The city of Cape Town is situated on
south western tip of African continent, in one of most beautiful natural locations in world. The original inhabitants of Cape region were Khoi San people whose ancestry can be traced back thousands of years, through discovery of fossils and artifacts, to origins of humanity in Central Africa. The "Mother City" as Cape Town has become known over years was first South African port established by European settlers in 16th century.
Dutch sailors working for VOC - Dutch East India Company set up a refreshment station at Cape. They also established Company Gardens in city which was used to provide passing ships on route to West Indies with fresh produce. The gardens still exist and have been cultivated and transformed into a place of relaxation for Capetonians.
Early Culture and language. The first Muslim slaves were brought in to Cape from Madagascar in 17th century to help run refreshment station. This immigration continued until 1834 and was expanded to include slaves from African countries such as Angola and Mozambique, West Indies and Sri Lanka.
Various languages were spoken in those early days but most predominant was Malay. Gradually Afrikaans language, a simplified form of Dutch containing elements of Malay and originally used for communicating with their masters, took over among slaves. It spread inland throughout South Africa when descendants of Cape Dutch and French settlers trekked north to colonise interior and eventually establish Afrikaner nation.
The Cape Malays of today with their unique Muslim cultural heritage, and Christian 'coloured' community descended from mixed blood unions between early settlers, indigenous Khoi and slaves who brought their African Indian culture into Cape.
In 17th century British settlers arrived and annexed Cape declaring it a British Colony. They developed city of Cape Town using slave labour. Slavery was eventually abolished in 19th century. The British went on to develop and colonise South Africa. Elements of their influence in Cape are still visble in architecture of many buildings in surrounding coastal towns eg. Simonstown
Cape Town Attractions. The ancient Table Mountain often draped in swirling cloud and flanked by its attendants Devil's Peak and Lion's Head, forms an impressive backdrop to sprawling city of Cape Town and is a well known subject for many postcards and photographs. It stands at head of a chain of mountains forming Cape Peninsula National Park which follow line of Peninsula to Cape Point.
