Benoni (South Africa)

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Benoni
Benoni (South Africa)
Benoni
Benoni
Coordinates 26 ° 11 ′  S , 28 ° 19 ′  E Coordinates: 26 ° 11 ′  S , 28 ° 19 ′  E
Basic data
Country South Africa

province

Gauteng
metropolis Ekurhuleni
ISO 3166-2 ZA-GP
height 1645 m
Residents 158,777 (2011)
founding 1881
Website www.benonisouthafrica.com (English)
Aerial view of Benoni
Aerial view of Benoni

Benoni is a city in South Africa . It belongs to the Gauteng Province and is located in the metropolitan municipality of Ekurhuleni , which was formerly known as the East Rand . In 2011, Benoni had 158,777 inhabitants.

Surname

In the area of ​​today's Benoni there was a farm of the same name. The Hebrew name means "son of mourning". In the book of Genesis , Rahel's son is also called Ben-oni, but is later called Ben-jamin (German: “Son of Happiness”).

Geographical location

Benoni is 1,645 meters above sea level in the eastern part of the Witwatersrand . To the west lies the city of Germiston , further west to Johannesburg , to the south from west to east the cities of Boksburg , Brakpan and Springs .

history

In 1881 a piece of land east of Johannesburg was named Benoni. Gold deposits were discovered there in 1887 and a mine was built by miners from Cornwall , England . At that time Benoni was commonly called Little Cornwall ("Little Cornwall").

In 1904 Benoni was a large settlement with numerous gold mines. A river was dammed several times to provide water for mining activities. In 1906 Benoni was declared a city. Most of the residents were British. There were also numerous Jewish settlers who had fled anti-Semitism in Eastern Europe. In 1907 the first synagogue and the first horse racing track were opened.

In 1922 a strike by white miners took place in the entire Witwatersrand area, which culminated in an open revolt because the Chamber of Mines played off the cheaper non-European workers against the white miners by making activities previously reserved for white workers available to them. The conflict, which was also fought armed, began in the coal mines and expanded to include gold mining on the Witwatersrand. The strike was carried out by left-wing radical workers, rural Boer residents, the Communist Party of South Africa and conservative republican groups, all of whom shared their harsh rejection of the Smuts government at the time . During the course of the strike, pogrom-like hunts of black miners took place. During this time, Benoni served as an important base for the miners. Fierce fighting took place in and around Benoni, which is documented in the Benoni Museum .

During the Second World War , South African fighter pilots were trained in Benoni. In 1943 the Benoni meteorite fell to the ground near Benoni.

During the apartheid era , residents were divided into different residential areas according to their skin color. Blacks lived in the townships of Daveyton and Wattville, among others , Asians lived in Actonville, while whites lived in Benoni proper. The suburbs still exist today, but are no longer strictly divided according to population groups. Benoni has numerous districts with a high proportion of greenery.

On September 6, 1976, a serious railway accident occurred in Benoni : an express train had come to a stop at a signal when a suburban train on its way to Daveyton hit it. 31 people died. Either there was a wrong position of a signal or the driver of the suburban train had run over a signal showing "stop" or it was sabotage . The latter was officially denied, but this could also have had a political background. The cause of the accident ultimately remained unresolved.

In 2000, Benoni became part of the Ekurhuleni region.

politics

The city is governed by the African National Congress (ANC). The Democratic Alliance (DA) is in opposition.

economy

Gold mining lost its importance. In 1964 the last gold mine closed. For this purpose, other industrial companies were set up, for example the replica manufacturer Replicars SA . The service sector also plays a major role today. So Benoni serves as a service center for neighboring cities like Brakpan, Nigel and Springs.

traffic

Benoni is close to OR Tambo International Airport , the main airport in South Africa. The city is connected to the N12 by road.

Culture

The Sibikwa Theater is a municipal theater that has existed since 1989. In 2000 part of the WOMAD festival took place in Benoni.

Personalities

Sons and daughters of the town:

Other personalities related to Benoni:

Others

  • Benoni is considered to be the place with the highest density of horse stables in the southern hemisphere .
  • The internationally released film Crazy Monkey Presents Straight Outta Benoni starring Brett Goldin is set in Benoni.

Web links

Commons : Benoni  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ 2011 census , accessed October 3, 2013
  2. ^ Christoph Marx : South Africa. Past and present . Stuttgart 2012, pp. 202-203.
  3. ↑ Harold Jack Simons: Trade Unions . S. 160, In: Ellen Hellmann, Leah Abrahams (Ed.): Handbook on Race Relations in South Africa . Cape Town, London, New York, Oxford University Press, 1949. pp. 158-170.
  4. ^ Peter WB Semmens: Catastrophes on rails. A worldwide documentation. Transpress, Stuttgart 1996, ISBN 3-344-71030-3 .
  5. ^ Business World in Benoni ( Memento of May 17, 2012 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on August 13, 2012
  6. ↑ http://worldmusiccentral.org/artists/artist_page.php?id=1112