433 



THE EAKLY.HISTOEY OF THE CAPE PROVINCE, AS 

 ILLUSTRATED BY DUTCH PLACE NAMES. 



BY 



C. Graham Botha, 

 Keeper of the Archives, Capetou-ii . 



Read July 12, 1922. 



In the last few years a great deal of interest has been taken 

 in that fascinating study, Place Names. The student of this 

 subject in relation to South Africa must be grateful to the Rev. 

 Chas. Pettman, one of the members of this Association, who has 

 devoted a great deal of time to it. He has not only contributed 

 to the papers read before this section of the Association and to 

 various magazines, but has recently given us in pamphlet form 

 his " Place Names in the Orange Free State." If he will permit 

 me, I would like to call him the " Father of Place Names in 

 South Africa," for I really think he is the pioneer in taking up 

 this inquiry and has inculcated in some of us a desire to assist 

 and add our qviota to a svibject which is of never-failing interest. 



When lecturing in public on South African historical subjects 

 I have frequently touched on the point of Place Names in this 

 country and pleaded not only for their retention but also for their 

 correct spelling. Too often we find farm names which date back 

 to two centuries ago, and maybe have some history attached to 

 them, being changed to some modern, I was almost going to say 

 meaningless, names. What I would like to see is that Place 

 Names which have stood the test of time, whether they be of 

 Portuguese, Dutch, French, German, English or native origin, 

 may be retained. We can rest assured that both native and 

 European of the centuries ago had some reason for naming a 

 place, and this reason, if we could but always know what it was, 

 would enlighten us concerning the surrounding history of the place. 

 It is for this reason that I maintain that the original name should 

 be kept and not altered to some fanciful one. In the case of a 

 disagreeable name, or one which has come to be regarded as 

 vulgar with the passing of years, this objection naturally does not 

 apply. For instance, I do not desire to make anyone live on a 

 farm called Stinkfontein, a name given to many farms in the Cape 

 Province. 



In glancing at the map of South Africa we see place names 

 derived from a variety of European and native languages. They 

 tell us something of the history of the country. Many of the 



