Musina
| Musina | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
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| Coordinates | 22 ° 20 ′ S , 30 ° 3 ′ E | ||
| Basic data | |||
| Country | South Africa | ||
| Limpopo | |||
| District | Vhembe | ||
| ISO 3166-2 | ZA-LP | ||
| local community | Musina | ||
| height | 543 m | ||
| Residents | 42,678 (2011) | ||
Musina (until 2003: Messina ) is the northernmost city in the Republic of South Africa . It is located in the municipality of the same name in the Limpopo Province just south of the Limpopo River on the border with Zimbabwe . The Zimbabwean border town of Beitbridge is twelve kilometers away. Both places are connected by the Alfred Beit Bridge across the Limpopo. In 2011 Musina had 42,678 inhabitants.
history
The tribe of the Musina ( Tshivenda , German "copper") once discovered this metal and settled here. At the beginning of the 20th century, Europeans discovered the great copper deposits and founded the city of Messina. This name was changed in 2003. Copper mining has a long tradition. More than a thousand years before the first Europeans came to this area, there were people here who were already mining copper, trading with seafarers on the Indian Ocean and who are closely related to what would later become Greater Zimbabwe and the legendary Munhumutapa Empire . The former trading town of Schroda is about 40 kilometers west of Musina . From here around 800 copper has already been transported to the Indian Ocean. At that time one traded with East African and Chinese traders. Although the city was abandoned around 1000, it still appears on some Portuguese maps from the 16th century. Ceramics, ivory and porcelain and glass beads have been found during archaeological excavations.
Economy and Infrastructure
The main source of income is mining. Copper ore, iron ore, magnesium ore, coal, graphite, asbestos , diamonds and various gemstones are mined in the surrounding area.
In Musina there is a rail border crossing to Zimbabwe. It is used in freight transport and for tourist trains operated by Rovos Rail . The city is located on the national road N1 , the last section of which also crosses the border with Zimbabwe .
Attractions
In Musina there is a museum that shows some exhibits about the history of the settlement of the area by the Europeans and the prehistory. Some replicas of the treasures found in today's Mapungubwe (Schroda) are exhibited here.
South of the city, the Messina Nature Reserve was created in 1980 , which originally served to preserve the baobab trees . Today one tries to save rare antelope species from extinction.
literature
- Pieter Hugo : Musina / Messina . Punctum Press, Rome 2007, ISBN 978-88-95410-03-6 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ 2011 census , accessed October 5, 2013
