29 May, 2005

Pretoria to Tshwane

South Africa is planning to change its capital's name from Pretoria to Tshwane. But this plan is arousing national controversy, deviding the white and black citizens.

Each name, Pretoria and Tshwane, has each root. Pretoria was named after Andries Pretorius, a hero of the Afrikaner group, which established apartheid. Tshwane, which means "We are the same", is the name given to the region by early African groups.

According to BBC news, many of white South Africans think that "the name Pretoria is part of a proud history", while the black see this as going back to their roots.

The point is that the black seek identity from the new city name and the disappear of Pretoria means, to the white, losing their citizenship.

There is also the fact concerning the cost for renaming. The opposition Democratic Alliance, which has strong support among whites, says that 1.5 billion Rand ($256m) would be needed for the switch and would be better spent on improving services.

The city council approved the switch to Tshwane in March as part of moves to make place names more African.

Pretoria's renaming is part of a national drive to make South African cities sound more African, which its proponents say fits with a continent-wide trend in the post-colonial era.

More information here:
» BBC News | Mixed response to Pretoria change
» BBC News | South Africans to rename capital
» BBC News | City names mark changing times