Kosmos is a village

Village

A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...

 in the North West Province of 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...

. It is situated on the banks of the Hartbeespoort Dam

Hartbeespoort Dam

Hartbeespoort Dam also known as Harties is a dam situated in the North West Province of South Africa . It lies in a valley to the south of the Magaliesberg mountain range and north of the Witwatersberg mountain range, about 35 kilometres west of Pretoria...

.

History

The first homes were built in the 1920s shortly after the Dam was constructed. It is thought that the name derives from the Kosmos

Cosmos bipinnatus

Cosmos bipinnatus, commonly called the garden cosmos or Mexican aster, is a medium sized flowering herbaceous plant native to Mexico. The species and its varieties and cultivars are popular as an ornamental plant in temperate climate gardens...

 which grows wild in great drifts in many parts of the Highveld, and in particular on the roads from the nearby major cities. More homes followed over the years, and the style moved steadily up market. Little development of commercial enterprises ever took place, although it is said that in earlier years the 'Sail Inn' on the waterfront was a favourite watering hole. Many Anglo-Boer War battles ranged around the area and the British built one of the blockhouses on the crest of the range above the village, in view of its strategic position.

In more recent years a restaurant immediately outside the original township, Stywe Lyne, (Tight Lines in Afrikaans

Afrikaans

Afrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...

.) was a favourite destination for motorbike enthusiasts to gather on Sundays, and show off their bikes. This too has given way to the pressures of upmarket residential development.

Modern day Kosmos

The village has only one access road, and perhaps as a result has developed a strong sense of community. The residents subscribe to a security service which maintains the access gate to 'Kosmos Proper', a reference to that area lying within the boundaries of the original township. On the higher slopes of the village there is a handsome Community Centre and Library, on municipal land. Next to it is a Garden Chapel, where non-denominational religious services are conducted regularly by the residents. On the waterfront near the entrance the residents have developed the Kosmos Marina Club. There are Post Boxes but no Post Office, and no shops or other commercial enterprises. Recently a number of Bed and Breakfast establishments have started up.

Outside Kosmos Proper, on the short road leading to the village, several resort and residential estates have been developed and new ones are being built. One of these has a nine-hole golf course, which skirts the waters of the dam in a challenging manner.

In amongst these estates lies Orange Farm, an 'informal settlement' (which elsewhere might be termed a 'squatter camp' or 'shanty town'). In these shacks, with no proper supplies of electricity, water or sanitation, live hundreds of people who depend for their meagre livelihood on work as servants and jobs with building and construction companies. Efforts to relocate them to other locations further away with proper amenities have been unsuccessful.

Geology

At this point the Magaliesberg

Magaliesberg

The Magaliesberg is a mountain range extending from Pretoria in the north of the Gauteng Province to a point south of Pilanesberg, in the North West Province, South Africa...

 range is displaced about 1 kilometre south by faulting and erosion.
Kosmos lies on the south, steep side of the monocline

Monocline

A monocline is a step-like fold in rock strata consisting of a zone of steeper dip within an otherwise horizontal or gently-dipping sequence.-Formation:Monoclines may be formed in several different ways...

, and at its north eastern end, where the Crocodile River passes through the Dam, the cliffs become too steep to allow buildings or a road.