Breyten
Encyclopedia
Breyten is a small farming town in Mpumalanga
, South Africa
and is situated at the foot of Klipstapel, the highest point on the watershed between the westward flowing Vaal River
system and the eastward flowing Olifants
and Komati River
systems. The original farm, Bothasrus on which the town is built was given to Lukas Potgieter as compensation for losing a leg during the first Boer War
. He later sold the farm to field-cornet Nicolaas Breytenbach, who formed the village in his own name.
Breyten is very close to Ermelo. In fact, the community from Breyten do most of their household errands in Ermelo. Carolina and Hendrina are also close to Ermelo.
Breyten is heavily dependent on the mines around it. Tselentis Mine, Spitzkop Mine and a host of other mines employs the majority of the people of Breyten. There is also a leather factory in Breyten called JCB Leather Works. It is a known fact that it produces top leather goods! Who knows, perhaps the shoe, belt or jacket that you have on was made from leather from the JCB Leather Works.
The main spoken languages are i-SiSwati, Zulu and Ndebele. i-SiSwati dominates.
Breyten is very cold in winter and very hot in summer.
The place is very vibrant during public holidays. All the sons and daughters of Breyten visit home during these holidays. It is common to find people from Gauteng -Soweto and Pretoria, Cape Town
and Durban in Breyten.
Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga , is a province of South Africa. The name means east or literally "the place where the sun rises" in Swazi, Xhosa, Ndebele and Zulu. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, north of KwaZulu-Natal and bordering Swaziland and Mozambique. It constitutes 6.5% of South Africa's land area...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and is situated at the foot of Klipstapel, the highest point on the watershed between the westward flowing Vaal River
Vaal River
The Vaal River is the largest tributary of the Orange River in South Africa. The river has its source in the Drakensberg mountains in Mpumalanga, east of Johannesburg and about 30 km north of Ermelo and only about 240 km from the Indian Ocean. It then flows westwards to its conjunction...
system and the eastward flowing Olifants
Olifants/Letaba River
The Olifants River flows north through Witbank Dam and then the Loskop Dam and is forced east by the Transvaal Drakensberg, cutting through at the Abel Erasmus Pass and then flowing east to join with the Letaba River, crossing into Mozambique after cutting through the Lebombo Mountains by way of...
and Komati River
Komati River
The Komati River is a river in South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique. It is long, with a drainage basin in size. Its mean annual discharge is 111 m³/s at its mouth...
systems. The original farm, Bothasrus on which the town is built was given to Lukas Potgieter as compensation for losing a leg during the first Boer War
First Boer War
The First Boer War also known as the First Anglo-Boer War or the Transvaal War, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881-1877 annexation:...
. He later sold the farm to field-cornet Nicolaas Breytenbach, who formed the village in his own name.
Breyten is very close to Ermelo. In fact, the community from Breyten do most of their household errands in Ermelo. Carolina and Hendrina are also close to Ermelo.
Breyten is heavily dependent on the mines around it. Tselentis Mine, Spitzkop Mine and a host of other mines employs the majority of the people of Breyten. There is also a leather factory in Breyten called JCB Leather Works. It is a known fact that it produces top leather goods! Who knows, perhaps the shoe, belt or jacket that you have on was made from leather from the JCB Leather Works.
The main spoken languages are i-SiSwati, Zulu and Ndebele. i-SiSwati dominates.
Breyten is very cold in winter and very hot in summer.
The place is very vibrant during public holidays. All the sons and daughters of Breyten visit home during these holidays. It is common to find people from Gauteng -Soweto and Pretoria, Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
and Durban in Breyten.