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Coordinates: 19°33′57″S 18°06′13″E / 19.56583°S 18.10361°E / -19.56583; 18.10361
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{{short description|City in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia}}
{{Infobox settlement
{{Infobox settlement
<!--See the Table at Infobox Settlement for all fields and descriptions of usage-->
<!--See the Table at Infobox Settlement for all fields and descriptions of usage-->
|name = Grootfontein
|name = Grootfontein
|other_name =
|other_name =
|native_name = <!-- for cities whose native name is not in English -->
|native_name = {{small|{{langx|hz|Otjivanda}}}}
|nickname =
|nickname =
|settlement_type = Town
|settlement_type = [[List of cities and towns in Namibia|City]]
|motto = Fons Vitæ
|motto = Fons Vitæ
<!-- images and maps ----------->
<!-- images and maps ----------->
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|leader_title = Mayor
|leader_title = Mayor
|leader_name = Haimene<ref>{{cite news
|leader_name = Haimene<ref>{{cite news
|url=http://www.namibian.com.na/indexx.php?id=7078&page_type=story_detail&category_id=1
|url=https://www.namibian.com.na/117519/archive-read/Four-towns--re-elect-mayors
|title=Four towns re-elect mayors
|title=Four towns re-elect mayors
|date=9 December 2013
|date=9 December 2013
|work=[[The Namibian]]
|work=[[The Namibian]]
|publisher=[[NAMPA]]}}</ref>
|publisher=[[NAMPA]]
|url-status=live
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211024191602/https://www.namibian.com.na/117519/archive-read/Four-towns--re-elect-mayors
|archive-date=2021-10-24
}}</ref>
|leader_title1 = <!-- for places with, say, both a mayor and a city manager -->
|leader_title1 = <!-- for places with, say, both a mayor and a city manager -->
|leader_name1 =
|leader_name1 =
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|unit_pref =Imperial <!--Enter: Imperial, if Imperial (metric) is desired-->
|unit_pref =Imperial <!--Enter: Imperial, if Imperial (metric) is desired-->
|area_footnotes =
|area_footnotes =
|area_total_km2 = <!-- ALL fields dealing with a measurements are subject to automatic unit conversion-->
|area_total_km2 = 61.7
|area_land_km2 = <!--See table @ Template:Infobox Settlement for details on automatic unit conversion-->
|area_land_km2 = <!--See table @ Template:Infobox Settlement for details on automatic unit conversion-->
|area_water_km2 =
|area_water_km2 =
|area_total_sq_mi =
|area_total_sq_mi =
<!-- Population ----------------------->
<!-- Population ----------------------->
|population_as_of = 2011
|population_as_of = 2023
|population_footnotes = <ref name=nsa>{{cite web | title=Table 4.2.2 Urban population by Census years (2001 and 2011) | url=http://cms.my.na/assets/documents/p19dmn58guram30ttun89rdrp1.pdf | work=Namibia 2011 - Population and Housing Census Main Report | publisher=Namibia Statistics Agency | access-date=24 August 2016 | page=39}}</ref>
|population_footnotes = <ref name=nsa>{{cite web | title=Table 4.2.2 Urban population by Census years (2001 and 2011) | url=http://cms.my.na/assets/documents/p19dmn58guram30ttun89rdrp1.pdf | work=Namibia 2011 - Population and Housing Census Main Report | publisher=Namibia Statistics Agency | access-date=24 August 2016 | page=39}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://nsa.nsa.org.na/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Preliminary-Report-doc-fn.pdf |title=2023 Population & Housing Census Preliminary Report|website=Statistics Namibia| df=dmy }}</ref>
|population_note =
|population_note =
|population_total = 23793
|population_total = 26,839
|population_density_km2 =
|population_density_km2 = auto
|population_density_sq_mi =
|population_density_sq_mi =
|population_metro =
|population_metro =
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}}
}}


'''Grootfontein''' ({{lang-en|Large Spring}} after the nearby [[hot springs]]) is a city<ref name="ALANlist">{{cite web
'''Grootfontein''' ({{langx|en|great spring}}, named after the nearby [[hot springs]]) is a city<ref name="ALANlist">{{cite web
|url=http://www.alan.org.na/?q=localauthorities/list
|url=http://www.alan.org.na/?q=localauthorities/list
|title=Local Authorities
|title=Local Authorities
Line 106: Line 111:
|archive-date=10 June 2013
|archive-date=10 June 2013
|url-status=dead
|url-status=dead
}}</ref> of 23,793 inhabitants in the [[Otjozondjupa Region]] of central [[Namibia]]. It is one of the three towns in the [[Otavi Triangle]], situated on the [[B8 road (Namibia)|B8 national road]] that leads from [[Otavi]] to the [[Caprivi Strip]].
}}</ref> with 26,839 inhabitants in the [[Otjozondjupa Region]] of central [[Namibia]]. It is one of the three towns in the Otavi Triangle, situated on the [[B8 road (Namibia)|B8 national road]] that leads from [[Otavi]] to the [[Caprivi Strip]].


==Overview==
==Overview==
⚫
The place was known to the [[Herero people|Herero]] under the name ''Otjivanda''.<ref>{{cite news | title=Windhoek?! Rather make that Otjomuise | url=https://www.namibian.com.na/16007/archive-read/Windhoek-Rather-make-that-Otjomuise | last=Menges | first=Werner | newspaper=[[The Namibian]] | date=12 May 2005}}</ref> In 1885, 40 [[Boer]] families from the north-west of [[South Africa]] settled at Grootfontein. Part of the [[Dorsland trek]]kers, they were heading towards [[Angola]]. When that territory fell under [[Portugal|Portuguese]] control, they turned back and established the [[Upingtonia|Republic of Upingtonia]] at Grootfontein. Abandoned by 1887, it became the headquarters of the [[South West Africa Company]] in 1893.
The place was known to the [[Herero people|Herero]] under the name ''Otjivanda''.<ref>{{cite news
|title=Windhoek?! Rather make that Otjomuise
|url=http://www.namibian.com.na/index.php?id=28&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=17815&no_cache=1
|last=Menges
|first=Werner
|newspaper=[[The Namibian]]
⚫
|date=12 May 2005}}</ref> In 1885, 40 [[Boer]] families from the north-west of [[South Africa]] settled at Grootfontein. Part of the [[Dorsland trek]]kers, they were heading towards [[Angola]]. When that territory fell under [[Portugal|Portuguese]] control, they turned back and established the [[Upingtonia|Republic of Upingtonia]] at Grootfontein. Abandoned by 1887, it became the headquarters of the [[South West Africa Company]] in 1893.


In 1908 the [[Roman Catholic church]] established a [[Mission (station)|mission]] in Grootfontein as the basis of their eventually successful attempt to establish missions in [[Kavango Region|Kavango]].<ref>{{cite book |title= Sata vuotta suomalaista lähetystyötä 1859–1959. II: Suomen Lähetysseuran Afrikan työn historia |trans-title= ‘One Hundred Years of Finnish Missionary Work 1859–1959. II: The History of FMS’s Missionary Work in Africa’ |last= Peltola |first= Matti |year=1958 |publisher=The Finnish Missionary Society |location=Helsinki |page=217 }}</ref>
In 1908 the [[Roman Catholic church]] established a [[Mission (station)|mission]] in Grootfontein as the basis of their eventually successful attempt to establish missions in [[Kavango Region|Kavango]].<ref>{{cite book |title= Sata vuotta suomalaista lähetystyötä 1859–1959. II: Suomen Lähetysseuran Afrikan työn historia |trans-title= ‘One Hundred Years of Finnish Missionary Work 1859–1959. II: The History of FMS’s Missionary Work in Africa’ |last= Peltola |first= Matti |year=1958 |publisher=The Finnish Missionary Society |location=Helsinki |page=217 }}</ref>


Like all the towns in the Otavi Triangle, Grootfontein is very green in summer but drier in winter. In spring, [[jacaranda]] and [[Royal Poinciana|flamboyant trees]] bloom in profusion. The town has an old German [[Schutztruppe]] fortress from the year 1896, which today houses a [[museum]] that expounds on the local history. The economic mainspring of the area were for many decades the [[Berg Aukas]] and [[Abenab]] mines to the north east of the town. These produced [[zinc]] and [[vanadium]] but have since closed. This is [[Dolomite (rock)|dolomite]] country and the [[carbonate]] deposits in the upper parts of the mine have yielded interesting [[fossil]]s of [[simian]] or [[pongoid]] creatures that lived millions of years before modern humans evolved.
Like all the towns in the Otavi Triangle, Grootfontein is green in summer but drier in winter. In spring, [[jacaranda]] and [[Royal Poinciana|flamboyant trees]] bloom in profusion. The town has an old German [[Schutztruppe]] fortress from the year 1896, which today houses a [[museum]] that expounds on the local history. The economic mainspring of the area were for many decades the [[Berg Aukas]] and [[Abenab]] mines to the north east of the town. These produced [[zinc]] and [[vanadium]] but have since closed. Namibia is a [[Dolomite (rock)|dolomite]] country and the [[carbonate]] deposits in the upper parts of the mine have yielded interesting [[fossil]]s of [[simian]] or [[pongoid]] creatures that lived millions of years before modern humans evolved.
[[File:Hoba meteorite, Namibia (2014).jpg|thumb|left|[[Hoba meteorite]] (2014)]]
[[File:Hoba Meteorite 2007.jpg|thumb|left|Hoba Meteorite 2007]]
Twenty four kilometres west of Grootfontein lies the huge [[Hoba meteorite]]. At over 60 tons, it is the largest known [[meteorite]] on Earth, as well as being the largest naturally occurring mass of iron known to exist on the planet's surface.
Twenty four kilometres west of Grootfontein lies the huge [[Hoba meteorite]]. At over 60 tons, it is the largest known [[meteorite]] on Earth, as well as the largest naturally occurring mass of iron known to exist on the planet's surface.



{{Clear|left}}
==Economy and infrastructure==
==Economy and infrastructure==
===Transport===
===Transport===
[[File:Grootfontein Airport (2018).jpg|thumb|Military Airport and the town beyond]]
[[File:Grootfontein Airport (2018).jpg|thumb|Military Airport and the town beyond|left]]
Grootfontein is a [[railhead]] on [[TransNamib]], the national railway and transport system. The next station to the west is [[Otavi]]. Grootfontein is also home of Namibia's main military base which housed several units of the now departed [[South African Defence Force]]. It has an airfield that can handle large transport carriers such as the Hercules C130, as well as commercial passenger aircraft.
Grootfontein is a [[railhead]] on [[TransNamib]], the national railway and transport system. The next station to the west is [[Otavi]]. Grootfontein is also home of Namibia's main military base which housed several units of the now departed [[South African Defence Force]].
It has an airfield that can handle large transport carriers such as the Hercules C130, as well as commercial passenger aircraft.

{{Clear|left}}


===Agriculture===
===Agriculture===
''Grootfontein Show'', an annual agricultural exhibition that takes place since 1911,<ref>{{cite news
''The Grootfontein Show'', an annual agricultural exhibition that has taken place since 1911,<ref>{{cite news
|url = http://www.newera.com.na/article.php?articleid=40818
|url = http://www.newera.com.na/article.php?articleid=40818
|archive-url = https://archive.today/20130221051202/http://www.newera.com.na/article.php?articleid=40818
|archive-url = https://archive.today/20130221051202/http://www.newera.com.na/article.php?articleid=40818
Line 138: Line 141:
|date = 23 September 2011
|date = 23 September 2011
|newspaper = [[New Era (Namibia)|New Era]]
|newspaper = [[New Era (Namibia)|New Era]]
}}</ref> is the second largest annual entrepreneurial exhibition in the country, after [[Windhoek Show]].<ref>{{cite news
}}</ref> is the second largest annual entrepreneurial exhibition in the country, after the [[Windhoek Show]].<ref>{{cite news
|url=http://www.namibian.com.na/index.php?id=28&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=11166&no_cache=1
|url=https://www.namibian.com.na/archive19982004/2004/september/national/046B5E1F0B.html
|title=Farmer dies at Show
|title=Farmer dies at Show
|date=29 September 2004
|date=29 September 2004
|newspaper=[[The Namibian]]}}</ref>
|newspaper=[[The Namibian]]
|url-status=live
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211024191930/https://www.namibian.com.na/archive19982004/2004/september/national/046B5E1F0B.html
|archive-date=2021-10-24
}}</ref>


== Climate ==
== Climate ==
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|archive-date=15 December 2011
|archive-date=15 December 2011
}}</ref> and a low of {{convert|230|mm|abbr=on}} during the 2010s drought in 2018/19.<ref>{{Cite news | title=Khomas faces worst drought in 90 years | last1=Menges | first1=Werner | last2=Oliveira | first2=Yokany | newspaper=[[The Namibian]] | date=23 May 2019 | page=1 | url=https://www.namibian.com.na/78826/read/Khomas-faces-worst-drought-in-90-years}}</ref>
}}</ref> and a low of {{convert|230|mm|abbr=on}} during the 2010s drought in 2018/19.<ref>{{Cite news | title=Khomas faces worst drought in 90 years | last1=Menges | first1=Werner | last2=Oliveira | first2=Yokany | newspaper=[[The Namibian]] | date=23 May 2019 | page=1 | url=https://www.namibian.com.na/78826/read/Khomas-faces-worst-drought-in-90-years}}</ref>

The town has a hot [[semi arid]] climate (Koppen:BSh).


{{Weather box
{{Weather box
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Grootfontein is governed by a municipal council that has seven seats.<ref>{{Cite news | title=Know Your Local Authority | publisher=Institute for Public Policy Research | newspaper=Election Watch | year = 2015 | issue=3 | page=4}}</ref>
Grootfontein is governed by a municipal council that has seven seats.<ref>{{Cite news | title=Know Your Local Authority | publisher=Institute for Public Policy Research | newspaper=Election Watch | year = 2015 | issue=3 | page=4}}</ref>


The [[Namibian local and regional elections, 2015|2015 local authority election]] was won by Namibia's ruling [[SWAPO]] party which gained five seats and 2,019 votes. One seat each went to the [[Democratic Turnhalle Alliance]] (DTA, 546 votes) and to the [[All People's Party (Namibia)|All People's Party]] (APP, 154 votes).<ref>{{cite web | title=Local elections results | publisher=[[Electoral Commission of Namibia]] | page=6 | url=http://www.ecn.na/documents/27857/218731/LA+results+%28press+release%29+2015.pdf/870a030b-8547-487f-ad18-b22713b16d4c?version=1.0 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151210194328/http://www.ecn.na/documents/27857/218731/LA+results+%28press+release%29+2015.pdf/870a030b-8547-487f-ad18-b22713b16d4c?version=1.0 | url-status=dead | archive-date=10 December 2015 | date=28 November 2015 }}</ref>
The [[Namibian local and regional elections, 2015|2015 local authority election]] was won by Namibia's ruling [[SWAPO]] party which gained five seats and 2,019 votes. One seat each went to the [[Democratic Turnhalle Alliance]] (DTA, 546 votes) and to the [[All People's Party (Namibia)|All People's Party]] (APP, 154 votes).<ref>{{cite web | title=Local elections results | publisher=[[Electoral Commission of Namibia]] | page=6 | url=http://www.ecn.na/documents/27857/218731/LA+results+%28press+release%29+2015.pdf/870a030b-8547-487f-ad18-b22713b16d4c?version=1.0 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151210194328/http://www.ecn.na/documents/27857/218731/LA+results+%28press+release%29+2015.pdf/870a030b-8547-487f-ad18-b22713b16d4c?version=1.0 | url-status=dead | archive-date=10 December 2015 | date=28 November 2015 }}</ref> SWAPO also won the [[2020 Namibian local and regional elections|2020 local authority election]], obtaining 1,727 votes and gaining four seats. The [[Independent Patriots for Change]] (IPC), an opposition party formed in August 2020, obtained 653 votes and gained two seats. The remaining seat went to the [[Popular Democratic Movement]] (PDM, the new name of the DTA) with 309 votes.<ref>{{Cite web | title=2020 Local Authority Elections Results and Allocation of Seats | page=15 | date=29 November 2020 | publisher=[[Electoral Commission of Namibia]] | url=https://www.ecn.na/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Media-Release-on-LA-Results_2020.pdf | access-date=4 March 2021 | archive-date=24 January 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124162938/https://www.ecn.na/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Media-Release-on-LA-Results_2020.pdf | url-status=dead }}</ref>


==Education==
==Education==
Previously the German school Regierungsschule Grootfontein was in the town. In 1965 it had 4 teachers and 117 learners and was supported by German government.<ref>"[http://dipbt.bundestag.de/doc/btd/04/036/0403672.pdf Deutscher Bundestag 4. Wahlperiode Drucksache IV/3672]" ([https://web.archive.org/web/20160312191648/http://dipbt.bundestag.de/doc/btd/04/036/0403672.pdf Archive]). [[Bundestag]] (West Germany). 23 June 1965. Retrieved on 12 March 2016. p. 31.</ref>
Previously the German school ''Regierungsschule Grootfontein'' had been in Grootfonten. In 1965 it had 4 teachers and 117 learners and was supported by the German government.<ref>"[http://dipbt.bundestag.de/doc/btd/04/036/0403672.pdf Deutscher Bundestag 4. Wahlperiode Drucksache IV/3672]" ([https://web.archive.org/web/20160312191648/http://dipbt.bundestag.de/doc/btd/04/036/0403672.pdf Archive]). [[Bundestag]] (West Germany). 23 June 1965. Retrieved on 12 March 2016. p. 31.</ref>


Grootfontein is home to four high schools, [[Grootfontein Secondary School]], [[Otjiwanda High School]]<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newera.com.na/2014/01/24/school-defies-ministry/ | title=Another school defies ministry | last=Matali | first=John Travolter | date=24 January 2014 | newspaper=[[New Era (Namibia)|New Era]]}}</ref> [[Friedrich Awaseb Senior Secondary School]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.lelamobile.com/content/16168/Grootfontein-learner-allegedly-dies-after-punch-to-the-head/ | title=Grootfontein learner allegedly dies after punch to the head | publisher=[[Namibia Press Agency|Nampa]] |date=5 April 2014}}</ref> and the Grootfontein Agricultural College, and six primary schools namely Luiperdheuwel Primary School, Kalenga Primary School, Makalani Primary School, Omulunga Primary school, Grootfontein Agri College and Wilhelm Nortier Primary School.
Nowadays, Grootfontein is home to four high schools, Grootfontein Secondary School, Otjiwanda High School<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newera.com.na/2014/01/24/school-defies-ministry/ | title=Another school defies ministry | last=Matali | first=John Travolter | date=24 January 2014 | newspaper=[[New Era (Namibia)|New Era]]}}</ref> Friedrich Awaseb Senior Secondary School,<ref>{{Cite news | url=http://www.lelamobile.com/content/16168/Grootfontein-learner-allegedly-dies-after-punch-to-the-head/ | title=Grootfontein learner allegedly dies after punch to the head | publisher=[[Namibia Press Agency|Nampa]] | date=5 April 2014 | access-date=21 February 2017 | archive-date=18 April 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418031637/http://www.lelamobile.com/content/16168/Grootfontein-learner-allegedly-dies-after-punch-to-the-head/ | url-status=dead }}</ref> and a private school named Karstveld Academy. Further the primary schools Luiperdheuwel, Kalenga, Makalani, Omulunga and Wilhelm Nortier are located here. The city also hosts a private [[German language|German medium]] primary school (''Deutsche Privatschule Grootfontein'' - DPG).<ref>[http://www.dsvg.iway.na/schule.htm Deutsche Privatschule Grootfontein] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150415120836/http://www.dsvg.iway.na/schule.htm |date=2015-04-15 }}, dsvg.iway.na</ref>


==Notable people from Grootfontein==
==Notable people==
*[[Behati Prinsloo]]&nbsp;– model, best known for working with [[Victoria's Secret]]
*[[Behati Prinsloo]]&nbsp;– model, best known for working with [[Victoria's Secret]] and wife of the band Maroon 5's lead vocalist, [[Adam Levine]]
*[[Leon Jooste]]&nbsp;– [[SWAPO]] politician and businessman<ref>[http://www.nid.org.na/view_book_entry.php?book_id=68 Leon Jooste] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611173056/http://www.nid.org.na/view_book_entry.php?book_id=68 |date=2011-06-11 }} Namibia Institute for Democracy</ref>
*[[Leon Jooste]]&nbsp;– [[SWAPO]] politician and businessman<ref>[http://www.nid.org.na/view_book_entry.php?book_id=68 Leon Jooste] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611173056/http://www.nid.org.na/view_book_entry.php?book_id=68 |date=2011-06-11 }} Namibia Institute for Democracy</ref>
*[[Hage Geingob]]&nbsp;– The President of the Republic of Namibia
*[[Hage Geingob]]&nbsp;– The President of the Republic of Namibia
Line 238: Line 247:


==External links==
==External links==
{{commons category}}
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website|http://www.grootfonteinmun.com.na/}}
* {{Official website|http://www.grootfonteinmun.com.na/}}
* [http://www.altefortmuseum.de Web site of the Alte Fort Museum in the former German Schutztruppe fortress]
* [http://www.altefortmuseum.de Web site of the Alte Fort Museum in the former German Schutztruppe fortress]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


{{coord|19|33|57|S|18|06|13|E|region:NA_type:city|display=title}}
{{Coord|19|33|57|S|18|06|13|E|region:NA_type:city|display=title}}
<!-- 25° 1' 0S Long (DMS) 16° 45' 0E FallingRain is wrong-->
<!-- 25° 1' 0S Long (DMS) 16° 45' 0E FallingRain is wrong-->


<!-- {{Geolinks-cityscale|-19.565|18.104}} -->
<!-- {{Geolinks-cityscale|-19.565|18.104}} -->

{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Populated places in the Otjozondjupa Region]]
[[Category:Populated places in the Otjozondjupa Region]]

Latest revision as of 13:57, 26 October 2024

Grootfontein
Otjiherero: Otjivanda
City
Coat of arms of Grootfontein
Coat of arms
Motto: 
Fons Vitæ
Grootfontein is located in Namibia
Grootfontein
Grootfontein
Location in Namibia
Coordinates: 19°34′S 18°7′E / 19.567°S 18.117°E / -19.567; 18.117
Country Namibia
RegionOtjozondjupa Region
ConstituencyGrootfontein constituency
Established1885
Government
 • MayorHaimene[1]
Area
 • Total
23.8 sq mi (61.7 km2)
Population
 (2023)[2][3]
 • Total
26,839
 • Density1,100/sq mi (430/km2)
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Area code067
ClimateBSh
Websitehttp://www.grootfonteinmun.com.na/

Grootfontein (English: great spring, named after the nearby hot springs) is a city[4] with 26,839 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia. It is one of the three towns in the Otavi Triangle, situated on the B8 national road that leads from Otavi to the Caprivi Strip.

Overview

[edit]

The place was known to the Herero under the name Otjivanda.[5] In 1885, 40 Boer families from the north-west of South Africa settled at Grootfontein. Part of the Dorsland trekkers, they were heading towards Angola. When that territory fell under Portuguese control, they turned back and established the Republic of Upingtonia at Grootfontein. Abandoned by 1887, it became the headquarters of the South West Africa Company in 1893.

In 1908 the Roman Catholic church established a mission in Grootfontein as the basis of their eventually successful attempt to establish missions in Kavango.[6]

Like all the towns in the Otavi Triangle, Grootfontein is green in summer but drier in winter. In spring, jacaranda and flamboyant trees bloom in profusion. The town has an old German Schutztruppe fortress from the year 1896, which today houses a museum that expounds on the local history. The economic mainspring of the area were for many decades the Berg Aukas and Abenab mines to the north east of the town. These produced zinc and vanadium but have since closed. Namibia is a dolomite country and the carbonate deposits in the upper parts of the mine have yielded interesting fossils of simian or pongoid creatures that lived millions of years before modern humans evolved.

Hoba Meteorite 2007

Twenty four kilometres west of Grootfontein lies the huge Hoba meteorite. At over 60 tons, it is the largest known meteorite on Earth, as well as the largest naturally occurring mass of iron known to exist on the planet's surface.

Economy and infrastructure

[edit]

Transport

[edit]
Military Airport and the town beyond

Grootfontein is a railhead on TransNamib, the national railway and transport system. The next station to the west is Otavi. Grootfontein is also home of Namibia's main military base which housed several units of the now departed South African Defence Force.

It has an airfield that can handle large transport carriers such as the Hercules C130, as well as commercial passenger aircraft.

Agriculture

[edit]

The Grootfontein Show, an annual agricultural exhibition that has taken place since 1911,[7] is the second largest annual entrepreneurial exhibition in the country, after the Windhoek Show.[8]

Climate

[edit]

Grootfontein receives an annual average rainfall of 557 millimetres (21.9 in), with a high of 956 mm (37.6 in) in the 2010/2011 rainy season,[9] and a low of 230 mm (9.1 in) during the 2010s drought in 2018/19.[10]

The town has a hot semi arid climate (Koppen:BSh).

Climate data for Grootfontein, Namibia
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 30.9
(87.6) 		29.8
(85.6) 		29.4
(84.9) 		28.5
(83.3) 		26.5
(79.7) 		24.0
(75.2) 		23.8
(74.8) 		26.8
(80.2) 		30.6
(87.1) 		32.1
(89.8) 		31.9
(89.4) 		31.3
(88.3) 		28.8
(83.8)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 18.5
(65.3) 		18.0
(64.4) 		17.1
(62.8) 		14.4
(57.9) 		10.4
(50.7) 		7.1
(44.8) 		6.8
(44.2) 		9.6
(49.3) 		13.8
(56.8) 		16.9
(62.4) 		18.0
(64.4) 		18.4
(65.1) 		14.1
(57.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 141.7
(5.58) 		127.0
(5.00) 		99.6
(3.92) 		30.1
(1.19) 		4.3
(0.17) 		0.4
(0.02) 		0
(0) 		1.3
(0.05) 		4.9
(0.19) 		21.5
(0.85) 		51.6
(2.03) 		70.7
(2.78) 		553.1
(21.78)
Average relative humidity (%) 58 66 66 70 51 48 43 34 28 33 42 46 49
Source: Ministry of Works and Transport (Meteorological Service Division)

"Ministry of Works & Transport: Tabulation of Climate Statistics for Selected Stations in Namibia" (PDF). 2012.

Politics

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Grootfontein is governed by a municipal council that has seven seats.[11]

The 2015 local authority election was won by Namibia's ruling SWAPO party which gained five seats and 2,019 votes. One seat each went to the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA, 546 votes) and to the All People's Party (APP, 154 votes).[12] SWAPO also won the 2020 local authority election, obtaining 1,727 votes and gaining four seats. The Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), an opposition party formed in August 2020, obtained 653 votes and gained two seats. The remaining seat went to the Popular Democratic Movement (PDM, the new name of the DTA) with 309 votes.[13]

Education

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Previously the German school Regierungsschule Grootfontein had been in Grootfonten. In 1965 it had 4 teachers and 117 learners and was supported by the German government.[14]

Nowadays, Grootfontein is home to four high schools, Grootfontein Secondary School, Otjiwanda High School[15] Friedrich Awaseb Senior Secondary School,[16] and a private school named Karstveld Academy. Further the primary schools Luiperdheuwel, Kalenga, Makalani, Omulunga and Wilhelm Nortier are located here. The city also hosts a private German medium primary school (Deutsche Privatschule Grootfontein - DPG).[17]

Notable people

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[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Grootfontein.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Four towns re-elect mayors". The Namibian. NAMPA. 9 December 2013. Archived from the original on 2021-10-24.
  2. ^ "Table 4.2.2 Urban population by Census years (2001 and 2011)" (PDF). Namibia 2011 - Population and Housing Census Main Report. Namibia Statistics Agency. p. 39. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
  3. ^ "2023 Population & Housing Census Preliminary Report" (PDF). Statistics Namibia.
  4. ^ "Local Authorities". Association of Local Authorities in Namibia (ALAN). Archived from the original on 10 June 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  5. ^ Menges, Werner (12 May 2005). "Windhoek?! Rather make that Otjomuise". The Namibian.
  6. ^ Peltola, Matti (1958). Sata vuotta suomalaista lähetystyötä 1859–1959. II: Suomen Lähetysseuran Afrikan työn historia [‘One Hundred Years of Finnish Missionary Work 1859–1959. II: The History of FMS’s Missionary Work in Africa’]. Helsinki: The Finnish Missionary Society. p. 217.
  7. ^ "Onÿarata @ Grootfontein Show centenary while The Wire storm the coastal towns". New Era. 23 September 2011. Archived from the original on 21 February 2013.
  8. ^ "Farmer dies at Show". The Namibian. 29 September 2004. Archived from the original on 2021-10-24.
  9. ^ Menges, Werner (26 May 2011). "Rainy season was one for the record books". The Namibian. Archived from the original on 15 December 2011.
  10. ^ Menges, Werner; Oliveira, Yokany (23 May 2019). "Khomas faces worst drought in 90 years". The Namibian. p. 1.
  11. ^ "Know Your Local Authority". Election Watch. No. 3. Institute for Public Policy Research. 2015. p. 4.
  12. ^ "Local elections results". Electoral Commission of Namibia. 28 November 2015. p. 6. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015.
  13. ^ "2020 Local Authority Elections Results and Allocation of Seats" (PDF). Electoral Commission of Namibia. 29 November 2020. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  14. ^ "Deutscher Bundestag 4. Wahlperiode Drucksache IV/3672" (Archive). Bundestag (West Germany). 23 June 1965. Retrieved on 12 March 2016. p. 31.
  15. ^ Matali, John Travolter (24 January 2014). "Another school defies ministry". New Era.
  16. ^ "Grootfontein learner allegedly dies after punch to the head". Nampa. 5 April 2014. Archived from the original on 18 April 2018. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
  17. ^ Deutsche Privatschule Grootfontein Archived 2015-04-15 at the Wayback Machine, dsvg.iway.na
  18. ^ Leon Jooste Archived 2011-06-11 at the Wayback Machine Namibia Institute for Democracy

19°33′57″S 18°06′13″E / 19.56583°S 18.10361°E / -19.56583; 18.10361


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