Country · Africa
South Africa
Republic of South Africa
South Africa is a country in Southern Africa. About 57.8 million people live there, in an area of 1 221 037 square kilometres. Its capital city is Pretoria.
South Africa has three capitals: the government sits in Pretoria, parliament in Cape Town and the country's highest appeal court in Bloemfontein.
Picture credit: Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Satdeep Gill (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Nina R (CC BY 4.0) · Petrus (Public domain) · lumoplank (CC0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is South Africa?
South Africa lies in Southern Africa, on the continent of Africa.
It sits in the southern half of the world, roughly 3 228 km from the equator.
Its coastline is about 2 798 km long.
It shares a border with 6 countries: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe.
How big is South Africa?
South Africa covers 1 221 037 square kilometres.
That is about 12 times the size of Iceland.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 24th largest.
Spread everybody out evenly and you get about 47.3 people on every square kilometre.
That is close to the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in South Africa?
About 57.8 million people live in South Africa.
That is the 24th biggest population in the world.
People here speak Afrikaans, English, Southern Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Southern Sotho, Swazi, Tswana, Tsonga, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu.
They pay with the South African rand (R).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 51 years.
The land of South Africa
The land of South Africa sits on average 1 034 metres above sea level — high enough that much of it counts as mountain country.
Its coast runs for about 2 798 km. Walking it end to end, at twenty kilometres a day, would take roughly 140 days.
It lies between the tropics and the poles, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes South Africa different?
A dish the country is known for: Bobotie.
Websites from here often end in .za.
South Africa and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about 8 live in South Africa.
It takes up about 0.92 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Africa the country ranks 9th of 54 by size, and 5th by population.
South Africa and its neighbours
South Africa is about 1.5 times the size of Namibia, its largest neighbour.
More people live in South Africa than in Namibia — 57.8 million against 2.4 million.
Nature and animals
Of the animals on this site, 39 live wild in South Africa: Lion, African elephant, Giraffe, Zebra, Hippopotamus, White rhinoceros and more. The highest mountain in the country is Mafadi, at 3 446 metres. The longest river in the country is the Orange River. The largest lake in the country is Lake Sibaya.
Lion
African elephant
Giraffe
Zebra
Hippopotamus
White rhinoceros
Cheetah
Leopard
Meerkat
African buffalo
Barn owl
Ostrich
Photographs from Wikimedia Commons under free licences — every credit is on the page itself and in the picture credits.
How big is South Africa compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 7.7 times as big as South Africa: 9 372 610 km² against 1 221 037 km². See both on one map
- South Africa is about 5 times as big as the United Kingdom: 1 221 037 km² against 242 900 km². See both on one map
Questions children ask
What is the capital of South Africa?
The capital of South Africa is Pretoria.
How many people live in South Africa?
About 57.8 million people live in South Africa, which makes it the 24th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border South Africa?
How big is South Africa?
South Africa covers 1 221 037 square kilometres, making it the 24th largest country in the world. That is about 12 times the size of Iceland.
What is the highest mountain in South Africa?
The highest mountain in South Africa is Mafadi, 3 446 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in South Africa?
The longest river in South Africa is the Orange River. The whole river measures about 2 432 kilometres, and part of that course runs through the country.
What is the largest lake in South Africa?
The largest lake in South Africa is Lake Sibaya. It covers about 64 km².
Which continent is South Africa in?
South Africa is in Africa, in the part called Southern Africa.
Where these numbers come from
Borders and outlines: Natural Earth. Names, capitals, areas, languages and currencies: ISO 3166 data (world-countries). Population: World Bank, 2018. Every derived figure on this page (ranks, density, distance from the equator) is calculated from those values.
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