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Western Cape

Western Cape
Wes-Kaap (Afrikaans)
Ntshona Koloni (Xhosa)
Province of South Africa
Coat of arms of Western Cape
Coat of arms
Motto: Spes Bona (Good Hope)
Map showing the location of the Western Cape in the south-western part of South Africa
Location of the Western Cape in South Africa
Country South Africa
Established 27 April 1994 (1994-04-27)
Capital Cape Town
Districts
Government
 • Type Parliamentary system
 • Premier Helen Zille (DA)
Area
 • Total 129,462 km2 (49,986 sq mi)
Area rank 4th in South Africa
Highest elevation 2,325 m (7,628 ft)
Lowest elevation 0 m (0 ft)
Population (2011)
 • Total 5,822,734
 • Estimate (2015) 6,200,100
 • Rank 4th in South Africa
 • Density 45/km2 (120/sq mi)
 • Density rank 4th in South Africa
Population groups
 • Coloured 48.8%
 • Black African 32.8%
 • White 15.7%
 • Indian or Asian 1.0%
Languages
 • Afrikaans 49.7%
 • Xhosa 24.7%
 • English 20.2%
Time zone SAST (UTC+2)
ISO 3166 code ZA-WC
Website www.westerncape.gov.za

The Western Cape (Afrikaans: Wes-Kaap, Xhosa: Ntshona Koloni) is a province of South Africa, situated in the south-western part of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces in terms of both area and population, with an area of 129,449 square kilometres (49,981 sq mi) and 5.8 million inhabitants. About two-thirds of these inhabitants live in the metropolitan area of Cape Town, which is also the provincial capital. The Western Cape was created in 1994 from part of the former Cape Province.

The Western Cape Province is roughly L-shaped, extending north and east from the Cape of Good Hope, in the southwestern corner of South Africa. It stretches about 400 kilometres (250 mi) northwards along the Atlantic coast and about 500 kilometres (300 mi) eastwards along the South African south coast (Southern Indian Ocean). It is bordered on the north by the Northern Cape and on the east by the Eastern Cape. The total land area of the province is 129,462 square kilometres (49,986 sq mi), about 10.6% of the country's total. It is roughly the size of England or the US state of Louisiana. The capital and largest city is Cape Town and other major cities include Stellenbosch, Worcester, Paarl, and George. The Garden Route and the Overberg are popular coastal tourism areas.

The Western Cape is the southernmost region of the African continent with Cape Agulhas as its southernmost point, only 3800 km from the Antarctic coastline. The coastline varies from sandy between capes, to rocky to steep and mountainous in places. The only natural harbour is Saldanha Bay on the west coast, about 140 km north of Cape Town. However a lack of fresh water in the region meant that it has only recently been used as a harbour. The province's principle harbour was built in Table Bay, which in its natural state was fully exposed to the north-westerly storms that bring rain to the province in winter, as well as the almost uninterrupted dry south-easterly winds in summer. But fresh water coming off Table Mountain and Devil's Peak allowed the early European settlers to build Cape Town on the shores of this less than satisfactory anchorage.


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