| Content from Wikipedia under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license ⇔ Maps from OpenStreetMap under the ODbL license |
Cape of Good Hope
| Kaap die Goeief Hoop - Cape of Good Hope | |
 The cape seen from the cliff at Cape Point. | |
 Map of the Cape of Good Hope. | |
| Administrative division | Western Cape Province |
|---|---|
| Continent | Africa |
| Sea | Atlantic Ocean |
| Gulf/bay | False Bay |
| First known navigator | Bartolomeu Dias (1488) |
| Coordinates | 34°21′29″S 18°28′19″E / 34.358056°S 18.471944°E |
The Cape of Good Hope (in Portuguese, Cabo da Boa Esperança; in Afrikaans, Kaap die Goeie Hoop; in English, Cape of Good Hope) is a cape located at the southern tip of Africa. The first European to sight it was the Portuguese navigator Bartolomeu Dias in 1488.[1][2]
Etymology
Bartolomeu Dias called it the Cape of Storms. Later, John II of Portugal gave it its current name. The Portuguese, and specifically the well-known Vasco da Gama, discovered that by passing this cape, one of the southernmost points of the African continent, it was possible to continue sailing eastward, toward India. For many years, navigators had feared they would not find a possible sea route reaching that place, which is why they named this cape the Cape of Good Hope (in Portuguese: Cabo da Boa Esperança).
Climate
Other facts of interest
It is often mistakenly believed that the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean meet at this point, which actually happens only at Cape Agulhas, which lies farther south.[1]
On April 6, 1652, the Dutch mariner Jan van Riebeeck set up a camp near the cape, which eventually became what is today Cape Town, South Africa.[3]
Biodiversity and flora of the region
The Cape of Good Hope is the center of a region of great richness in endemic flora and is the smallest but richest of the biological floral domains of the African continent, with a notable representation of shrubs called fynbos, in two varieties, and nearly 1,100 plants, many of which grow only in this territory.[1][4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Moscardó, Inma (2018-01-26). "Atrapado entre la magia y las leyendas del cabo de Buena Esperanza". Cinco Días (in español). Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- ↑ Arrowsmith, John (1842). Cabo de Buena Esperanza (Cape of Good Hope). Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- ↑ "History of slavery and early colonisation in South Africa | South African History Online". www.sahistory.org.za. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- ↑ "Cape Point – 1 Point 1 Million Points Of View". Retrieved 2021-11-03.
External links
