On 23 February 2021, Minister of Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa signed off on the renaming of Port Elizabeth to Gqeberha.
Learn how to pronounce the new name in the video below: “Qey Beh GAH – The Q click is important – hold your tongue on the roof of your mouth and force it down. The First G is silent.”
Visit https://mygqeberha.com to learn more about Gqeberha.
In 2019, the Eastern Cape Geographical Names Committee recommended that Port Elizabeth be renamed Gqeberha, which is the Xhosa name for the Baakens River that flows through the city. Despite opposition from residents, the city’s name change was officially gazetted on 23 February 2021.
History has taught us that things (and place names) change. Ubuntu has taught us to embrace our fellow man.
Just as we are proud of Nelson Mandela Bay and the towns found therein so too can we be proud of Port Elizabeth’s new name – Gqeberha – signed off by Minister Nathi Mthethwa on Tuesday 23 February 2021.
On a personal note this name change is going to hit me hard in the pocket as I have spent years building up a web site to support and selflessly promote the MyPE brand. Now the time has come to embark on a new historical venture whilst MyPE (probably) fades into the background.
Join us here: https://MyGqeberha.com – sign up to the forum and have your say, contribute your history and let’s make this a positive experience that will support others who rely on the geographical name of Port Elizabeth – namely those in Tourism who have lost years of branding and work promoting this fair city.
Other major name changes will see Uitenhage changed to Kariega, and Port Elizabeth Airport will now be known as Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport.
The name change issue dragged on for about two years with residents submitting thousands of objections to the proposed new names.
The men who nominated the renaming were Boy Lamani of KwaMagxaki (Gqeberha), former ANC MPL Christian Martin (Chief Dawid Stuurman Internatoinal Airport), and Khoi and San chief Mervyn Allies (Kariega).
According to Lamani, who submitted the name Gqeberha to the geographical names committee, he had nominated the change in early 2016 when Danny Jordaan was still mayor.
The committee recommended Port Elizabeth be renamed Gqeberha – the isiXhosa name for Walmer Township, which is one of the first and oldest Port Elizabeth townships.
Lamani said at the time that Gqeberha lost its popularity when the Walmer name became prominent as industrialisation grew.
Khoi and San activist Martin proposed the new name for the airport.
Stuurman, who rebelled against the Dutch and British colonialists and served time on Robben Island, was banished to New South Wales, Australia, in 1823. He died in exile in Sydney in 1830.
Martin campaigned for Stuurman’s remains to be repatriated to SA and they were in 2017.
Allies, from Uitenhage, said that renaming the town to Kariega was about restorative justice and the name should reflect the original inhabitants.
“We preceded this area for 1,000 years before anyone moved here. When we drive here we want to feel home, that we’re in Africa, and this name change would do that,” he said.
“The entire region from Willowmore and Somerset East to Uitenhage was formerly called Kariega. Our ancestors called the Swartkops River, which is outside Uitenhage, the Kariega River.”
The recommendation by the Eastern Cape Geographical Names Committee that Port Elizabeth be renamed Gqeberha caused an uproar among residents, with a petition titled “Keep the name Port Elizabeth” being circulated on social media which quickly gathered around 19 000 signatures within a week.
Video: Gqeberha – New Name Origins and Pronounciation for the Former Port Elizabeth City
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More Info on Gqeberha – New Name Origins and Pronunciation for the Former Port Elizabeth City here: https://mygqeberha.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MyPE
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Alan Straton
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