The Caprivi Strip, also known simply as Caprivi, is a geographic salient protruding from the northeastern corner of Namibia. It is bordered by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zambia to the north. Namibia, Botswana and Zambia meet at a single point at the eastern tip of the Strip, which also comes within 150 m (490 ft) of Zimbabwe thus nearly forming a quadripoint. Botswana and Zambia share a 150-metre (490 ft) border at the crossing of Kazungula. The territory was acquired by then-German South West Africa in order to provide access to the Zambezi River and consequently a route to the east coast of the continent and German East Africa. The route was later found not to be navigable because of the location of the Victoria Falls, one of the world's largest waterfalls, about 65 kilometres (40 miles) east of the Caprivi Strip.[1]
Map of the Caprivi
Within Namibia, the Strip is divided administratively between the Kavango East and Zambezi regions. It is crossed by the Okavango River. The Cuando River forms part of its border with Botswana, and the Zambezi River forms a part of its border with Zambia. The width of the strip varies from about 32 km (20 mi) to 105 km (65 mi). Its largest settlement is Katima Mulilo, located at the point where the Zambezi reaches the Strip.
When Namibia was a German colony, the Caprivi Strip was known in German as Caprivizipfel. Before colonisation, it was known as Itenge. During a short-lived secession attempt around the year 2000, the name Itenge was used by the separatists. It is also sometimes called the Okavango Panhandle.
LanguagesEdit
Inhabitants of the Caprivi Strip speak a number of African languages, mostly members of the Bantu language family, with speakers of Hukwe, a San language, in the northwest of the strip near the border with Angola. The Bantu languages include Yeyi (or 'Yei' or 'Yeeyi'),[2][better source needed]Mbukushu, Gciriku (or 'Dciriku'), Fwe, Totela, and Subiya. The Silozi language is a lingua Franca of the Caprivi Strip, especially in Katima Mulilo, where some residents speak Lozi, a language of western Zambia.[3] as a lingua franca. Many also speak English, while Afrikaans has almost disappeared.
Natural featuresEdit
Village in the Caprivi Strip
The area is rich in natural wildlife and has mineral resources. Of particular interest to the government of Namibia is that it gives access to the Zambezi River and is thereby a potential trading route to Africa's East Coast. However, the vagaries of the river level, various rapids, the presence of the Victoria Falls downstream and continued political uncertainty in the region make this use of the Caprivi Strip unlikely. However, it may be used for ecotourism in the future.
Within Namibia the Caprivi Strip provides significant habitat for the critically endangeredAfrican wild dog (Lycaon pictus).[4] It is a corridor for African elephant moving from Botswana and Namibia into Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe. National parks found in the Caprivi Strip are Bwabwata National Park, Mudumu National Park and Nkasa Rupara National Park. Local communities have organised themselves into communal area conservancies and community forests. People work closely with the Namibian Government to jointly manage natural resources through several programmes set up between the Namibian Government and various donor parties.[5]
Caprivi was named after German ChancellorLeo von Caprivi (in office 1890–1894), who negotiated the acquisition of the land in an 1890 exchange with the United Kingdom. Caprivi arranged for the Caprivi strip to be annexed to German South West Africa in order to give Germany access to the Zambezi River and a route to Africa's east coast, where the colony of German East Africa (now part of Tanzania) was situated.[1] The transfer of territory was a part of the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty of 1890, in which Germany gave up its interest in Zanzibar in return for the Caprivi Strip and the island of Heligoland in the North Sea.[6] The river later proved unnavigable and inaccessible to the Indian Ocean due to the location of the Victoria Falls, a fact that was possibly already known to the British side during the negotiations. Caprivi itself was remote and inaccessible during the rainy season, and the Germans did not find use for it. After a mineral expedition in 1909 proved unsuccessful, Germany contemplated exchanging the strip for some other British territory, such as Walvis Bay. When that territory was transferred to the Cape Colony by the British in 1910, Germany was stuck with Caprivi for the rest of its colonial history.[1]
In 1976, the South African administration established the self-governing Eastern Caprivi homeland with its own flag, national anthem, and coat of arms.[7] It remained under direct de facto control of the South African government in Pretoria until 1980, when its administration was transferred to South West Africa's administration in Windhoek.[8]
In the late 20th century, the Caprivi Strip attracted attention when Namibia and Botswana took a long-standing dispute over its southern boundary to the International Court of Justice. The core of the territorial dispute concerned which channel of the Chobe River was the thalweg, the bona fide international boundary. This was important, as, depending on the decision, a large island (known as Kasikili or Sedudu, by Namibia and Botswana respectively) would fall into one or the other's national territory. The Botswana government considered the island as an integral part of the Chobe National Park, whereas the Namibian government, and many inhabitants of the eastern Caprivi Strip, held that not only was the island part of the original German–British agreement, but generations of inhabitants had used it for seasonal grazing, for reed-gathering, and as a burial site. In December 1999, the International Court of Justice ruled that the main channel, and hence the international boundary, lay to the north of the island, thus making the island part of Botswana.[9]
PoliticsEdit
The Caprivi Strip is of politico-strategic military importance. During the Rhodesian Bush War (1964–1979), South West African People's Organization's and Caprivi African National Union's (CANU) liberation war against the South African occupation (1965–1994) and the Angolan Civil War (1975–2002), the Strip saw continual military action and multiple incursions by various armed forces using the Strip as a corridor to access other territories.[10]
Caprivi conflictEdit
Namibian military escort through the Caprivi Strip.
The Caprivi conflict involved an armed conflict in Namibia between the Caprivi Liberation Army (CLA), a rebel group aiming for the secession of the Caprivi Strip led by Mishake Muyongo, and the Namibian government. Its main eruption occurred on 2 August 1999 when the CLA launched an attack in Katima Mulilo, occupying the state-run radio station and attacking a police station, the Wenela border post, and an army base. Namibian armed forces quashed the attempt at secession within a few days.[11]
NotesEdit
^ abcJacobs, Frank (5 December 2011). . The New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 October 2013.
^Simon S. Donnelly. (1990). Phonology and morphology of the noun in Yeeyi. University of Cape Town: BA Hons mini-dissertation.
^State of Protected Areas in Namibia. Windhoek, Namibia: Ministry of Environment and Tourism. 2011.
^Perras, Arne (2004). Carl Peters and German Imperialism 1856–1918 : A Political Biography: A Political Biography. Clarendon Press. pp. 168–79. ISBN9780191514722.
^Inambao, Chrispin (December 2010). "Rapid growth to urban centre". New Era.
^Lenggenhager, Luregn (2015). "Nature, War and Development: South Africa's Caprivi Strip, 1960–1980". Journal of Southern African Studies. 41 (3): 467–483. doi:10.1080/03057070.2015.1025337. S2CID 142811673.
^Lenggenhager, Luregn (2018). Ruling nature, controlling people : nature conservation, development and war in North-Eastern Namibia since the 1920s. Basel: Basler Afrika Bibliographien. ISBN9783906927015. OCLC 1066193724.
^"Civil supremacy of the military in Namibia: A retrospective case study". NamibWeb. Retrieved 8 November 2008.
ReferencesEdit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Caprivi.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Caprivi.
Derek F. Gowlett. 1989. The parentage and development of Lozi. Journal of African Languages and Literature, 11, 127–149.
caprivi, strip, also, known, simply, caprivi, geographic, salient, protruding, from, northeastern, corner, namibia, bordered, botswana, south, angola, zambia, north, namibia, botswana, zambia, meet, single, point, eastern, strip, which, also, comes, within, zi. The Caprivi Strip also known simply as Caprivi is a geographic salient protruding from the northeastern corner of Namibia It is bordered by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zambia to the north Namibia Botswana and Zambia meet at a single point at the eastern tip of the Strip which also comes within 150 m 490 ft of Zimbabwe thus nearly forming a quadripoint Botswana and Zambia share a 150 metre 490 ft border at the crossing of Kazungula The territory was acquired by then German South West Africa in order to provide access to the Zambezi River and consequently a route to the east coast of the continent and German East Africa The route was later found not to be navigable because of the location of the Victoria Falls one of the world s largest waterfalls about 65 kilometres 40 miles east of the Caprivi Strip 1 Map of the CapriviWithin Namibia the Strip is divided administratively between the Kavango East and Zambezi regions It is crossed by the Okavango River The Cuando River forms part of its border with Botswana and the Zambezi River forms a part of its border with Zambia The width of the strip varies from about 32 km 20 mi to 105 km 65 mi Its largest settlement is Katima Mulilo located at the point where the Zambezi reaches the Strip Contents 1 Toponym 2 Languages 3 Natural features 4 History 4 1 Colonization by Germany 5 Politics 5 1 Caprivi conflict 6 Notes 7 ReferencesToponym EditWhen Namibia was a German colony the Caprivi Strip was known in German as Caprivizipfel Before colonisation it was known as Itenge During a short lived secession attempt around the year 2000 the name Itenge was used by the separatists It is also sometimes called the Okavango Panhandle Languages EditInhabitants of the Caprivi Strip speak a number of African languages mostly members of the Bantu language family with speakers of Hukwe a San language in the northwest of the strip near the border with Angola The Bantu languages include Yeyi or Yei or Yeeyi 2 better source needed Mbukushu Gciriku or Dciriku Fwe Totela and Subiya The Silozi language is a lingua Franca of the Caprivi Strip especially in Katima Mulilo where some residents speak Lozi a language of western Zambia 3 as a lingua franca Many also speak English while Afrikaans has almost disappeared Natural features Edit nbsp Village in the Caprivi StripThe area is rich in natural wildlife and has mineral resources Of particular interest to the government of Namibia is that it gives access to the Zambezi River and is thereby a potential trading route to Africa s East Coast However the vagaries of the river level various rapids the presence of the Victoria Falls downstream and continued political uncertainty in the region make this use of the Caprivi Strip unlikely However it may be used for ecotourism in the future Within Namibia the Caprivi Strip provides significant habitat for the critically endangered African wild dog Lycaon pictus 4 It is a corridor for African elephant moving from Botswana and Namibia into Angola Zambia and Zimbabwe National parks found in the Caprivi Strip are Bwabwata National Park Mudumu National Park and Nkasa Rupara National Park Local communities have organised themselves into communal area conservancies and community forests People work closely with the Namibian Government to jointly manage natural resources through several programmes set up between the Namibian Government and various donor parties 5 History Edit nbsp German chancellor Georg Leo Graf von Caprivi de Caprera de Montecuccoli who gave his name to the Caprivi StripColonization by Germany Edit Caprivi was named after German Chancellor Leo von Caprivi in office 1890 1894 who negotiated the acquisition of the land in an 1890 exchange with the United Kingdom Caprivi arranged for the Caprivi strip to be annexed to German South West Africa in order to give Germany access to the Zambezi River and a route to Africa s east coast where the colony of German East Africa now part of Tanzania was situated 1 The transfer of territory was a part of the Heligoland Zanzibar Treaty of 1890 in which Germany gave up its interest in Zanzibar in return for the Caprivi Strip and the island of Heligoland in the North Sea 6 The river later proved unnavigable and inaccessible to the Indian Ocean due to the location of the Victoria Falls a fact that was possibly already known to the British side during the negotiations Caprivi itself was remote and inaccessible during the rainy season and the Germans did not find use for it After a mineral expedition in 1909 proved unsuccessful Germany contemplated exchanging the strip for some other British territory such as Walvis Bay When that territory was transferred to the Cape Colony by the British in 1910 Germany was stuck with Caprivi for the rest of its colonial history 1 In 1976 the South African administration established the self governing Eastern Caprivi homeland with its own flag national anthem and coat of arms 7 It remained under direct de facto control of the South African government in Pretoria until 1980 when its administration was transferred to South West Africa s administration in Windhoek 8 In the late 20th century the Caprivi Strip attracted attention when Namibia and Botswana took a long standing dispute over its southern boundary to the International Court of Justice The core of the territorial dispute concerned which channel of the Chobe River was the thalweg the bona fide international boundary This was important as depending on the decision a large island known as Kasikili or Sedudu by Namibia and Botswana respectively would fall into one or the other s national territory The Botswana government considered the island as an integral part of the Chobe National Park whereas the Namibian government and many inhabitants of the eastern Caprivi Strip held that not only was the island part of the original German British agreement but generations of inhabitants had used it for seasonal grazing for reed gathering and as a burial site In December 1999 the International Court of Justice ruled that the main channel and hence the international boundary lay to the north of the island thus making the island part of Botswana 9 Politics EditThe Caprivi Strip is of politico strategic military importance During the Rhodesian Bush War 1964 1979 South West African People s Organization s and Caprivi African National Union s CANU liberation war against the South African occupation 1965 1994 and the Angolan Civil War 1975 2002 the Strip saw continual military action and multiple incursions by various armed forces using the Strip as a corridor to access other territories 10 Caprivi conflict Edit nbsp Namibian military escort through the Caprivi Strip Main article Caprivi conflict The Caprivi conflict involved an armed conflict in Namibia between the Caprivi Liberation Army CLA a rebel group aiming for the secession of the Caprivi Strip led by Mishake Muyongo and the Namibian government Its main eruption occurred on 2 August 1999 when the CLA launched an attack in Katima Mulilo occupying the state run radio station and attacking a police station the Wenela border post and an army base Namibian armed forces quashed the attempt at secession within a few days 11 Notes Edit a b c Jacobs Frank 5 December 2011 A Few Salient Points The New York Times Archived from the original on 17 October 2013 Simon S Donnelly 1990 Phonology and morphology of the noun in Yeeyi University of Cape Town BA Hons mini dissertation Derek F Gowlett 1989 C Michael Hogan 2009 State of Protected Areas in Namibia Windhoek Namibia Ministry of Environment and Tourism 2011 Perras Arne 2004 Carl Peters and German Imperialism 1856 1918 A Political Biography A Political Biography Clarendon Press pp 168 79 ISBN 9780191514722 Inambao Chrispin December 2010 Rapid growth to urban centre New Era Lenggenhager Luregn 2015 Nature War and Development South Africa s Caprivi Strip 1960 1980 Journal of Southern African Studies 41 3 467 483 doi 10 1080 03057070 2015 1025337 S2CID 142811673 The Court finds that Kasikili Sedudu Island forms part of the territory of Botswana archive link Lenggenhager Luregn 2018 Ruling nature controlling people nature conservation development and war in North Eastern Namibia since the 1920s Basel Basler Afrika Bibliographien ISBN 9783906927015 OCLC 1066193724 Civil supremacy of the military in Namibia A retrospective case study NamibWeb Retrieved 8 November 2008 References Edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Caprivi nbsp Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Caprivi Derek F Gowlett 1989 The parentage and development of Lozi Journal of African Languages and Literature 11 127 149 C Michael Hogan 2009 Painted Hunting Dog Lycaon pictus GlobalTwitcher com ed N Stromberg17 52 12 S 23 01 48 E 17 8700 S 23 0300 E 17 8700 23 0300 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Caprivi Strip amp oldid 1170329319, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
