, nickname =
, settlement_type = City
, motto =
Ex Oriente Lux
, image_skyline = Gobabis Namibia aerial.jpg
, imagesize = 300px
, image_caption = Aerial view in 2005
, image_flag =
, flag_size =
, image_seal =
, seal_size =
, image_shield = Gobabis COA.svg
, shield_size = 100px
, image_blank_emblem =
, blank_emblem_type =
, blank_emblem_size =
, image_map =
, mapsize =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Namibia
, pushpin_label_position = bottom
, pushpin_mapsize = 300
, pushpin_map_caption = Location in Namibia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name =
, subdivision_type1 =
Region
, subdivision_name1 =
Omaheke Region
Omaheke ( hz, Sandveld) is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, the least populous region. Its capital is Gobabis. It lies in eastern Namibia on the border with Botswana and is the western extension of the Kalahari desert. The self-governed vi ...
, subdivision_type2 =
Constituency
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
, subdivision_name2 =
Gobabis Constituency Kalahari Constituency
, subdivision_type3 =
, subdivision_name3 =
, government_footnotes =
, government_type =
, leader_title =
Mayor
, leader_name = Elvire Theron (
NUDO Nudo or NUDO may refer to:
People
* Gene Nudo (born 1958), American American football coach
* Vince Nudo, Canadian musician
* , Italian actor
Places
* Col Nudo, Italy
* Monte Nudo, Italy
*
* Nudo, Nikšić, Montenegro
* Nudo de los Pastos, E ...
)
, leader_title1 =
Deputy Mayor
, leader_name1 = Elwin Gariseb (
SWAPO)
, established_title = Established
, established_date = 1856
, area_magnitude =
, unit_pref = Imperial
, area_footnotes =
, area_total_km2 =
, area_land_km2 =
, area_water_km2 =
, area_total_sq_mi =
, population_as_of = 2011
, population_footnotes =
, population_note =
, population_total = 19101
, population_density_km2 =
, population_density_sq_mi =
, population_metro =
, population_density_metro_km2 =
, population_density_metro_sq_mi =
, population_urban =
, population_density_urban_km2 =
, population_density_urban_sq_mi =
, population_blank1_title = Ethnicities
, population_blank1 =
, population_density_blank1_km2 =
, population_density_blank1_sq_mi =
, timezone =
SAST
, utc_offset = +2
, coordinates =
, elevation_footnotes =
, elevation_m = 1440
, elevation_ft =
, postal_code_type =
, postal_code =
, area_code =
, blank_name =
Climate
Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologi ...
, blank_info =
BSh
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...
, blank1_name =
, blank1_info =
, website = https://gobabis.org
, footnotes =
, official_name =
Gobabis ( hz, Epako, naq, ǂKhoandabes) is a city
in eastern
Namibia. It is the regional capital of the
Omaheke Region
Omaheke ( hz, Sandveld) is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, the least populous region. Its capital is Gobabis. It lies in eastern Namibia on the border with Botswana and is the western extension of the Kalahari desert. The self-governed vi ...
, and the district capital of the
Gobabis electoral constituency. Gobabis is situated down the
B6 motorway from
Windhoek to
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
. The town is from the
Buitepos border post with Botswana, and serves as an important link to
South Africa on the tarred
Trans-Kalahari Highway. Gobabis is in the heart of the
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...
farming area. In fact Gobabis is so proud of its cattle farming that a statue of a large
Brahman bull with the inscription "Cattle Country" greets visitors to the town. Gobabis also has its own local
Airport
An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...
.
History
Etymology and pre-colonial history
The area around Gobabis and along the
Nossob River had a strong population of elephants. The settlement itself was a base camp for
ivory hunters and a trading post for elephant tusks.
[Rosslyn Tatarik, "Welcome to the Cattle Country". The @vertiser (supplement to New Era on 1 March 2010)]
In 1856 a
mission station
A Christian mission is an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries, to carry on evangelism or other activities, such as ...
was established by one Friederich Eggert of the
Rhenish Missionary Society. In the latter half of the 19th century and the early 20th century several conflicts flared up between the
Ovambanderu
The Mbanderu (''Ovambanderu'') are a population inhabiting eastern parts of Namibia and western parts of Botswana. They speak Mbanderu (''Otjimbanderu)'' a Bantu language
History and Culture
Etymology
While earlier theories of the meaning of t ...
and the Khauas Khoikhoi, as well as between the settlers and the indigenous people. Gobabis is in an area where the
Herero and the
Nama people fought wars against one another, as well as with settlers from the
Cape colony that occupied the land.
According to oral tradition, the earliest name for the settlement in this area was the
Khoekhoegowab
The Khoekhoe language (), also known by the ethnic terms Nama (''Namagowab'') , Damara (''ǂNūkhoegowab''), or Nama/Damara and formerly as Hottentot, is the most widespread of the non- Bantu languages of Southern Africa that make heavy use ...
word ǂKhoandabes, ''the place where the elephant came to lick''. This reason for this name is speculated to be that elephant tusks that would crack in the dry and hot climate of the Omaheke were at times stored right in the settlement's well.
The
Herero called the place ''Epako''.
Later the settlement was referred to as "Gobabis" by the Whites, this expression was likely derived from goba (argue, quarrel) and bis (place): ''The place where people quarreled''. A common earlier interpretation of the name, ǂkhoa (Elephant) -bes (place), ''Elephant fountain'', was introduced by
Heinrich Vedder Hermann Heinrich Vedder (born 3 July 1876 in , Westphalia, Germany; died 26 April 1972 in Okahandja, South-West Africa) was a German missionary, linguist, ethnologist and historian. Originally a silk weaver, he received missionary training by the ...
and gained wide acceptance. Vedder also opined that it was
Amraal Lambert
Amraal Lambert, Nama name: ǂGaiǀnub, (ca. 1774 – 13 February 1864) was the first Captain of the Kaiǀkhauan ( Khauas Nama), a subtribe of the Orlam, in the eastern area of Namaland, today's Namibia.
Amraal Lambert was born around 1774 near ...
,
Captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
of the Kaiǀkhauan (Khauas Nama) who called the place Gobabis because he could not pronounce ''ǂKoabes''. Apart from linguistic problems, this interpretation was contradicted by an 1845 letter by Reverend Joseph Tindall, a
Wesleyan missionary, which states: "Reached Gobabis which I named 'Elephant's fountain'" - a place name like "Place of Altercation" would not bode too well for the missionary station he intended to establish.
Colonial
The Gobabis district was proclaimed by the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
authorities in February 1894 and in June the following year Gobabis was occupied by a German garrison. While the military fort, built in 1896–7, has long since disappeared, one of the few buildings dating back to that era is the
field hospital, or Lazarett, which has been declared a national monument.
Geography
Climate
Gobabis has a
semi-arid climate (''BSh'', according to the
Köppen climate classification), with hot summers and cool winters (with mild days and chilly nights). The average annual precipitation is .
Economy
Gobabis continues to grow as a town due to goods being transported from the mines of landlocked Botswana to the Namibian port of
Walvis Bay
Walvis Bay ( en, lit. Whale Bay; af, Walvisbaai; ger, Walfischbucht or Walfischbai) is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies. It is the second largest city in Namibia and the largest coastal city in the country. The ci ...
, and furthermore from consumer goods being imported into Namibia from
Gauteng in South Africa. The transport route is known as the
Trans-Kalahari Corridor
The Trans-Kalahari Corridor is a paved highway corridor that provides a direct route from Walvis Bay and Windhoek in central Namibia, through Botswana, to Pretoria in Gauteng province in South Africa. It initially cost approximately 850 million Nam ...
. Gobabis is connected to the
Namibian railway system. The passenger train that used to run to the capital Windhoek four times a week no longer takes passengers. The town hosts a state hospital, a state clinic and a private hospital, banking and shopping facilities.
Legare Stadium is located in the town.
Politics
Local
Gobabis is governed by a municipal council that has seven seats. The town has its own local party, the
Gobabis Residents' Association (GRA) which won three council seats in the
1998 local authority election and one seat
in 2004.
The
2015 local authority election was won by
SWAPO which gained 3,077 votes and five seats. One seat each was won by the
Democratic Turnhalle Alliance
The Popular Democratic Movement (PDM), formerly the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA), is an amalgamation of political parties in Namibia, registered as one singular party for representation purposes. In coalition with the United Democratic ...
(DTA, 682 votes) and the
National Unity Democratic Organisation (NUDO, 153 votes). SWAPO also won the
2020 local authority election but lost majority control over the municipal council. It obtained 1,986 votes and gained three seats. One seat each went to the
Landless People's Movement (LPM, a new party registered in 2018, 818 votes), the GRA (681 votes), NUDO (440 votes) and the
Popular Democratic Movement
The Popular Democratic Movement (PDM), formerly the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA), is an amalgamation of political parties in Namibia, registered as one singular party for representation purposes. In coalition with the United Democratic ...
(PDM), formerly DTA, with 338 votes.
Regional
Gobabis is the regional capital of the
Omaheke Region
Omaheke ( hz, Sandveld) is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, the least populous region. Its capital is Gobabis. It lies in eastern Namibia on the border with Botswana and is the western extension of the Kalahari desert. The self-governed vi ...
.
Gobabis Constituency covers most of the town area except for its eastern township of
Nossobville which belongs to the
Kalahari Constituency.
Education
Gobabis is home to
Wennie du Plessis Secondary School, which began as an
Afrikaans
Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans grad ...
-speaking school. With the government abolition of non-
English education after grade 4 at
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the st ...
, Afrikaner students endeavoured to start a private school, and the Gobabis Gymnasium in January 2000 with 67 students from grades 8 to 11 and 6 teachers. In January 2002, 122 students were reported, and on December 2, 2004, the school was registered to teach grades 1 through 12. Primary school education officially was started in January 2005.
Notable landmarks
The most notable landmark upon entering Gobabis from
Windhoek is the Cattle Country Statue.
Partner cities
*
Smallingerland
Smallingerland (; fy, ) is a municipality in the province of Friesland in the Netherlands.
Population centres
Boornbergum, De Tike, De Veenhoop, De Wilgen, Drachten (main town), Drachtstercompagnie, Goëngahuizen, Houtigehage, Kortehem ...
,
Netherlands
Residents
*
Laura McLeod-Katjirua
Laura Veendapi McLeod-Katjirua is a Namibian politician who has been Governor of the Khomas Region since 2012 and Deputy Secretary General of SWAPO since 2012. Previously she was Governor of Omaheke Region from 2001 to 2012. She was transferred ...
, former Omaheke Regional Governor and
SWAPO Deputy Secretary-General
*
Keharanjo Nguvauva
Keharanjo II Xavier Komavau Nguvauva (12 October 1984 – 8 April 2011) was the youngest Chief of the Ovambanderu, a Herero clan in Namibia. Keharanjo was born to the Ovambanderu family to the then Chief Munjuku Nguvauva II and his wife Alet ...
, Paramount Chief of the Ovambanderu
*
Shafimana Ueitele, Lawyer
References
External links
Official web site
{{Authority control
Cities in Namibia
Populated places in the Omaheke Region
Regional capitals in Namibia
Populated places established in 1856