Lephalale

Afrikaans name: Lephalale

The town of Lephalale, in the Limpopo province, used to be known as Ellisras. It was renamed in 2002. The name 'Lephalale' comes from the Setswana word for 'to flow'. The original name of Ellisras was created by joining parts of Patrick Ellis and Piet Erasmus. These two men settled in the area in the 1930's.

Lephalale's main commercial activity is coal mining which has taken place in the area since the 1960's. The town is also home to the Matimba Power Station run by Eskom.

A wide variety of farming activity takes place in the surrounding area. This includes cattle, ostriches, goats, tobacco, wheat, maize, cotton, groundnuts and others.

Amazingly there are over 500 game farms nearby. In fact a number of farmers have switched from cattle to game. Some of the important species bred are Roan Antelope, Sable Antelope and Cape Buffalo.

Every year, in July, Lephalale hosts the bushveld festival. A lot of activities take place during the festival including game auctions, a 4x4 competition, dog shows, farming activities and much, much more.

Been to Lephalale? What was it like?

References and further reading

Conollys Guide to Southern Africa - 2nd edition - Author: Denis Conolly - Published: 1982 - Page: 279

Book of the Road - 4th edition - Author: MapStudio - Published: 2019 - Page: 129

Wikipedia - Lephalale

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