Memel, Free State
Encyclopedia
Memel is a small town in the Free State
province of South Africa
, possibly named after the port city of Memel, East Prussia
(today Klaipėda
, Lithuania
), but no current residents can verify that.
The name means surrounded by water in Old Prussian
. The Seekoei-vlei Nature Reserve
, a massive wetland
spanning some 30 km², surrounds the town, which was declared a Ramsar site
in 1999. It houses more than 250 species of birds, and the town is now a popular destination for bird enthusiasts (in the early 1990s, Birdlife South Africa identified the town of Wakkerstroom as the most important birding area in South Africa and located its field headquarters there. Some years later it became known that every bird species occurring there also occurs in Memel). Seekoeivlei is also home to some re-introduced hippopotamus
, Seekoei being the Afrikaans
translation for "sea cow". The word "vlei" means wetland. Accommodation in the reserve has been constructed and is expected to open to visitors in 2010.
Decades earlier, farmers built numerous drainage canals to create arable farming land. This dried the wetland out, and only in the 1990s Rand Water started a rehabilitation programme to restore the wetland. Part of their motivation was due to the realisation that clean water could be supplied more cost-effectively by forgoing chemical and mechanical treatment, and rather letting the wetland push its water back into the Vaal River
where it augmented the water scheme already in place. The whole project cost two million Rand
. Ongoing efforts continue. Working for Wetlands is a program supported by three separate ministries (Water Affairs, Agriculture and Tourism). Headed in the Memel area by an engineer from Zimbabwe, Working for Wetlands annually employs between 30-90 unskilled workers who lay gabbions (rocks placed in wire retaining cages) to slow erosion and resurrect marshland.
The town is slowly undergoing a transformation mainly due to the rehabilitation of the wetlands. House prices have moved from the R50 000 level to around the R400 000 mark in a matter of just two years as nature lovers from the big cities move in and renovate the old houses. That increase in the cost of homes and land continues. Many artistic celebrities have made Memel their muse and weekend home. Chris Chameleon, Mathys Roets and Mel Botes most prominently. Mathys is building a recording studio on his farm and Mel Botes is constructing a performance amphitheater made of stone in the classic Greek tradition. One game farmer has relocated his operation from the draught-stricken Limpopo area and (literally) moved his 27+ species of game to a well-watered mountain farm just outside the village. A Capetonian from the film industry has purchased and operates the Memel Hotel.
International investors have discovered the hidden gem of Memel and the drama of its surrounding mountains and rivers. Buyers include a former British military intelligence officer, retired UN officials and an American aerospace engineer and filmmaker. The donor of the property being refurbished as the National Music Centre of Zimbabwe is an investor and regular visitor to Memel.
Residents of the town have traditionally kept gardens and small orchards of fruit trees. Newcomers have expanded that thread by intensively developing permaculture gardens based on rainwater and storm water run-off. Local organic gardens now produce dozens and dozens of vegetable varieties, as well as butter, yoghurt and cheese. A Farmers Market takes place most weeks. Four separate houses have been constructed by methods of natural building, including rammed-earth and straw-bale, and many more are in the pipeline. Solar and wind power are suited to the area and much new development aspires to be off-grid.
The adjoining township of Zamani is tiny by South African standards and crime free. During most months of 2009 and 2010 there have been volunteers in Memel and Zamani, from Gauteng, France and America, teaching art, sports or English to the schoolchildren in the Primary Schools.
, the population of Memel consisted of 469 people living in 182 households. 76% of the people described themselves as "White and 24% as "Black African". 75% spoke Afrikaans as their first language
and 19% spoke Zulu
.
Free State
The Free State is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bloemfontein, which is also South Africa's judicial capital. Its historical origins lie in the Orange Free State Boer republic and later Orange Free State Province. The current borders of the province date from 1994 when the Bantustans...
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...
, possibly named after the port city of Memel, East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
(today Klaipėda
Klaipeda
Klaipėda is a city in Lithuania situated at the mouth of the Nemunas River where it flows into the Baltic Sea. It is the third largest city in Lithuania and the capital of Klaipėda County....
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
), but no current residents can verify that.
The name means surrounded by water in Old Prussian
Old Prussian language
Prussian is an extinct Baltic language, once spoken by the inhabitants of the original territory of Prussia in an area of what later became East Prussia and eastern parts of...
. The Seekoei-vlei Nature Reserve
Seekoei-vlei Nature Reserve
Seekoei-vlei Nature Reserve, is a massive wetland spanning some 30 km², surrounds the town of Memel, in the Free State, province of South Africa, which was declared a Ramsar site in 1999. It is unique for housing more than 250 species of birds, and the town is now a popular destination for...
, a massive wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
spanning some 30 km², surrounds the town, which was declared a Ramsar site
Ramsar Convention
The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands, i.e., to stem the progressive encroachment on and loss of wetlands now and in the future, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultural,...
in 1999. It houses more than 250 species of birds, and the town is now a popular destination for bird enthusiasts (in the early 1990s, Birdlife South Africa identified the town of Wakkerstroom as the most important birding area in South Africa and located its field headquarters there. Some years later it became known that every bird species occurring there also occurs in Memel). Seekoeivlei is also home to some re-introduced hippopotamus
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus , or hippo, from the ancient Greek for "river horse" , is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest...
, Seekoei being the 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...
translation for "sea cow". The word "vlei" means wetland. Accommodation in the reserve has been constructed and is expected to open to visitors in 2010.
Decades earlier, farmers built numerous drainage canals to create arable farming land. This dried the wetland out, and only in the 1990s Rand Water started a rehabilitation programme to restore the wetland. Part of their motivation was due to the realisation that clean water could be supplied more cost-effectively by forgoing chemical and mechanical treatment, and rather letting the wetland push its water back into the Vaal River
Vaal River
The Vaal River is the largest tributary of the Orange River in South Africa. The river has its source in the Drakensberg mountains in Mpumalanga, east of Johannesburg and about 30 km north of Ermelo and only about 240 km from the Indian Ocean. It then flows westwards to its conjunction...
where it augmented the water scheme already in place. The whole project cost two million Rand
South African rand
The rand is the currency of South Africa. It takes its name from the Witwatersrand , the ridge upon which Johannesburg is built and where most of South Africa's gold deposits were found. The rand has the symbol "R" and is subdivided into 100 cents, symbol "c"...
. Ongoing efforts continue. Working for Wetlands is a program supported by three separate ministries (Water Affairs, Agriculture and Tourism). Headed in the Memel area by an engineer from Zimbabwe, Working for Wetlands annually employs between 30-90 unskilled workers who lay gabbions (rocks placed in wire retaining cages) to slow erosion and resurrect marshland.
The town is slowly undergoing a transformation mainly due to the rehabilitation of the wetlands. House prices have moved from the R50 000 level to around the R400 000 mark in a matter of just two years as nature lovers from the big cities move in and renovate the old houses. That increase in the cost of homes and land continues. Many artistic celebrities have made Memel their muse and weekend home. Chris Chameleon, Mathys Roets and Mel Botes most prominently. Mathys is building a recording studio on his farm and Mel Botes is constructing a performance amphitheater made of stone in the classic Greek tradition. One game farmer has relocated his operation from the draught-stricken Limpopo area and (literally) moved his 27+ species of game to a well-watered mountain farm just outside the village. A Capetonian from the film industry has purchased and operates the Memel Hotel.
International investors have discovered the hidden gem of Memel and the drama of its surrounding mountains and rivers. Buyers include a former British military intelligence officer, retired UN officials and an American aerospace engineer and filmmaker. The donor of the property being refurbished as the National Music Centre of Zimbabwe is an investor and regular visitor to Memel.
Residents of the town have traditionally kept gardens and small orchards of fruit trees. Newcomers have expanded that thread by intensively developing permaculture gardens based on rainwater and storm water run-off. Local organic gardens now produce dozens and dozens of vegetable varieties, as well as butter, yoghurt and cheese. A Farmers Market takes place most weeks. Four separate houses have been constructed by methods of natural building, including rammed-earth and straw-bale, and many more are in the pipeline. Solar and wind power are suited to the area and much new development aspires to be off-grid.
The adjoining township of Zamani is tiny by South African standards and crime free. During most months of 2009 and 2010 there have been volunteers in Memel and Zamani, from Gauteng, France and America, teaching art, sports or English to the schoolchildren in the Primary Schools.
Demography
In the census of 2001South African National Census of 2001
The South African National Census of 2001 is the most recent national census of South Africa.The census was undertaken by Statistics South Africa and undertook to enumerate every person present in South Africa on the census night, 9–10 October 2001. The enumeration primarily took place from 10 to...
, the population of Memel consisted of 469 people living in 182 households. 76% of the people described themselves as "White and 24% as "Black African". 75% spoke Afrikaans as their first language
First language
A first language is the language a person has learned from birth or within the critical period, or that a person speaks the best and so is often the basis for sociolinguistic identity...
and 19% spoke Zulu
Zulu language
Zulu is the language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority of whom live in South Africa. Zulu is the most widely spoken home language in South Africa as well as being understood by over 50% of the population...
.