Caves of Namibia

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Namibia, a country in south-western Africa, has a total of 124 known caves, 41 of which are situated in the Otjozondjupa Region. [1]

Contents

In several of these caves research has been done and published in various journals, but of a variety of caves the location is not commonly known, as the information got lost over the years. Some locations are also deliberately kept secret to protect the caves.

History

The caves known to local people were reported by early explorers and travelers. The caves of Namibia are not reputed for their beauty, but for their practical and curiosity reasons. [2]

A very common belief is that caves were used as shelter places by the San people (Bushmen). However, San did not use caves to shelter in, as most caves of Namibia have vertical entrances and also are situated on top of elevations. Caves were only used when they were accessible and allowed observation over approaching and surrounding area and also room was provided at entrance to shelter. Resources like water, bird’s eggs and honey were indeed used by the local people. [2]

Throughout 1882 to 1915, the Imperial German colonial administration troops were interested in caves, as they provided in remote areas water supply for transport animals. Cave pools which were accessible were used as water points for police patrols and resistance fighters alike. [2]

As years passed, landowners became interested in caves, as due to WW1 and WW2 nitrate was regarded a strategic resource and could no longer be used in fertilizers. Nitrate minerals were replaced by bird guano, but only a small quantity was used locally, the rest was exported. As no fertilizer was available, farmers searched caves and used bat guano as alternative. In the period of 1935 to 1942 more than 10 000 tons of bat guano was extracted from Arnhem cave, but also smaller caves like Nooitgedacht, Otgrot, Valle and others, were mined. [2]

From 1963 research was done on various caves all over Namibia. It was done by local people, but also a variety of researchers from Australia, Austria, France, Germany and many more countries. A problem with researchers from other countries is that they do not ensure that their results and reports are available in Namibia and so valuable information is then lost. [2]

Notable caves

Related Research Articles

This article deals with the system of transport in Namibia, both public and private.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otjozondjupa Region</span> Region in Namibia

Otjozondjupa is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia. Its capital is Otjiwarongo. The region further contains the municipalities of Okahandja and Grootfontein and the towns Okakarara and Otavi. As of 2020, Otjozondjupa had 97,945 registered voters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grootfontein</span> City in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia

Grootfontein is a town with 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 national road that leads from Otavi to the Caprivi Strip.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tsumeb</span> City in Oshikoto Region, Namibia

Tsumeb is a city of 15,000 inhabitants and the largest town in the Oshikoto region in northern Namibia. Tsumeb is known as the "gateway to the north" of Namibia. It is the closest town to the Etosha National Park. Tsumeb used to be the regional capital of Oshikoto until 2008 when Omuthiya was proclaimed a town and the new capital. The area around Tsumeb forms its own electoral constituency and has a population of 44,113. The town is the site of a deep mine that in its heyday was known as "TCL", but has since been renamed the Ongopolo Mine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otjiwarongo</span> City in Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia

Otjiwarongo is a city of 28,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It is the district capital of the Otjiwarongo electoral constituency and also the capital of Otjozondjupa.

Kombat is a mine and its associated settlement at the southern margin of the Otavi Mountain Range in northern Namibia. It is situated 37 kilometres (23 mi) East of Otavi on the B8 to Grootfontein. Kombat at its peak had over 1,000 inhabitants. As of 2015 it is almost abandoned, although Kombat Primary School still operates at reduced capacity, and a clinic is serving the remaining inhabitants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hoba meteorite</span> Largest known intact meteorite

The Hoba meteorite is named after the farm Hoba West, where it lies, not far from Grootfontein, in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It has been uncovered, but because of its large mass, has never been moved from where it fell. The main mass is estimated at more than 60 tonnes. It is the largest known intact meteorite and about twice as massive as the largest fragment of either the Cape York meteorite's 31-tonne Ahnighito kept in the American Museum of Natural History or the Campo del Cielo's 31-tonne Gancedo in Argentina. It is also the most massive naturally occurring piece of iron known on Earth's surface. The name "Hoba" comes from a Khoekhoegowab word meaning "gift". Following its donation to the government in 1987, a visitor centre was constructed with a circular stone access and seating area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TransNamib</span> Railway operator in Namibia

TransNamib Holdings Limited, commonly referred to as TransNamib, is a state-owned railway company in Namibia. Organised as a holding company, it provides both rail and road freight services, as well as passenger rail services. Its headquarters are in the country’s capital Windhoek.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otavi</span> Town in Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia

Otavi is a town with 4,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. Situated 360 km north of Windhoek, it is the district capital of the Otavi electoral constituency.

Articles related to Namibia include:

The Otavi Mining and Railway Company was a railway and mining company in German South West Africa. It was founded on 6 April 1900 in Berlin with the Disconto-Gesellschaft and the South West Africa Company as major shareholders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle registration plates of Namibia</span> Namibia vehicle license plates

Vehicle registration plates of Namibia are yellow fluorescent metal plates with imprints in black. The standard version is uniform throughout the country, and carries one of the following forms:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otjikoto Lake</span>

Otjikoto Lake is the smaller of only two permanent natural lakes in Namibia. It is a sinkhole lake that was created by a collapsing karst cave. It is located 20 kilometres (12 mi) north-west of Tsumeb and only 100 meters from the main road B1. The lake was declared a national monument in 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kranzberg railway station</span> Railway station in Namibia between the towns of Karibib and Usakos

Kranzberg railway station is a railway station in Namibia between the towns of Karibib and Usakos. It is part of the TransNamib Railway. At Kranzberg, the railway line from Windhoek splits; one line continues westwards to Swakopmund and Walvis Bay, the other one continues north-eastwards towards Omaruru and Tsumeb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rail transport in Namibia</span>

Rail service in Namibia is provided by TransNamib. The Namibian rail network consists of 2,687 route-km of tracks (2017).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of rail transport in Namibia</span>

The history of rail transport in Namibia began with a small mining rail line at Cape Cross in 1895. The first major railway project was started in 1897 when the German Colonial Authority built the 600 mm gauge Staatsbahn from Swakopmund to Windhoek. By 1902 the line was completed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dragon's Breath Cave</span> Cave in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia

Dragon's Breath Cave is located in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia on private land, not accessible to the general public. The cave was discovered by Roger Ellis during a caving expedition to the area in 1986. It is named for the moist air rising from its entrance which resembled the breath of a dragon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Usakos railway station</span> Railway station in Namibia

Usakos railway station is a railway station in Namibia serving the city of Usakos. It is part of the TransNamib railway network. The station building is dilapidated but passenger trains still stop at Usakos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South West African Jung</span> Narrow gauge steam locomotive

The South West African Jung 0-6-2T of 1904 was a narrow gauge steam locomotive from the German South West Africa era.

Otavi railway station is located in the mining town of Otavi in Namibia's central Otjozondjupa Region. It is served by a mostly freight railway and limited number of passenger service. The extension of the railway towards the east to Grootfontein is exclusively for freight service.

References

  1. ↑ NamibWeb (2012). Namibian cave register Retrieved 31 July 2012
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 NamibWeb (2012). History of caves in Namibia Retrieved 31 July 2012
  3. ↑ "Dragon's Breath, Namibia". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 2018-03-23. Retrieved 2012-08-28.
  4. ↑ Springer, Marc (27 May 2009). "Descending into another world: Cave diving in Namibia". Allgemeine Zeitung . Archived from the original on 28 May 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  5. ↑ Wiebke Schmidt: Auf den Spuren der ältesten Kunst. Archived 2013-10-04 at the Wayback Machine Allgemeine Zeitung, May 2, 2008
  6. ↑ Voigt, Andreas (2004). National Monuments in Namibia: An Inventory of Proclaimed National Monuments in the Republic of Namibia. Gamsberg Macmillan. pp. 23–24. ISBN   9991605932.

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