Subdivisions of South Africa: provinces in eleven languages, districts
South Africa has nine provinces, each named in all eleven spoken official languages, from Provinsie Wes-Kaap to iSifundazwe yaKwaZulu-Natali. The tables give every province and its capital in Afrikaans, English and the nine African languages, the ISO 3166-2 codes, and the 52 districts of the list with their seats.
- Provinces
- 9
- Groups
- 1
Updated
Eleven languages, one alphabet
South Africa writes every place name in up to eleven languages, all in the Latin alphabet. The province itself takes a different word in each: provinsie in Afrikaans, isifundazwe in Zulu, iphondo in Xhosa, xifundzankulu in Tsonga and phurovintsi in Venda. Most of the others borrow the English word, as profense, provense and porofense in the Sotho-Tswana group.
The Nguni languages, Zulu, Xhosa, Swati and Southern Ndebele, put a noun prefix before the name and write it with a capital in mid-word: iKapa for Cape Town, iPitoli for Pretoria, iNaspoti for Nelspruit. KwaZulu-Natal shows the same habit in its English name, and its capital Pietermaritzburg is umGungundlovu in Xhosa and Zulu.
Several capitals have their own names. Bloemfontein is Mangaung in the Sotho languages, Kimberley is Daemaneng in Sesotho and Tiamanteng beside Kimberley in Northern Sotho, and Johannesburg is iGoli in Zulu and iRhawutini in Xhosa.
Provinces of South Africa with capitals and ISO 3166-2 codes
The nine provinces with the capital the list gives and the ISO 3166-2 code. Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal received new codes in 2020; Nelspruit, the capital of Mpumalanga, has since been renamed Mbombela.
Provinces 9
| Province | Capital | ISO 3166-2 |
|---|---|---|
Eastern Cape Province
|
Bhisho
|
ZA-EC
|
Free State Province
|
Bloemfontein
|
ZA-FS
|
Gauteng Province
|
Johannesburg
|
ZA-GPwas ZA-GT until 2020
|
KwaZulu-Natal ProvinceISO: Kwazulu-Natal
|
Pietermaritzburg
|
ZA-KZNwas ZA-NL until 2020
|
Limpopo Province
|
Polokwane
|
ZA-LP
|
Mpumalanga Province
|
Nelspruitnow Mbombela
|
ZA-MP
|
Northern Cape Province
|
Kimberley
|
ZA-NC
|
North West ProvinceISO: North-West
|
Mahikeng
|
ZA-NW
|
Western Cape Province
|
Cape Town
|
ZA-WC
|
Codes: ISO 3166-2:ZA on the ISO Online Browsing Platform (code change of 2 March 2020), as tabulated in Wikipedia's ISO 3166-2:ZA, checked 28 October 2026. Capitals: Wikipedia's Provinces of South Africa and Mbombela, checked 28 October 2026.
Province and capital names in the eleven official languages
Each province with its name and the name of its capital in Afrikaans, English, Southern Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Sesotho, Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu. Where the list leaves a form open, the cell says not given.
Eastern Cape 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
Eastern Cape Province
|
Bhisho
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Oos-Kaap
|
Bhisho
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yePumalanga-Kapa
|
iBhisho
|
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Kapa Bohlabela
|
Bhisho
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Kapa Botjhabela
|
Bhisho
|
Swati |
not given |
iBhisho
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra Kapa-Vuxa
|
Bhisho
|
Tswana |
Porofense ya Kapa Botlhaba
|
Bhisho
|
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Kapa Vhubvaḓuvha
|
Bhisho
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaMpuma-Koloni
|
iBhisho
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaMpumalanga-Koloni
|
iBhisho
|
Free State 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
Free State Province
|
Bloemfontein
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Vrystaat
|
Bloemfontein
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeFreyistata
|
not given |
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Freistata
|
Mangaung
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Freistata
|
Mangaung
|
Swati |
iSifundzeni yeFuleyistata
|
iBloemfontein
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra Free State
|
not given |
Tswana |
Porofense ya Foreistata
|
Bloemfontein
|
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Fureisitata
|
Bloemfontein
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaFreyistata
|
iBlomfanteni
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaFuleyisitata
|
iBlomfanteni
|
Gauteng 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
Gauteng Province
|
Johannesburg
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Gauteng
|
Johannesburg
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeGauteng
|
iRhawuteni
|
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Gauteng
|
Gauteng
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Kgauteng
|
Kgauteng
|
Swati |
iSifundzeni yeGauteng
|
iJozi
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra Gauteng
|
not given |
Tswana |
Porofense ya Gauteng
|
Gauteng
|
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Gauteng
|
Johannesburg
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaRhawuti
|
iRhawutini
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaGauteng
|
iGoli
|
KwaZulu-Natal 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
KwaZulu-Natal Province
|
Pietermaritzburg
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie KwaZulu-Natal
|
Pietermaritzburg
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeKwaZulu-Natal
|
not given |
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya GaZulu-Natala
|
Pietermaritzburg
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Ha Zolo-Natala
|
Mokokotlofo
|
Swati |
iSifundzeni yekaZulu-Natali
|
iPietermaritzburg
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra KwaZulu-Natal
|
not given |
Tswana |
Porofense ya KwaZulu-Natal
|
Mgungundlovu
|
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Hazulu-Natala
|
Mgungundlovu
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaKwaZulu-Natala
|
umGungundlovu
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaKwaZulu-Natali
|
umGungundlovu / iMalitzboko
|
Limpopo 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
Limpopo Province
|
Polokwane
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Limpopo
|
Polokwane
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeLimpopo
|
iPolokwane
|
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Limpopo
|
Polokwane
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Limpopo
|
Polokwane
|
Swati |
iSifundzeni yeLimpopo
|
iPolokwane
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra Limpopo
|
Polokwane
|
Tswana |
Porofense ya Limpopo
|
Polokwane
|
Venda |
Phurovintsi ya Vhembe
|
Polokwane
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaLimpopo
|
iPolokwane
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaLimpopo
|
iPolokwane
|
Mpumalanga 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
Mpumalanga Province
|
Nelspruit
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Mpumalanga
|
Nelspruit
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeMpumalanga
|
not given |
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Mpumalanga
|
Nelspruit
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Mpumalanga
|
Nelspruit
|
Swati |
iSifundzeni yeMpumalanga
|
iNaspoti
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra Mpumalanga
|
not given |
Tswana |
Porofense ya Mpumalanga
|
Naspoti
|
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Mpumalanga
|
Naspoti
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaMpumalanga
|
iNaspoti
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaMpumalanga
|
iNaspoti
|
Northern Cape 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
Northern Cape Province
|
Kimberley
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Noord-Kaap
|
Kimberley
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeTlhagwini-Kapa
|
not given |
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Kapa Lebowa
|
Kimberley / Tiamanteng
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Kapa Leboya
|
Daemaneng
|
Swati |
not given |
iKimberley
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra Kapa-N’walungu
|
not given |
Tswana |
Porofense ya Kapa Bokone
|
Kimberley
|
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Kapa Devhula
|
Kimberley
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaseMntla-Koloni
|
iKhimbali
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaNyakatho-Koloni
|
iKhimbili
|
North-West 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
North West Province
|
Mahikeng
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Noordwes
|
Mahikeng
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeTlhagwini-Tjhingalanga
|
not given |
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Lebowa Bodikela
|
Mahikeng
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Leboya le Bophirimela
|
Mahikeng
|
Swati |
not given |
iMahikeng
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra N’walungu-Vupeladyambu
|
not given |
Tswana |
Porofense ya Bokone Bophirima
|
Mahikeng
|
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Devhula-Vhukovhela
|
Mahikeng
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaseMntla-Ntshona
|
iMahikeng
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaNyakatho-Ntshonalanga
|
not given |
Western Cape 11
| Language | Province | Capital |
|---|---|---|
English |
Western Cape Province
|
Cape Town
|
Afrikaans |
Provinsie Wes-Kaap
|
Kaapstad
|
Southern Ndebele |
iProvinsi yeTjhingalanga-Kapa
|
not given |
Northern Sotho |
Profense ya Kapa Bodikela
|
Kapa
|
Sesotho |
Provense ya Kapa Bophirimela
|
Kapa
|
Swati |
not given |
iKapa
|
Tsonga |
Xifundzankulu ra Kapa-Vupeladyambu
|
Kapa
|
Tswana |
Porofense ya Kapa Bophirima
|
not given |
Venda |
Phurovinsi ya Kapa Vhukovela
|
Kapa
|
Xhosa |
iPhondo yaNtshona-Koloni
|
iKapa
|
Zulu |
iSifundazwe yaNtshonalanga-Koloni
|
iKapa
|
District municipalities by province, with their seats
The 52 districts of the list, each with the town that is its seat. Where no seat is named, the district is a metropolitan area that bears the name of its city, as Johannesburg, eThekwini and Cape Town do. The names are those of the list, which predate several renamings.
Eastern Cape 7
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Alfred Nzo
|
Mount Ayliff
|
Amatole
|
East London
|
Cacadu
|
Port Elizabeth
|
Chris Hani
|
Queenstown
|
Nelson Mandela
|
same name |
OR Thambo
|
Mthatha
|
Ukhahlamba
|
Barkley East
|
Free State 5
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Lejweleputswa
|
Welkom
|
Motheo
|
Bloemfontein
|
Northern Free State
|
Sasolburg
|
Thabo Mofutsanyane
|
Witsieshoek
|
Xhariep
|
Trompsburg
|
Gauteng 6
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Ekhuruleni
|
Germiston
|
Johannesburg
|
same name |
Metsweding
|
Bronkhorstspruit
|
Sedibeng
|
Vereeniging
|
Tshwane
|
same name |
West Rand
|
Randfontein
|
KwaZulu-Natal 11
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Amajuba
|
Newcastle
|
eThekwini
|
same name |
iLembe
|
KwaDukuza/Stanger
|
Sisonke
|
Ixopo
|
Ugu
|
Port Shepstone
|
Umgungundlovu
|
Pietermaritzburg
|
Umkhanyakude
|
Mkuze
|
Umzinyathi
|
Dundee
|
Uthukela
|
Ladysmith
|
uThungulu
|
Richard’s Bay
|
Zululand
|
Ulundi
|
Limpopo 5
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Capricorn
|
Polokwane
|
Mopani
|
Giyani
|
Sekhukhune
|
Groblersdal
|
Vhembe
|
Thohoyandou
|
Waterberg
|
Modimolle
|
Mpumalanga 3
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Ehlanzeni
|
Nelspruit
|
Gert Sibande
|
Ermelo
|
Nkangala
|
Middelburg
|
Northern Cape 5
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Frances Baard
|
Kimberley
|
Karoo
|
De Aar
|
Kgalagadi
|
Kuruman
|
Namakwa
|
Springbok
|
Siyanda
|
Upington
|
North-West 4
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Bojanala Platinum
|
Rustenburg
|
Bophirima
|
Vryberg
|
Central
|
Mahikeng
|
Southern
|
Klerksdorp
|
Western Cape 6
| District | Seat |
|---|---|
Cape Town
|
same name |
Cape Winelands
|
Worcester
|
Central Karoo
|
Beaufort West
|
Eden
|
George
|
Overberg
|
Bredasdorp
|
West Coast
|
Morreesburg
|
Today: Wikipedia's Districts of South Africa counts 52 districts and metropolitan municipalities again, checked 28 October 2026, but not the same ones. Buffalo City and Mangaung are metropolitan municipalities of their own; Metsweding and Motheo are gone; Cacadu is now Sarah Baartman, Siyanda ZF Mgcawu, Ukhahlamba Joe Gqabi and Eden Garden Route.
New ISO codes and redrawn districts
On 2 March 2020 ISO changed two codes: Gauteng from ZA-GT to ZA-GP and KwaZulu-Natal from ZA-NL to ZA-KZN. The other seven provinces keep their codes, and the number of provinces has stayed at nine since 1994.
At the second level the count of 52 is the same as in the list, but the map is not. In Wikipedia's Districts of South Africa, Buffalo City and Mangaung are metropolitan municipalities of their own, Metsweding and Motheo have disappeared from the map, and four districts carry new names: Sarah Baartman, ZF Mgcawu, Joe Gqabi and Garden Route.
Questions about the provinces of South Africa
How many provinces does South Africa have?
Nine: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West, Northern Cape and Western Cape.
What is the ISO code of Gauteng?
ZA-GP since 2 March 2020; before that it was ZA-GT. KwaZulu-Natal changed from ZA-NL to ZA-KZN on the same day.
What is Western Cape called in Afrikaans and Xhosa?
Wes-Kaap in Afrikaans, Provinsie Wes-Kaap in full; iPhondo yaNtshona-Koloni in Xhosa.