Keetmanshoop

Keetmanshoop
Keetmanshoop in the 1920s
Seal
Motto: Laborando vincimus
Keetmanshoop Location in Namibia
Coordinates: 26°34′43″S 18°8′0″E / 26.57861°S 18.133333°E / -26.57861; 18.133333
Country	Namibia
Region	Karas Region
Constitueny	Keetmanshoop Urban
Established	14 April 1866
Population
- Total	16,800
Time zone	South African Standard Time (UTC+1)

Keetmanshoop ("Keetman's hope" in English) is a city^[1] in Karas Region, southern Namibia, lying on the Trans-Namib Railway from Windhoek to Upington in South Africa. It is named after Johann Keetman, a German industrialist and founder of the city.

Before the arrival of Europeans, the area was known as Nu-gouses, which means "Black Marsh" and indicated the presence of a spring in the area. In 1860 the Rhenish Missionary Society founded a mission there to christianize the local Nama. The first missionary, Johann Georg Schröder, arrived in Keetmanshoop on April 14, 1866, which is now marked as the founding date of Keetmanshoop. The mission station was named after the German trader Johann Keetman who supported the mission financially, but never actually visited the place himself.

Notable buildings and structures

The Keetmanshoop Museum is located in the Rhenish Mission Church, a building dating back to 1895. The church was declared an historic monument in 1978 and is a well-known landmark. Its unique combination of Gothic architecture cast in African stone makes it one of the architectural masterpieces in the country and a popular tourist attraction. Another notable building is the post office, dating from 1910.

The town is situated near two quiver tree forests and the Naute Dam and is an important center of the Karakul sheep farming community.

J. Stephanus Stadium is located in Keetmanshoop and is home to Fedics United F.C., a football team in the Namibia Premier League.

Quiver tree Forest

References

1. ^ Alliance of Mayors and Municipal Leaders on HIV/AIDS in Africa

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