Riviersonderend

This article is about the town. For the river, see Sonderend River. For the mountain range, see Riviersonderend Mountains.

Riviersonderend is a village in the Overberg region of the Western Cape, South Africa, about 140 kilometres (87 mi) east of Cape Town. It is located on a loop of the Sonderend River, from which it takes its name. In the census of 2011 it was recorded as having a population of 5,245.^[2] The N2 national road passes through Riviersonderend, forming its main street; it is 161 kilometres (100 mi) by road from central Cape Town.^[3][4]

Riviersonderend
The Dutch Reformed Church of Riviersonderend
Riviersonderend Show map of Western Cape Riviersonderend Show map of South Africa
Coordinates: 34°09′01″S 19°54′52″E
Country	South Africa
Province	Western Cape
District	Overberg
Municipality	Theewaterskloof
Government
• Councillor	Piet Stander [1] (DA)
Area [2]
• Total	5.57 km2 (2.15 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	5,245
• Density	940/km2 (2,400/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [2]
• Black African	12.6%
• Coloured	75.4%
• Indian/Asian	0.5%
• White	10.9%
• Other	0.6%
First languages (2011) [2]
• Afrikaans	86.5%
• Xhosa	8.3%
• English	3.1%
• Other	2.1%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)	7250
PO box	7250
Area code	028

History

The village was established in 1923, when Edith S V McIntyre sold a portion of her farm, Tierhoek, to the local Dutch Reformed church council for 6000 pounds. First known as "Rivier Zonder End" (Dutch for "river without end"), the name later changed to the Afrikaans "Riviersonderend".^[4]

The name itself was originally a literal translation of the Khoikhoi name "Kannakamkanna" ("river without end").^[5]