Johannesburg (redirected from Jo'burg)

Johannesburg (jōhăn`ĭsbörg', yōhä`nəsbörkh'), city (1991 pop. 1,574,631), Gauteng, NE South Africa, on the southern slopes of the Witwatersrand at an altitude of 5,750 ft (1,753 m). Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa, the center of its important gold-mining industry, its manufacturing and commercial center, and the hub of its transportation network. Gold mining is the sprawling city's chief industry. Manufactures include cut diamonds, industrial chemicals, plastics, cement, electrical, electronic, and mining equipment, paper and paper products, glass, food products, and beer. South Africa's main stock exchange (founded 1887) is in the city. O. R. Tambo International Airport is nearby. Johannesburg was founded as a mining settlement in 1886, when gold was found on the Witwatersrand; by 1900 the city had a population of c.100,000. Johannesburg's large black population provides labor for the mines. In accordance with apartheid law, racial groups were once restricted to separate residential areas; most blacks still live in Soweto. Formerly a group of townships southwest of the city, Soweto became an independent city in 1983. Rand Afrikaans Univ. (1966), the Univ. of the Witwatersrand (1922), and Witwatersrand College for Advanced Technical Education (1925) are in Johannesburg, as is the African Union's Pan-African Parliament. The city is also home to several museums, an art gallery, a planetarium, a zoo, a bird sanctuary, and numerous parks. Jan Smuts House is in the city. Nearby is Kyalami Circuit, where international motor races are held.

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Johannesburg

City (pop., 2001: metro. area, 3,225,810), northeastern South Africa. The capital of Gauteng province and one of the country's largest cities, it bestrides a highland region called the Witwatersrand. It was founded in 1886 after the discovery of gold nearby and was occupied by the British during the South African War in 1900. It was a legally segregated city until 1991; nonwhites were restricted to living in outlying areas called townships, including Soweto. Greater Johannesburg extends more than 600 sq mi (1,600 sq km) and includes more than 500 suburbs and townships. It is a leading industrial and financial centre. Its cultural and educational institutions include the Johannesburg Art Gallery, the Civic Theatre, the University of the Witwatersrand, and the University of Johannesburg.

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Johannesburg

a city in N South Africa; the capital of Gauteng province: South Africa's largest city and chief industrial centre; grew with the establishment in 1886 of the gold-mining industry; University of Witwatersrand (1922). Pop.: 1 009 036 (2001)