Ten sites in South Africa have been granted UNESCO World Heritage Status. These sites are a representation of the rich cultural and natural diversity that this country offers.
⪢5 cultural Heritage Sites
⪢4 natural Heritage Sites
⪢1 mixed Heritage Site
- Cultural heritage sites are historic buildings, archaeological sites and important works of art.
- Natural heritage status is it provided if one of 4 criteria are met:
-It provides a record of life or geographical processes;
-It shows examples of ecological and biological evolutionary processes;
-It contains rare or extremely beautiful natural phenomena;
-It provides a habitat for rare or endangered animal or plant species.
- Sites are classified as mixed if they are of both natural and cultural importance.
Cultural sites
Fossil Hominid Sites of South Africa, the Cradle of Humankind
This cultural attraction is of great importance to our understanding of the human species. The fossils found at these sites are considered proof that the African content is the Cradle of Humankind. The Fossil Hominid Sites of South Africa include the Sterkfontein, Swartkrans, Kromdraai and Environs caves plus the Makapan Valley and Taung Skull Fossil Site. These contain some of the world’s most significant fossils in understanding the evolution of the early modern human.
Type: cultural
Inscription date: 1999, 2005
Where: Gauteng province (some 50 km from Johannesburg)
Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape, the Remains of a Medieval Kingdom
This open, flat landscape was once the heart of the Mapungubwe Kingdom, a medieval state in South Africa which lasted from around 1075 to 1220. The area was abandoned in the 14th century but left behind remains of settlements and palaces creating what is now a place of great archaeological significance offering insights into cultural and social changes taking place in South Africa during this period.
Type: cultural
Inscription date: 2003
Where: Limpopo province (This site is just around 321 km by road from Johannesburg and is reached by car in 3 hours 25 minutes)
Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape, Home to the Nama People
The Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical landscape is a communally owned mountainous desert area. The site is of huge cultural significance as it sustains the semi-pastoral livelihood of the Nama people. Only here do portable Nama rush mat houses continue to be built whilst seasonal migrations dating back over 2 millennia still take place.
Where: Northern Cape
Type: cultural
Inscription date: 2007
Where: Northern Cape province
Robben Island, Former Prison and Hospital
Robben Island was used as a prison and as a hospital for social groups deemed to be socially unacceptable. Robben Island is one of the most visited attractions in South Africa, famous for being the prison where Nelson Mandela was incarcerated for 18 of his 27 years behind bars. Many other political prisoners were kept here and the island is now seen to represent the triumph of democracy and freedom over oppression.
Where: Table Bay (Ferries to Robben Island depart from the Nelson Mandela Gateway at the V&A waterfront, just a half-hour drive from Cape Town international airport).
Type: cultural
Inscription date: 1999
Where : Cape Town
ǂKhomani Cultural Landscape, Evidence of Stone Age Occupation
Large expanses of sand dunes show human occupation dating back to the Stone Age. The landscape shows how the previously nomadic ǂKhomani San people, one of the last indigenous communities in South Africa, adapted to their harsh desert environment. This World Heritage Site teaches visitors about the way of life in this region plus migration and resources over thousands of years.
Where: Botswana and Namibia border
Type: cultural
Inscription date: 2017
Where: Northern Cape province
Natural sites
Cape Floral Region Protected Areas, Exceptional Plant Diversity
The Cape Floral Region is considered to be one of the most remarkable places for plants in the world for diversity, density and total number of endemic species. Thirteen protected area clusters spread out over more than a million hectares including The Table Mountain National Park and De Hoop Nature Reserve. The region also features examples of developing ecological, biological and evolutionary processes.
Type: natural
Inscription date: 2004, 2015.
Where: south-western extremity of South Africa
iSimangaliso Wetland Park, Diverse Habitats and Species
iSimangaliso Wetland Park is one of the most exceptional wetland and coastal sites to be found throughout Africa. The site boasts coral reefs, sandy beaches, coastal dunes, lakes and swamps which have been largely unaltered by human activity. With such a diverse range of habitats, an incredible number of different species can be found across the area. Turtles, flamingos, and waterfowl are just some examples of the creatures resident here.
Type: natural
Inscription date: 1999
Where: KwaZulu-Natal province
Vredefort Dome, an Ancient Astrobleme
Vredefort Dome is the oldest astrobleme (meteorite impact structure) to be found to date on Earth, dating back 2,023 million years. It is also the largest- its radius measures 190km. Vredefort is significant as it is evidence of the planet’s biggest known single energy release event which had a profound effect on the earth.
Type: natural
Inscription date: 2005
Where: Free State
Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains
Situated in north-eastern South Africa, the Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains comprises 40% of the Barberton Greenstone Belt, one of the world’s oldest geological structures. The property represents the best-preserved succession of volcanic and sedimentary rock dating back 3.6 to 3.25 billion years and forms a diverse repository of information on surface conditions, meteorite impacts, volcanism, continent-building processes and the environment of early life.
Type: Cultural
Inscription Date: 2018
Where : Mpumalanga (80%) Eswatini (20%)
uKhahlamba Park (Drakensberg)
The Maloti-Drakensberg Park is a transnational property composed of the uKhahlamba Drakensberg National Park in South Africa and the Sehlathebe National Park in Lesotho. The site has exceptional natural beauty and contains many caves and rock-shelters with the largest and most concentrated group of paintings in Africa south of the Sahara. They represent the spiritual life of the San people, who lived in this area over a period of 4,000 years.
Type: Cultural and Natural
Inscription date: 2000
Where: KwaZulu-Natal province