Uitenhage is a
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n town with 275,185 inhabitants in the Eastern Cape Province. It is well known for the
VolkswagenVolkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
factory located there, which is the biggest car factory on the
AfricaAfrica is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n continent. The town's name is pronounced ˈjuːtɨnheɪɡ by
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
speakers and œjtənˈɦɑːxə in
AfrikaansAfrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...
. The city of Port Elizabeth and the small town of Despatch are located near Uitenhage.
History
Uitenhage was founded on 25 April 1804 by
landdrostLanddrost was the title of various officials with local jurisdiction. It is of Dutch origin, with land- corresponding to the English meaning of an area, suggesting a somewhat larger jurisdiction than just a village or estate; and drost being a short form of Drossaard, one of many similar titles in...
(district magistrate) Jacob Glen Cuyler and named in honour of the Cape's Commissioner-General Jacob Abraham Uitenhage de Mist by the Dutch
Cape ColonyThe Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
governor,
Jan Willem JanssensJonkheer Jan Willem Janssens GCMWO was a Dutch nobleman, soldier and statesman who served both as the governor-general of the Cape Colony and Dutch East Indies.-Early life:...
. Uitenhage formed from part of the district of
Graaff ReinetGraaff-Reinet is a town in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is the fourth oldest town in South Africa, after Cape Town, Stellenbosch and Swellendam.-History:...
(shortly after its short-lived secession) and in
1877-Events:* Xhosas clash with the white settlers starting the 9th Cape Frontier War which ends the following year* Native Locations or reservations for Tswana people are established in Griqualand West...
it became a municipality.
In 1985, police opened fire on a funeral procession in Uitenhage, killing a number of unarmed people, in an event that became notorious as an example of police oppression in South Africa under apartheid.
In
2001-March:* 4 March – Ian Syster wins his first national title in the men's marathon, clocking 2:13:30 in Durban.* 18 March – The Department of Health declines the offer of a large donation of HIV test kits made by Guardian Scientific Africa Incorporated-April:...
it was incorporated with Port Elizabeth and Despatch into the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality.
Industries
Uitenhage is known for the large industries situated there. The largest of these industries are the
VolkswagenVolkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
and
GoodyearThe Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling. Goodyear manufactures tires for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, SUVs, race cars, airplanes, farm equipment and heavy earth-mover machinery....
factories. An
automotiveThe automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue....
supplier park, Alexander Park Industrial, has also been created directly next to the Volkswagen factory, thus allowing automotive component manufacturers to construct their manufacturing plants close by.
Notable people from Uitenhage
- Allan Hendrickse
Helenard Joe Hendrickse was a South African politician, Congregationalist minister, and teacher. He participated in an act of defiance by swimming at a South African beach reserved for whites only. He was born in Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape and died of a heart attack at Port Elizabeth's airport...
- Preacher-teacher-politician from apartheid politics
- Okkert Brits
Okkert Brits is a South African athlete competing in the pole vault. His current personal best of 6.03m, set in 1995, is also the African record. He has won numerous medals at international events. He has competed in the 1996, 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games finishing 7th in 2000...
- Olympic pole vaulter
- Nantie Hayward
Mornantau 'Nantie' Hayward is a South African cricketer. He is a right-arm fast bowler, who, according to Peter Robinson, "has genuine pace, the ability to get bounce and abundant energy"...
- South African cricketer who now plays in the Indian Cricket LeagueThe Indian Cricket League was a private cricket league funded by Zee Entertainment Enterprises that operated between 2007 and 2009 in India...
- The Invaders
The Invaders, a Quinn Martin Production , is an ABC science fiction television program created by Larry Cohen that ran in the United States for two seasons, from January 10, 1967 to March 26, 1968...
- popular South African music group from the 1960s
- Joseph Petrus Hendrik Crowe
Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Petrus Hendrik Crowe VC was the second South African-born recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces...
- British ArmyThe British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer who was awarded the Victoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
- Christo van Rensburg
Christo van Rensburg is a former professional tennis player from South Africa.Van Rensburg turned professional in 1983...
- South African tennis player, ATPThe Association of Tennis Professionals or ATP was formed in 1972 by Donald Dell, Jack Kramer, and Cliff Drysdale to protect the interests of male professional tennis players. Since 1990, the association has organized the worldwide tennis tour for men and linked the title of the tour with the...
-ranked singles #19 in 1988 and doubles #5 in 1987
- Lee-Roy Wright - South African actor and television presenter
- Garth Wright - Springbok rugby
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
scrum-half from Muir CollegeMuir College is a public, English medium school for boys located in Uitenhage, South Africa. Muir caters for pupils from Grades 4 to 12.-History:Muir College of Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape is one of South Africa's oldest schools, if not the oldest....
in the late 80s and early 90s
- Enoch Sontonga
Enoch Mankayi Sontonga was the composer of Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika , which has been part of the South African national anthem since 1994. It was also the official African National Congress anthem since 1925 and is still the national anthem of Tanzania and Zambia...
- composer of Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika"Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" , was originally composed as a hymn by a Methodist mission school in Johannesburg teacher, Enoch Sontonga in 1897, to the tune 'Aberystwyth' by Joseph Parry...
, now part of the national anthem