More name changes in South Africa on the way

Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie says that the South African Geographical Names Council (SAGNC) and the Provincial Geographical Names Committees (PGNCs) are planning a fresh push for name changes in the country.

Responding to a recent written parliamentary Q&A, the minister said that the groups have been conducting ongoing “awareness campaigns” on the need to “transform the geographical names landscape”.

“It will continue with this process, and we are currently planning to conduct national awareness using both national broadcasting and social media platforms,” he said.

While the trend of changing geographical names seems alive and well in the seventh administration, there also appears to be little desire to centralise the process within the department.

When asked whether he would consider introducing new laws to give him the power to institute name-change processes and not rely on municipalities to facilitate them, the minister said that communities remain the ones who need to initiate these changes.

“The SAGNC Act, the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA) Act, and the United Nations Resolutions on geographical names stress public involvement/inclusion concerning the standardization of geographical names,” he said.

“All members of the public, especially those who have been historically marginalised, have the right to have their voices heard in the transformation of geographical names,” the minister said.

He added that communities must identify and support the new names where old names are being replaced and that municipalities facilitate public consultations.

“Thus, it is crucial for the minister to rely on the involvement of both municipalities and the public,” he said.

Name changes are coming

South Africans should expect a host of name changes in the coming years.

There are currently 66 applications for name changes for several geographical features in South Africa, listed by the South African Geographic Names Council (SAGNC) as being processed.

These name changes will apply to various geographical features across the country as outlined within the SAGNC mandate, including towns, villages, settlements, townships, mountains, rivers, airports, roads, and post offices.

The council has gazetted and named or renamed 1,505 geographical features in South Africa since its inception.

Many of the name changes are taking place in only a handful of provinces, with the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal being particularly aggressive in this.

The total number of applications received and gazetted in KZN since the start of the geographical names process in the Republic of South Africa stands at 362, while the Eastern Cape Geographical Names Committee (ECPGNC) has noted 312.

Aside from naming new geographic features in KwaZulu-Natal in 2023, most of the changed names for towns and cities for that year were in the Eastern Cape.

In August, MEC for Sports, Recreation, Art and Culture in the Eastern Cape, Sibulele Ngongo, said her department is moving ahead with further name changes in the province, with big towns being targeted—including a change for East London.

On the other hand, people living in provinces like the Free State have shown a greater desire for the government to address service delivery issues rather than name changes. However, the provincial government is still pushing for changes.

In 2024, two prominent name changes that were pushed through include renaming Willliam Nicol Drive in Joburg to Winnie Mandela Drive, and renaming Ladysmith in KwaZulu Natal to Alfred Duma.

Read: Goodbye East London – big name changes coming for South Africa