Mariental (Namibia)

local community

Mariental

Marienthal (historical)

Details

Details

Mariental from a bird's eye view (2017)

motto

Luceat et crescat
(Let it shine and grow)

Basic data

Population
Area
Population Density

12,300 (2011 census)
39 km²
315.1 inhabitants / km²

State
Region
Constituency

Namibia
Hardap
Mariental city

Establishment date

December 24, 1894

License plate
phone code

M
63

Website

marmun.org.na

Political data

Mayor : Priscilla Beukes ( SWAPO )

Chief Executive Officer : {{{CEO}}}

Last election: 2015

Next election: 2020

City administration address:
Stumpfe Straße
Mariental

Geographical data

Geographical coordinates : 24 ° 37′S, 17 ° 57′E

Height : 1,090 m

Street scene in Mariental

Mariental , historically Marienthal , is a municipality and regional capital of the Hardap region in Namibia . Mariental was founded on December 24, 1894 and is named after Maria Brandt, wife of the first German settler in the region, Hermann Brandt (1856–1925). Mariental has 12,300 inhabitants.

history

The farmer Hermann Brandt from Porta Westfalica came to South Africa in 1894 together with his wife Anna Maria geb. Mähler as the first white settler in the region of today's Mariental, where he bought the Gui-ganabis farm from the captain of the Orlam , Hendrik Witbooi . Gui-ganabis was renamed Mariental by Hermann Brandt after his wife's first name . At the end of the 1890s, 15 German soldiers were stationed on the Mariental farm and a police station was set up shortly afterwards .

Between 1903 and 1907, during the Herero and Nama uprisings in the area of today's Mariental, there were repeated clashes between the German protection forces and the rebels.

In 1911 Mariental was connected to the railway network of German South West Africa , with the line running a few kilometers west of the original Mariental farm. Due to the railway connection, the population continued to grow and the first shops and companies started up on site. As early as 1912, the residents of the settlement filed a petition for the official elevation of Mariental to a village. The First World War and the accompanying end of German South West Africa, however, delayed this concern. From 1915 Mariental was then under South African administration.

Shortly after the foundation stone was laid for a church in 1920, the settlement was officially elevated to the status of the village of Mariental by South African sovereignty. In 1946 it was elevated to the status of town.

Local politics

The following official final result was determined in the 2015 local elections .

Political party	be right	Share of votes	Seats
SWAPO	1325	85.1%	6th
DTA	139	08.9%	1
RDP	93	05.9%	0
All in all	1557	100%	7th

administration

Mariental is divided into several districts, u. a.

Empelheim with the "Namibia Dairies Village"

Economy and Transport

Hardap Dam

Mariental station (2019)

Today, Mariental is the administrative center, agricultural and commercial center of the central south of Namibia.
The Hartlief Corporation Ltd operates an in Mariental slaughterhouse .

The city is located both on the Fish River and on the B1 national road - the country's north-south axis - about 250 km south of the Namibian capital Windhoek and is a supply center for the Nama people living here and the surrounding farms. In addition, the main road C19 leads west to Maltahöhe as well as the main road C20 to the northeast. The city has an airfield ( Mariental Airfield ; ICAO : FYML).

The Hardap reservoir made it possible to set up a larger irrigation area, so that not only karakul sheep are raised in the area around Mariental , but also wine , fruit and vegetable cultivation is possible. The dam is 862 meters long, the dammed water area is on average 25 km². Huge ostrich farms were located north of the city along the B1 during the boom . Today (as of February 2016) there are no more ostrich farms there.

tourism

The Hardap Dam, which was inaugurated in 1963, is of particular touristic importance. Around this is the Hardap Recreation Area , a popular local recreation area with numerous African wildlife species, including kudu . Here you will find accommodation from Namibia Wildlife Resorts . Mariental is also considered the gateway to the Kalahari .

There are numerous guest accommodations in Mariental itself.

Special

In March 2006, when the Hardap sluices were opened, the city was hit by a tidal wave and almost completely flooded. The damage caused by this flood was quickly removed, but social life in the city was paralyzed for a long time. Since then, the city has been surrounded on the east side by dikes up to three meters high .

The non-profit association “Bicycles for Africa eV” has set up a bicycle workshop in Mariental, together with the local Catholic Aids Action and the “Bicycling Empowerment Network Namibia” (BEN Namibia), in which HIV- positive people are trained to become bicycle mechanics. They repair used bicycles, which are then sold cheaply to the population.

Educational institutions

Elementary schools

Danie Joubert Primary School
Empelheim Primary School
H. Vedder Primary School
New Hariseb Primary School
Sonop Primary School

Further training

Empelheim High School
Mariental Junior Secondary School
Mariental Secondary School

sons and daughters of the town

Andreas Guibeb (* 1954), Namibian diplomat
George Hummel (* 1976), Namibian football player
Margaret Mensah-Williams (* 1961), Namibian politician and spokesperson for the National Council from 2015 to 2019
Marlene Mungunda (* 1954), Namibian politician