Koster, North West

Koster is a small farming town situated on the watershed between the Orange and Limpopo Rivers in North West Province of South Africa.

Koster
Koster
Koster
Coordinates: 25°52′S 26°54′E
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceNorth West
DistrictBojanala Platinum
MunicipalityKgetlengrivier
Government
 • TypeMunicipal Council
 • Mayor(ANC)
Area
 • Total21.12 km2 (8.15 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total19,499
 • Density920/km2 (2,400/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
 • Black African89.6%
 • Coloured1.2%
 • Indian/Asian0.5%
 • White7.5%
 • Other1.2%
First languages (2011)
 • Tswana79.2%
 • Afrikaans7.6%
 • English3.6%
 • Zulu1.5%
 • Other8.1%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)
0348
PO box
0348
Area code014

History

The town was proclaimed in 1913 and named after Bastiaan Koster, the original farm owner. Koster means "bellringer".

Geography

Town 58 km south-west of Rustenburg and 72 km west-north-west of Magaliesburg. It was founded on the farm Kleinfontein in 1913, and has been administered by a village council since January 1931. Said to have been named either after Dr Herman Jacob Coster (1866–1899), State Attorney of the South African Republic, after its surveyor, or after Bastiaan Hendricus Koster, owner of the farm Kleinfontein. The latter explanation seems most plausible.[2]

The Elands River, the Koster River and the Mooi River have their sources near the town.[3]

References
  1. Sum of the Main Places Reagile and Koster from Census 2011.
  2. "Dictionary of Southern African Place Names (Public Domain)". Human Science Research Council. p. 260.
  3. Koster - Visit South Africa Archived 2012-09-19 at Archive.today

Heine-Lize Becker

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