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South Africa UNESCO commitment has registered 10 sites on the World Heritage list and 2 on the tentative list.
Some places are so interesting that it’s relevant to keep them for future generations. This is why UNESCO has built a list of crucial classified properties in which superb places stand out for their aesthetic, natural, artistic, or cultural significance.
More than a thousand places are registered as Unesco’s World Heritage worldwide. Due to my interest in visiting World Heritage sites, I compiled the UNESCO list in South Africa and the corresponding map.
South Africa UNESCO list
- Fossil Hominid Sites of South Africa
- Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape
- Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape
- Robben Island
- Khomani Cultural Landscape
- Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains
- Cape Floral Region Protected Areas
- iSimangaliso Wetland Park
- Vredefort Dome
- Maloti-Drakensberg Park
South Africa UNESCO Map
Click on the blue pins to view more relevant information about each World Heritage site in South Africa.
Description
- Fossil Hominid Sites of South Africa: This site includes several caves in South Africa that have produced some of the oldest hominid fossils ever found, providing important insights into the evolution of humans.
- Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape: This site includes the remains of an ancient African kingdom that flourished between the 11th and 14th centuries and includes evidence of advanced trade and social systems.
- Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape: This site includes a unique desert landscape that has been home to the Nama people for thousands of years and contains a rich diversity of plant and animal life.
- Robben Island: This site is famous as the prison where Nelson Mandela was held for many years during the struggle against apartheid and is a symbol of the triumph of democracy over oppression.
- Khomani Cultural Landscape: This site includes the ancestral lands of the Khomani San people, who have lived there for tens of thousands of years and have a deep cultural connection to the land.
- Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains: This site includes some of Earth’s oldest and best-preserved volcanic and sedimentary rocks, providing important insights into the planet’s early history.
- Cape Floral Region Protected Areas: This site includes a unique and biodiverse area of South Africa, home to many endemic plant and animal species and one of the world’s most important areas for conservation.
- iSimangaliso Wetland Park: This site includes a unique wetland system that contains a wide variety of ecosystems, including coral reefs, coastal forests, and savannas, and is home to a rich diversity of plant and animal life.
- Vredefort Dome: This site is the remains of a massive asteroid impact that occurred over two billion years ago and is one of the largest and best-preserved impact craters in the world.
- Maloti-Drakensberg Park: This site includes a unique mountain range home to a rich diversity of plant and animal life, including many endemic species and important cultural and historical sites.
UNESCO World Heritage Sites in South Africa are protected places for their cultural and natural importance.
Sites on the Tentative List
- The Emergence of Modern Humans: The Pleistocene occupation sites of South Africa
- Human Rights, Liberation Struggle and Reconciliation: Nelson Mandela Legacy Sites
