Mthatha River or Umtata River ( xh,
'mtathe Bawo) is a river in the
Eastern Cape Province
The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha.
The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in 1994 ...
in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. The river flows into the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
in an
estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...
located near
Coffee Bay
Coffee Bay ( af, Koffiebaai) is a town on the Wild Coast Region, Eastern Cape, Wild Coast of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is located about 250 kilometres south of the city of Durban and has a population of 258 people.
The town is ...
. The Mthatha river flows in a southeastern direction and is approximately 250 km long with a catchment area of 2,600 km.
Mthatha Town (Umtata) is named after it.
Its main tributaries are the
Ngqungqu River and the
Cicira River.
The Mthatha River marks the southern limit of the
Pondoland
Pondoland or Mpondoland (Xhosa: ''EmaMpondweni''), is a natural region on the South African shores of the Indian Ocean. It is located in the coastal belt of the Eastern Cape province. Its territory is the former Mpondo Kingdom of the Mpondo peopl ...
region.
Dams
Presently this river is part of the
Mzimvubu to Keiskamma Water Management Area Mzimvubu to Keiskamma WMA, or Mzimvubu to Keiskamma Water Management Area (coded: 12), includes the following major rivers: the Swane River, Mntafufu River, Mzimvubu River, Mngazi River, Mthatha River, Xora River, Mbashe River, Nqabara River, ...
.
Is there a role for traditional governance systems in South Africa's new water management regime?
/ref>
*Mthatha Dam
Mthatha Dam is an earth-fill type dam located on the Mthatha River, near Mthatha, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It was established in 1977 and serves mainly for municipal and industrial purposes. Its hazard potential has been ranked high (3).
See ...
* Mabeleni Dam
See also
* List of rivers of South Africa
This is a list of rivers in South Africa.
It is quite common to find the Afrikaans word ''-rivier'' as part of the name. Another common suffix is "''-kamma''", from the Khoisan term for "river"
Meiring, Barbara"South African Toponymic Guideline ...
* List of estuaries of South Africa
This is a list of estuaries in South Africa. The list is in order from East (border with Mozambique) to the West (border with Namibia).
The South African coastline stretches for some 3000 km from Kosi Bay near the Mozambique border in the ...
* List of dams and reservoirs in South Africa
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
References
External links
The Ecological Health of the Mthatha River180° view of Mthatha River MouthInvasive alien plants along Mthatha river
Rivers of the Eastern Cape
Internal borders of South Africa
{{SouthAfrica-river-stub