Mooi River (Tugela)

Last updated
Mooi
Mooirivier, Mpofana
Mooi River Falls.JPG
Cascades on the Mooi River in the Rosetta region of KwaZulu-Natal.
Tugela Basin OSM.png
The Mooi River in the Tugela catchment area (bottom center)
EtymologyMooirivier meaning 'pretty river' in Afrikaans; Mpofana or Mpafana meaning either 'little eland', 'the greyish one' or 'wild mulberry tree' in the Zulu language [1]
Location
Country South Africa
Province KwaZulu-Natal
Towns Mooi River
Physical characteristics
Source 
  location Mkomazi Nature Reserve
Mouth Tugela River Coordinates: 28°45′46″S30°34′7″E / 28.76278°S 30.56861°E / -28.76278; 30.56861

The Mooi River is a river in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. It rises in the Mkomazi Nature Reserve in the Drakensberg Mountains, and empties into the Tugela River near Muden. The town of Mooi River lies on the river. [2]

Contents

Name

The name derives from the Dutch Mooirivier, i.e. pretty river, as it was named by the Voortrekkers in the mid-19th century. The river's Zulu name, Mpofana, means 'young eland'. [3]

See also

Notes

  1. Dictionary of Southern African Place Names
  2. Bell, W A (1928). "Upper Cretaceous plants from Stikine River, Cassiar District, British Columbia". doi:10.4095/105031.Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. du Plessis, E.J. (1973). Suid-Afrikaanse berg- en riviername. Tafelberg-uitgewers, Cape Town. pp. 280–281. ISBN   0-624-00273X.

Related Research Articles

Natal (province) province of South Africa

The Province of Natal, commonly called Natal, was a province of South Africa from May 1910 until May 1994. Its capital was Pietermaritzburg. During this period rural areas inhabited by the black African population of Natal were organized into the bantustan of KwaZulu, which was progressively separated from the province, becoming partially autonomous in 1981. Of the white population, the majority were English-speaking people of British descent, causing Natal to become the only province to vote "No" to the creation of a republic in the referendum of 1960, due to very strong monarchist, anti-republican, pro-Commonwealth, and secessionist sentiment. In the latter part of the 1980s, Natal was in a state of violence that only ended with the first non-racial election in 1994.

KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa

KwaZulu-Natal (; also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province"; Zulu: iKwaZulu-Natali; Xhosa: KwaZulu-Natala is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu and Natal Province were merged. It is located in the southeast of the country, enjoying a long shoreline beside the Indian Ocean and sharing borders with three other provinces, and the countries of Mozambique, Eswatini and Lesotho. Its capital is Pietermaritzburg, and its largest city is Durban. It is the second-most populous province in South Africa, with slightly fewer residents than Gauteng.

Tugela River river in South Africa

The Tugela River is the largest river in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. It is one of the most important rivers of the country.

Natalia Republic Former country in Southern Africa

The Natalia Republic was a short-lived Boer republic founded in 1839 after a Voortrekker victory against the Zulus at the Battle of Blood River. The area was previously named Natália by Portuguese sailors. The republic came to an end in 1843 when British forces annexed it to form the Colony of Natal. After the British annexation of the Natalia Republic, most local Voortrekkers trekked north into Transorangia, later known as the Orange Free State, and the South African Republic.

Estcourt Place in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Estcourt is a town in the uThukela District of KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. The main economic activity is farming with large bacon and processed food factories situated around the town. The N3 freeway passes close to the town, linking it to the rest of South Africa.

Colenso, KwaZulu-Natal Place in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Colenso is a town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is located on the southern bank of the Tugela River. The original settlement was contained within a loop on the river, but it subsequently expanded southwards and eastwards. It lies on the main Durban - Johannesburg railway line some 190 km (118 mi) north-west of Durban.

Mooi River (town) Place in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Mooi River is a small town situated at 1,389 m above sea level and 160 km from the coast in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The first European settlement in the area was at Mooi River Drift in 1852. This was formally named Weston in 1866 after the first Governor of Natal, Martin West.

Winterton, KwaZulu-Natal Place in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Winterton is a small town situated on the banks of the Tugela River in the foothills of the Drakensberg mountains, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1905 as Springfield when the Natal Government built a weir across the Little Tugela River. The town later changed its name to Winterton in honour the secretary for agriculture, HD Winter. Winterton is a small town with only a primary school. It is close to the Second Boer War battle sites of Battle of Vaal Krantz and Spioenkop.

Kranskop Place in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Kranskop is a small town that is situated on the edge of the Tugela River valley in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1894 as Hopetown but the following confusion with another town of the same name in the Great Karoo, Northern Cape, the name was changed. Kranskop was chosen and is named after two cliff faces that rise 1,175 metres above the Tugela Valley near the town. The name is an Afrikaans word meaning "cliff head."

Wakkerstroom Place in Mpumalanga, South Africa

Wakkerstroom,, is the second oldest town in Mpumalanga province, South Africa. The town is on the KwaZulu-Natal border, 27 km east of Volksrust and 56 km south-east of Amersfoort.

Umgeni River river in KwaZulu-Natal

The Umgeni River or Mgeni River, is a river in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It rises in the "Dargle" in the KZN midlands, and its mouth is at Durban, some distance north of Durban's natural harbour. The name is taken to mean the river of entrance in Zulu, though other meanings have been proposed.

The R103 is a Regional Route in South Africa that is the designation for some of the old sections of roads that were previously the N3, prior to upgrading. It only has 3 sections, from the Hillcrest suburb of Durban to Ladysmith, from Warden to Villiers and from Heidelberg to Johannesburg.

Mooi River may refer to:

Zulu Kingdom Former monarchy in Southern Africa

The Kingdom of Zulu, sometimes referred to as the Zulu Empire or the Kingdom of Zululand, was a monarchy in Southern Africa that extended along the coast of the Indian Ocean from the Tugela River in the south to Pongola River in the north.

The Diocese of Zululand is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa which covers the part of the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal that lies to the northeast of the Buffalo and Tugela Rivers. It is divided in ten archdeaconries.

Tugela Ferry Place in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Tugela Ferry is a town on the northern bank of the Tugela River, in central KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. During the apartheid era it formed part of the KwaZulu homeland, and at present it is included in the Umzinyathi District Municipality. The town's name commemorates the ferry which once operated here before a steel bridge was constructed.

Bushmans River river in South Africa

The Bushman's River is an east to north-easterly flowing tributary of the Tugela River, in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. It rises in the Drakensberg Mountain range, with its upper catchment in the Giant's Castle Game Reserve, north of the Giant's Castle promontory. It feeds the Wagendrift Dam and then flows past the town of Estcourt to join the Tugela River near the town of Weenen.

The Bloukrans River (KwaZulu-Natal) originates in the Emangosini foothills of the Njesuthi Drakensberg, in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. It proceeds in a north-easterly direction, passing the village of Frere, until it joins the Tugela River. The river and its tributaries are mostly undammed, though limited irrigation occurs from its upper reaches. Its original Dutch name Blaauwekrans referred to bluish cliff faces present in the area.

Buffalo River (KwaZulu-Natal) tributary of the Thukela River in South Africa

The Buffalo River is the largest tributary of the Tugela River in South Africa. Its source is in Majuba Hill, "Hill of Doves" in Zulu language, located northeast of Volksrust, close to the Mpumalanga / KwaZulu-Natal border. It follows a southerly route into KwaZulu-Natal past Newcastle then turns southeast past Rorke's Drift, before joining the Tugela River at Ngubevu near Nkandla. During the nineteenth century it formed part of the boundary between the Colony of Natal and Zululand.

Mooi may refer to: