South Africa

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Republic of South Africa 10 other official names[1] Zulu: iRiphabhuliki yaseNingizimu Afrika Xhosa: iRiphabliki yomZantsi Afrika Afrikaans: Republiek van Suid-Afrika Northern Sotho: Repabliki ya Afrika-Borwa Tswana: Rephaboliki ya Aforika Borwa Sotho: Rephaboliki ya Afrika Borwa Tsonga: Riphabliki ra Afrika Dzonga Swazi: iRiphabhulikhi yeNingizimu Afrika Venda: Riphabuḽiki ya Afurika Tshipembe Southern Ndebele: iRiphabliki yeSewula Afrika
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "ǃke e꞉ ǀxarra ǁke" (ǀXam) "Unity in Diversity"
Anthem: "National anthem of South Africa"
Location of  South Africa  (dark blue) in the African Union  (light blue)
Capital	Cape Town (executive) Bloemfontein (judicial) Pretoria (legislative)
Largest city	Johannesburg[2]
Official languages	12 languages Zulu Xhosa Afrikaans English Northern Sotho Tswana Sotho Tsonga Swazi Venda Southern Ndebele South African Sign Language Languages with special status[3] Arabic German Greek Gujarati Hebrew Hindi Khoi languages Nama Portuguese San languages Sanskrit Tamil Telugu Urdu
Ethnic groups (2014[4])	80.2% Black 8.8% Coloured 8.4% White 2.5% Asian
Religion	See Religion in South Africa
Demonym(s)	South African
Government	Unitary dominant-party parliamentary constitutional republic
• President	Cyril Ramaphosa
• Deputy President	David Mabuza
Legislature	Parliament
• Upper house	National Council
• Lower house	National Assembly
Independence  from the United Kingdom
• Union	31 May 1910
• Self-governance	11 December 1931
• Republic	31 May 1961
Area
• Total	1,221,037 km2 (471,445 sq mi) (24th)
• Water (%)	0.380
Population
• 2018 estimate	57,725,600[5] (24th)
• 2011 census	51,770,560: 18
• Density	42.4/km2 (109.8/sq mi) (169th)
GDP (PPP)	2019 estimate
• Total	$813.100 billion[6] (30th)
• Per capita	$13,865[6] (89th)
GDP (nominal)	2019 estimate
• Total	$371.298 billion[6] (33rd)
• Per capita	$6,331[6] (86th)
Gini (2014)	63.0[7] very high
HDI (2017)	0.699[8] medium · 113th
Currency	South African rand (ZAR)
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Driving side	left
Calling code	+27
ISO 3166 code	ZA
Internet TLD	.za

South Africa (officially called the Republic of South Africa) is a country in the southern region of Africa. About fifty-seven million people live there. South Africa is next to Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Lesotho, and Eswatini.

The biggest city of South Africa is Johannesburg. The country has three capitals for different purposes. They are Cape Town, Pretoria, and Bloemfontein. This is because the government is based in Pretoria, the parliament is in Cape Town and the Supreme Court is in Bloemfontein.^[9]

There are 11 national languages. They are Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Xhosa, Zulu, Swati, Setswana, Sesotho, Sesotho sa Leboa, Venda and Tsonga. They are also known as National Lexicography Units (NLUs). Because of all the languages, the country has an official name in each language.

One of South Africa's most well known people is Nelson Mandela. He was its president from 1994 until 1999. He died in 2013 at the age of 95. The current president is Cyril Ramaphosa.

Lions, cheetahs, zebras, giraffes, and many species of antelope live in South Africa.

In terms of its resources, South Africa is one of the richest countries in Africa.

1. ↑ "The Constitution". Constitutional Court of South Africa. Retrieved 3 September 2009.
2. ↑ "Principal Agglomerations of the World". Citypopulation.de. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
3. ↑ The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (PDF) (2013 English version ed.). Constitutional Court of South Africa. 2013. ch. 1, s. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 August 2018. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
4. ↑ "Mid-year population estimates 2014" (PDF). South Africa: Statistics South Africa. 31 July 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
5. ↑ "Mid-year population estimates" (PDF). www.statssa.gov.za. 23 July 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3} "South Africa - Report for Selected Countries and Subjects". International Monetary Fund. April 2019. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
7. ↑ "Gini Index". World Bank. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
8. ↑ "2018 Human Development Report". United Nations Development Programme. 2018. Archived from the original on 14 September 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
9. ↑ Gifford, Clive; Clayden, Lisa (2002). Family Flip Quiz Geography. Bardfield Centre, Great Bardfield, Essex: Miles Kelly Publishing. ISBN 1-84236-146-5.