KwaThema is a

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

south-west of Springs in the district of

Ekurhuleni The City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality is a metropolitan municipality that forms the local government of the East Rand region of Gauteng. The municipality itself is a large suburban region east of Johannesburg. The name ''Ekurhuleni'' m ...

Gauteng Gauteng ( ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name in Sotho-Tswana languages means 'place of gold'. Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts for only ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. It was established in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

when Africans were forcibly removed from Payneville because it was considered by the

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

government to be too close to a white town. The new township's layout was designed along modernist principles and became a model for many subsequent townships, although the envisaged social facilities were not implemented. The typical South African township house, the 51/9, was one of the plans developed for KwaThema. A black local authority with municipal status was established in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

. In

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

KwaThema experienced violent unrest and right-wing vigilante activity. KwaThema is a multi-racial township where most of South Africa's eleven official languages are spoken but the predominant ones are Sotho and Zulu. KwaThema has given birth to many successful individuals who have helped in the development of the town.

History

KwaThema was named after Selope Thema who was a South African political activist and leader.

Notable residents

Andries Maseko Andries "Six Mabone" Maseko (25 December 1955 – 26 October 2013) was a South African football striker who played for Moroka Swallows, San Jose Earthquakes, Washington Diplomats and Phoenix Inferno. Early life Maseko was born to Ephraim ...

(1955–2013), South African footballer * Nelson Dladla (b. 1954), South African footballer * Eudy Simelane (1977–2008), South African footballer and LGBT-rights activist, raped and murdered in the town * Lucas Sithole (1931–1994), South African sculptor * Madi Phala (1955–2007), South African artist and designer *

Hilda Tloubatla Hilda Semola Tloubatla (born 1942) is a South African ''mbaqanga'' singer, and the lead singer of the acclaimed group the Mahotella Queens. Tloubatla was born in Payneville, South Africa before moving to kwaThema township in 1951 as a result of ...

(b. 1942), South African

mbaqanga Mbaqanga () is a style of South African music with rural Zulu roots that continues to influence musicians worldwide today. The style originated in the early 1960s. History Historically, laws such as the Land Act of 1913 to the Group Areas Ac ...

singer *Simon "Tsipa" Skosana (1957–2009), South African bantamweight champion *Innocent Mayoyo, South African goalkeeper *

Joe Nina Makhosini Henry Xaba (born 12 June 1974), better known by stage name Joe Nina, is a popular South African singer. In 1997 he wrote the theme song for, and joined the cast, of Les Blair's Channel Four Films improv comedy film ''Jump the Gun''. Di ...

(b. 1974), South African musician and producer * Khensane Khoza (b. 1990), South African musician and vibe dealer

References

More information

The KwaThema Project
Townships in Gauteng Populated places in Ekurhuleni {{Gauteng-geo-stub