South AfricaSouth Africa A country of southern Africa on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Originally inhabited by the San and Khoikhoi, the region was settled by various Bantu peoples c. 1500. European settlement began with the Dutch in the mid-1600s. The region passed to Great Britain in 1814 but was hotly contested by descendants of the Dutch settlers in the Boer War (1899-1902), in which Britain took possession of the entire territory, creating the Union of South Africa in 1910. South Africa declared itself a republic in 1961, severed ties with the British Commonwealth, and further consolidated the apartheid system, which was repealed beginning in 1989. An interim constitution ending white rule was adopted in 1993, and the first multiracial elections were held in 1994. Pretoria is the administrative capital; Cape Town, the legislative capital; and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital. Johannesburg is the largest city.South African adj. & n.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.South Africa n (Placename) Republic of South Africa a republic occupying the southernmost part of the African continent: the Dutch Cape Colony (1652) was acquired by Britain in 1806 and British victory in the Boer War resulted in the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910, which became a republic in 1961; implementation of the apartheid system began in 1948 and was abolished, following an intense civil rights campaign, in 1993, with multiracial elections held in 1994; a member of the Commonwealth, it withdrew in 1961 but was readmitted in 1994. Mainly plateau with mountains in the south and east. Mineral production includes gold, diamonds, coal, and copper. Official languages: Afrikaans; English; Ndebele; Pedi; South Sotho; Swazi; Tsonga; Tswana; Venda; Xhosa; Zulu. Religion: Christian majority. Currency: rand. Capitals: Cape Town (legislative), Pretoria (administrative), Bloemfontein (judicial). Pop: 48 601 098 (2013 est). Area: 1 221 044 sq km (471 445 sq miles). Former name (1910?61): Union of South Africa Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014South` Af?rica n. Republic of, a country in S Africa; member of the Commonwealth of Nations until 1961. 43,426,386; 472,000 sq. mi. (1,222,480 sq. km). Caps.: Pretoria and Cape Town. Formerly, Union of South Africa. South` Af?rican, adj., n. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.