwaNobuhle in the south.

The main streets through the CBD, known as Uitenhage Central, include Cuyler Street, Caledon Street in Upper Central and Durban Street in Lower Central.

Notable people

Notable animals

  • Jack – a chacma baboon trained to assist signalman James Wide, who had both legs amputated.

Notable buildings

Coats of arms

Drostdy — In 1804, the Cape colonial government assigned the shield of Jacob Abraham Uitenhage de Mist's arms to the new Uitenhage drostdy. The arms were Sable, a cross moline Argent, i.e. a silver cross moline on a black shield. An anchor was placed behind the shield. The British authorities discontinued the drostdy seals in 1814, and replaced them with the royal coat of arms.

Municipality — In 1881, the Uitenhage municipal council adopted the De Mist arms, complete with a crest consisting of a cross moline issuing from a gold coronet. The arms were registered with the Cape Provincial Administration in September 1956 and at the Bureau of Heraldry in June 1994.

Divisional council — The Uitenhage divisional council (the local authority for the rural areas outside the town) assumed a coat of arms in 1968. The arms were granted by the provincial administrator in August 1968 and registered at the Bureau of Heraldry in June 1972.

On the arms were stated: "Or, a triple crowned tree Vert, the trunk entwined with the Batavian tricolour; on a chief wavy Sable a cross moline between dexter a pickaxe and hammer in saltire, handles downwards and sinister two scrolls in saltire, Argent." In layman's terms, the design was a golden shield displaying, from top to bottom, a crossed pickaxe and hammer, a cross moline and two crossed scrolls on a black horizontal strip with a wavy edge, and a triple-crowned tree with a Batavian Republic flag wrapped around it.

The crest was an elephant, and the motto Per laborem ad honorem.

References

Bibliography

References

  1. Robson, Linda Gillian. (2011). "The Royal Engineers and Settlement Planning in the Cape Colony 1806–1872: Approach, Methodology and Impact". University of Pretoria.
  2. "Main Place Uitenhage". Census 2011.
  3. Lass, Roger. (1990). "Studies in the Pronunciation of English: A Commemorative Volume in Honour of A.C. Gimson". Routledge.
  4. "Two SA airports – and Port Elizabeth – just got official new names".
  5. "Uitenhage is founded". sahistory.
  6. Burman, Jose (1984), ''Early Railways at the Cape''. Cape Town: Human & Rousseau, p.66. {{ISBN. 0-7981-1760-5
  7. (1990). "The Shooting at Uitenhage, South Africa, 1985: The Context and Interpretation of Violence". American Ethnologist.
  8. "Justice/Home".
  9. (23 February 2021). "It is Official, Port Elizabeth Has a New Name — Gqeberha".
  10. "Distance Port-Elizabeth, Nelson-Mandela-Bay, Eastern-Cape, ZAF > Uitenhage, Nelson-Mandela-Bay-Metropolitan-Municipality, Eastern-Cape, ZAF - Air line, driving route, midpoint".
  11. "Port Elizabeth Map {{!}} South Africa Google Satellite Maps".
  12. Zepner, Laura. "Uitenhage, South Africa, Years: 1993-2022". International Journal of Digital Earth.
  13. "Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality : Loyiso Bala". nelsonmandelabay.gov.za.
  14. Combrinck, Heilie. (30 June 2016). "First local TEDx conference hosts famous guests". UD News.
  15. Reporter, Citizen. "Details: How Mcebisi Jonas could make his political comeback". The Citizen.
  16. Biyela, Lunga. (3 April 2014). "Kayser happy to share". The Witness.
  17. "Anrich Nortje". ESPN Sports Media Limited.
  18. "Players | ATP Tour | Tennis".
  19. [https://books.google.com/books?id=0M9BAAAAYAAJ&q=%22Uitenhage+Railway+Station%22 ''Illustrated Guide to the Southern African Coast''], AA the Motorist Publications, 1988, page 164
  20. (July 2025). "The Captain's Table: Panel: Garth Wright}}{{Dead link".
  21. "Lee-Roy Wright". tvsa.co.za.
  22. Schalk, le Roux. (June 2007). "The First Mosque: Caledon Street, Uitenhage". Suid-Afrikaanse Tydskrif vir Kultuurgeskiedenis (South African Journal of Cultural History).
  23. Pama, C. (1965) ''Lions and Virgins''.
  24. ''Cape Town Gazette'' 418 (15 January 1814).
  25. The arms were depicted on a [http://www.ngw.nl/heraldrywiki/index.php?title=Category:UTC_South_African_town_arms cigarette card] issued in 1931.
  26. Cape of Good Hope ''Official Gazette'' 2833 (28 September 1956).
  27. "National Archives of South Africa (NASA) Database Selection".
  28. Cape of Good Hope ''Official Gazette'' 3470 (9 August 1968).

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