Macassar is a small town in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, close to
Strand and
Somerset West
Somerset West () is a town in the Western Cape, South Africa. Organisationally and administratively it is included in the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality (South Africa), metropolitan municipality Eastern Suburbs zone (formerly called ...
, with an approximate population of 33,225. Administratively it is under
City of Cape Town
The City of Cape Town (; ) is a Metropolitan municipality (South Africa), metropolitan municipality that forms the metropolitan municipality (South Africa), local government of Cape Town and surrounding areas. As of 2022 it has a population of ...
Eastern Suburbs zone.
Macassar’s history is closely tied to the Strand, whose inhabitants first settled this area. The ''kramat'' (shrine) of
Sheikh Yusuf (Tuanta Salamaka) of the
Sultanate of Gowa, in present-day
Makassar
Makassar ( ), formerly Ujung Pandang ( ), is the capital of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, ...
in
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
, is a holy place to South Africa's
Muslim community. The Sheikh, who was exiled by the
Dutch in 1694, came to the Strand area and made it his final resting place; although his followers, who were mainly fishermen, found the sea of Macassar rather uninviting and moved further along the coast to Strand’s Mosterds Bay. After Yusuf died, his followers named the area after his birthplace, spelling it with "c" in place of "k".
The
Macassar Dunes Conservation Area forms part of the vital coastal dune system, one of the biodiversity hotspots of the Western Cape. These dunes have been impacted by conflicting activities such as cattle grazing and
4X4 vehicle use.
Macassar is a predominantly
Coloured community close to the Macassar Dunes, whose workers historically are in the fishing and boatmaking industry.
History
Education
* Macassar Primary
* Macassar Secondary
* Marvin Park Primary
* Oklahomastreet Primary
* False Bay Primary
* Zandvliet High School
List of Suburbs
* Bell Glen
* Brandwacht
* Chris Hani Park
* Deaconsville
* Deep Freeze
* Macassar Village
* Marvin Park
* New Macassar
* New Scheme
* Riverside
* Ruben Road
* Smartie Town
Other Locations
* Boys Town Macassar
* Macassar Beach Pavilion (derelict)
''Macassar Beach Pavilion'' (Atlas Obscura). Accessed 29 August 2019
/ref>
* Macassar CDC Clinic
* Macassar Fire Department
* Macassar Municipal Offices
* Macassar New Hall
* Macassar New Sports Ground
* Macassar Old Sports Ground
* Macassar Police Station
* Macassar Public Library
* Macassar Waste Water Treatment Works
* Rheinmettal Denel Munition Factory
* Sheikh Yusuf's Kramat
See also
* Macassar Village Land Occupation
References
{{Cape Town, communities
Suburbs of Cape Town