The campuses of the

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), is a multi-campus South African Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg. It is more commonly known as Wits University or Wits ( o ...

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

contain a number of notable buildings. There are five campuses: East Campus and West Campus are located in

Braamfontein Braamfontein (English: ''blackberry spring'', or more prosaicly ''blackberry springs''; also known as Braam) is a central suburb of Johannesburg, in South Africa, seat of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and some of South Africa's major c ...

on opposite sides of the M1 highway, while the Education Campus and the Medical and Management schools are located in

Parktown Parktown is a wealthy suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, the first suburb north of the inner city (both chronologically and geographically). It is affectionately known as one of the Parks, others including Parkview, Parkwood, Westcliff, Parkt ...

East Campus

When, in 1922, the University College, Johannesburg was granted full University status as the

, a site in Milner Park in

was donated to the new university by the Johannesburg municipality. That site is today East Campus. East Campus is the home of the faculties of

Humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...

and

Science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

. As the oldest of the University's five campuses, it contains many of the University's most notable buildings and locations; chief among these is the iconic Great Hall, the location of the University's

graduation ceremonies Graduation is the awarding of a diploma to a student by an educational institution. It may also refer to the ceremony that is associated with it. The date of the graduation ceremony is often called graduation day. The graduation ceremony is al ...

and a national monument. Construction of the Great Hall, and the rest of Robert Sobukwe Block, the building in which it is located, began on 4 October 1922 when the University was inaugurated. The foundation stones of the building (one in English and the other in Dutch) were laid by

Prince Arthur of Connaught Prince Arthur of Connaught (Arthur Frederick Patrick Albert; 13 January 1883 – 12 September 1938) was a British military officer and a grandson of Queen Victoria. He served as Governor-General of the Union of South Africa from 20 November 1920 ...

, then the

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

of the

Union of South Africa The Union of South Africa ( nl, Unie van Zuid-Afrika; af, Unie van Suid-Afrika; ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the Cape, Natal, Trans ...

, and also the University's first

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

. In 1925,

Edward Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...

the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

opened Central Block (as Robert Sobukwe Block was then called). Just south of Robert Sobukwe Block is Solomon Mahlangu House, the tallest building on campus. Construction of Solomon Mahlangu House (formerly Senate House) was completed in 1977, and it has since become strongly identified with University

management Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

, located on the eleventh floor of the building. "The eleventh floor" has become a

metonym Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept. Etymology The words ''metonymy'' and ''metonym'' come from grc, μετωνυμία, 'a change of name' ...

on campus for University management. Solomon Mahlangu House is the location of meetings of the University's

senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, as well as the University council. East Campus is also the location of Jan Smuts House, home of the South African Institute of International Affairs, as well as

Bidvest Stadium Bidvest Stadium, is a multipurpose sports stadium in the Braampark, suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa. The stadium has a dedicated field to host football matches with a capacity of 5,000 seats, and other fields to host other sports discipl ...

, the home stadium of

Wits University F.C. Wits University Football Club, also known as Wits FC, is the football club representing the University of the Witwatersrand based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Wits University Football Club boasts the largest number of members for any single s ...

The campus itself is centred on the Library Lawns, to the north of the Great Hall. The Wartenweiler and William Cullen Libraries are located on each side of the Library Lawns. To the north-east of the Library Lawns is the Student Union Building, home of the Matrix Student Mall (from which the building's colloquial name, "The Matrix", derives), opened in 2003, as well as the Student Representative Council (SRC) and many of the University's student clubs, societies and organisations. The Origins Centre, a museum that houses

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

exhibits relating to the evolution of humans, as well as the

Bernard Price Institute for Palaeontological Research The Evolutionary Studies Institute (ESI) is a paleontological, paleoanthropological and archeological research institute operated through the Faculty of Science of the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. Previously kn ...

are also located on East Campus. There are four student residences on East Campus: Men's Hall of Residence, colloquially known as Men's Res, for male students, as well as the Sunnyside Hall of Residence, and Jubilee Hall, for female students. The fourth, International House, is a self-catering residence for foreign students.

West Campus

Prior to 1985, what is now West Campus was the

Rand Show The Rand Show, previously known as the Rand Easter Show, is an annual show held in Johannesburg, South Africa, and is the largest consumer exhibition in Southern Africa. It has been an important event in the city for many years, attracting in ...

fairgrounds. In 1985 the University underwent significant expansion and acquired the grounds from the Witwatersrand Agricultural Society. Today, West Campus is home to the faculties of Engineering and the Built Environment and Commerce, Law and Management. The staff club and a tower housing a tuck shop and the security office were originally constructed for the

Empire Exhibition, South Africa The Empire Exhibition, South Africa, held in Johannesburg, was intended to mark that city's jubilee and was opened by the Governor-General of the Union of South Africa on 15 September 1936. It was the first exhibition held in the Union of South ...

. There are three residences on West Campus, all mixed-gender. They are the self-catering Barnato Hall, the catering David Webster Hall, and the self-catering West Campus Village.Wits University Student Accommodation
, West Campus Cluster, retrieved 12 December 2011

Parktown Campuses

The Medical and Management schools and Education Campus are located in Parktown. The Medical School, home of the Faculty of Health Sciences is adjacent to the

Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital The Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital is an accredited general hospital in Parktown, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa. Size and capability The main structure was opened in 1979. The facility has 1,088 usable beds. The hospital's ...

. Education Campus, home to the School of Education (part of the Faculty of Humanities), was formerly the Johannesburg College of Education, prior to the 2005 merger of that institution into the University of the Witwatersrand.

References

{{reflist University of the Witwatersrand World's fair sites in Africa

East Campus

West Campus

Parktown Campuses

See also

References