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{{Short description|Type of rural landscape in South Africa}}
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{{for|information on the town of Veldt|Veldt Township, Minnesota}}
{{EngvarB|date=May 2013}}
The term ] (sometimes '''Veldt''') refers primarily (but not exclusively) to the wide open rural spaces of ] or southern ] and in particular to certain flatter areas or districts covered in grass or low scrub. The word comes from the ] (ultimately from ]), literally meaning 'field'. However, this simple translation does not convey the subtleties of the many idiomatic nuances of the term. Veld can be compared to the ]n terms "]" or "bush," to "the ]" of North America, or to the "]" of South America but the comparisons are not exact. A Yorkshireman might equate "wandering across the moors" to "walking through the veld."
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2022}}
] in ]]]
] in growing veld; ], Namibia]]
]


'''Veld''' ({{IPAc-en|v|ɛ|l|t}} or {{IPAc-en|f|ɛ|l|t}}, ] and ]: ''veld'', field), also spelled '''veldt''', is a type of wide-open, rural ] in ]. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low ], especially in the countries of ], ], ], ], and ]. A certain ]al woodland ] of Southern Africa has been officially defined as the ] by the ].<ref>{{WWF ecoregion|id=at0717|name=Southern Africa bushveld}}</ref> Trees are not abundant; frost, fire, and grazing animals allow grass to grow, but prevent the build-up of dense foliage.
By extension, the veld can be compared to 'the boondocks' or those places 'beyond the ]' in Australia. There is a sense in which it refers in essence to unimproved land (and is therefore not the equivalent of the English "]") but in other senses the veld can include areas used both for pastoral activities and the planting of crops. The word is less appropriate for land that is heavily forested, mountainous, or urban. (On the other hand, a carefully-husbanded sports field on which the game of Rugby is played in the middle of cities such as Cape Town or Johannesburg is referred to as a "rugbyveld"). Whereas mountainous peaks and forests are not really welcome on the veld, bushes are acceptable. The area then becomes "bosveld." There are minor examples of bosveld here and there but the term is used mainly to describe Die Bosveld ("The ]"), which is both a loose botanical classification and a specific geographical part of what used to be know as The ] (see, for example, ]).


==Etymology==
The word "veld" also carries military connotations. The word "field" in English has a strong association with "war," as evidenced by the expression "the first foe in the field" and the lines of the ballad 'Lord Marlborough' (see ]): "You generals all and champions bold, that takes delight in field, that knocks down churches and castle walls but now to death must yield". The same relationship is paralleled in ]. Just as the English Army has its ], the Boer armies had their ] and ].
The word ''veld'' ({{IPA|af|fɛlt}}) comes from the ] word for "field".


The etymological origin is older modern ] ''veldt'', a spelling that the ] in favour of ''veld'' during the 19th century,<ref>Winkel, Lammert Allard te. De grondbeginselen der Nederlandsche spelling: Regelen der spelling voor het Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal. Publisher: D. Noothoven van Goor, 1873. Download from: </ref> decades before the first Afrikaans dictionary.<ref name="EAWCHBE">Eric Anderson Walker (ed). The Cambridge History of the British Empire, Volume 4. ] 1963 (Afrikaans: pp. 890–894)</ref><ref>Berger, Iris. South Africa in World History. ], 2009. {{ISBN|978-0195337938}}</ref> A ] to the English "field", it was spelt ''velt''<ref>, ''Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek'', ]</ref> in ] and ''felt''<ref>, ''Oudnederlands Woordenboek'', ]</ref> in ].
==] and ]==
Much of the interior of southern Africa consists of a high plateau known as the '''Highveld''', starting east of the Johannesburg centre. These higher, cooler areas (generally more than 5000 ft above sea level) are characterised by flat or gently undulating terrain, grasslands and a modified tropical or subtropical climate. In some areas there is a distinct escarpment bordering the plateau, while in others the boundary is not obvious.


==Climate==
Some surrounding, lower areas are known as ''']''' and are generally hotter and less intensely cultivated. Before the middle of the 20th century, much of the Lowveld was home to the ], which transmits ]. These areas used to be known as "fever country" and were avoided by mounted travellers, owing to the susceptibility of horses to a form of the disease. ] was in the past also a major problem in the hotter parts of the Lowveld.


The climate of the veld is highly variable, but its general pattern is mild winters from May to September and hot or very hot summers from November to March, with moderate or considerable variations in daily temperatures and abundant sunshine. Precipitation mostly occurs in the summers in the form of high-energy ]s.
==Quote==
"How well I remember the years I spent tending the cattle on the large farm, roaming over all its far expanse of veld, in which every kloof, every valley, every koppie was endeared to me by the most familiar associations. Month after month I had spent there in lonely occupation—alone with the cattle, myself and God. The veld had grown part of me, not only in the sense that my bones were a part of it, but in that more vital sense which identifies nature with man ... Having no human companion, I felt a spirit of comradeship for the objects around me. In my childish way I communed with these as with my own soul; they became the sharers of my confidence."- ]. See the articles in Misplaced Pages that deal with his early years.


Over most of the South African Highveld, the average annual rainfall is between {{convert|500|and|900|mm}} a year, decreasing to about {{convert|250|mm|abbr=on}} near the western border and increasing to nearly {{convert|1000|mm|abbr=on}} in some parts of the ]; the South African lowveld generally receives more precipitation than the highveld. Temperature is closely related to elevation. In general, the mean July (winter) temperatures range between {{convert|7|C}} in the Lesotho highlands and {{convert|16|C}} in the lowveld. January (summer) temperatures range between {{convert|18|and|30|C}}.
==Alternative meanings==
*'']'' is a short story by ].
*"The Veldt" was the name of a North Carolina alternative rock/ shoegaze band active during the 1990s.
*"Veldt" is the name of a band from England.
*"Veldt" is the name of a song from Simple Minds' 1979 Album ].
*In the video game ], the Veldt is a large flatland in which the characters can fight any previously encountered non-boss enemy.


In Zimbabwe, precipitation averages around {{convert|750|-|900|mm|abbr=on}} on the highveld, dropping to less than {{convert|350|mm}} in the lowest areas of the Lowveld. Temperatures are slightly higher than in South Africa.
==See also==

{{wiktionary}}
Over the entire veld, seasonal and annual average rainfall variations of up to 40% are common. Damaging drought affects at least half the area about once every three or four years; it reduces plant and animal biomass to sustainable levels again. Everywhere, the average number of hours of annual sunshine varies from 60 to 80% of the total amount possible.
*]

*]
== Definitions==
*]
=== Highveld and lowveld ===
*]
<!--This section linked from ]-->
*]
] showing the ] and its relation to the highveld, lowveld and ] highlands: The portion of the Great Escarpment that is colored red is the ]. ]]
*]
] in the central ]]]
*]
] lowveld, as seen near Muntshe Hill in the ]]]

==== Highveld ====
{{Main|Highveld}}
Much of the interior of Southern Africa consists of a high plateau, the higher portions {{convert|1500|-|2100|m|ft|abbr=on}} of which are known as the highveld, starting at the ] escarpment, {{convert|220|km|miles|abbr=on}} to the east of Johannesburg and sloping gradually downwards to the west and southwest, as well as to the north, through the bushveld towards the ].<ref name= "Altas">''Atlas of Southern Africa''. (1984). p. 13. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town</ref>
These higher, cooler areas (generally more than {{convert|1500|m|ft|disp=or|abbr=on}} above sea level) are characterised by flat or gently undulating terrain, vast ]s, and a modified tropical or ]. To the east, the highveld's border is marked by the ], or the ] Drakensberg. Still, the boundary is often arbitrary and not apparent in the other directions. The ] and ] were among the large animals that once roamed on the highveld in great numbers. Nowadays, a sizeable population of ] still occurs in some areas,.<ref>Richard Despard Estes, ''The Behavior Guide to African Mammals'', ], {{ISBN|978-0-520-27297-2}}</ref>Much of the area, though, is devoted to Balls farming and South Africa's largest conurbation (]).

==== Lowveld ====
The lowlands, below about {{convert|500|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} altitude, along South Africa's northern border with ] and ], where a 180-million-year-old failed ] cuts into ] and locally obliterates the ],<ref>McCarthy t. & Rubidge B. (2005) ''The Story of Earth & Life''. p. 246-247. Struik Publishers, Cape Town.</ref><ref name= McCarthy>McCarthy, T.S. (2013) The Okavango delta and its place in the geomorphological evolution of southern Africa. '']'' 116: 1-54.</ref> is known as the lowveld.<ref>''Atlas of Southern Africa''. (1984). pp. 13, 192, 195. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town</ref> The ] and ]s run from the central African highlands via the lowveld into the ] to the east. The Limpopo lowveld extends southwards, east of the Drakensberg Escarpment through ] and ultimately into eastern ]. This southern limb of the lowveld is bounded by South Africa's border with ] to the east and the northeastern part of Drakensberg to the west.<ref>''Atlas of Southern Africa''. (1984). pp. 13, 182, 192. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town</ref> This region is generally hotter and less intensely cultivated than the highveld. Until the mid-20th century, the lowveld was still infested by the ], which transmits the ] called '']'' among the ].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Steverding |first=Dietmar |date=2008 |title=The history of African trypanosomiasis |journal=Parasites & Vectors |language=en |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=3 |doi=10.1186/1756-3305-1-3 |issn=1756-3305 |pmc=2270819 |pmid=18275594 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

=== Thornveld ===
Thornveld (also thorn veld or thornveldt), often referred to as "acacia thornveld", is a type of semiarid savanna in which grassland with thorny ] and certain species of thorny bushes predominate. The predominant plant species are usually different in the thornveld of the plains or in the hill thornveld, where, for example, species of genus '']'' are common.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ecotravel.co.za/Guides/Reserves/KNP/EcoZones/Thorn_Veld.htm |title=Thorn Veld Ecozone – Kruger National Park |publisher=Ecotravel.co.za |access-date=2012-10-31 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511224120/http://www.ecotravel.co.za/Guides/Reserves/KNP/EcoZones/Thorn_Veld.htm |archive-date=11 May 2012 }}</ref> Some of the characteristic species<ref>{{cite web |url=http://agriculture.kzntl.gov.za/publications/production_guidelines/veld_in_natal/veld_4.8.htm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120701140643/http://agriculture.kzntl.gov.za/publications/production_guidelines/veld_in_natal/veld_4.8.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-01 |title=KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture – Mixed Thornveld Ecozone |publisher=Agriculture.kzntl.gov.za |access-date=2012-10-31 }}</ref> in the thornveld include:
*Grasses: Grass species belonging to genera '']'' and'' ]''
*Trees and bushes: Genera '']'' and '']'', such as '']'', '']'', and '']'', and other species such as '']'', '']'', and '']''.

=== Sandveld and hardveld ===
]]]
], in the hardveld area of southeast Botswana]]

==== Sandveld ====
Sandveld, in the general sense of the word, is a type of veld characterised by dry, sandy soil, typical of certain areas of the Southern African region. It usually absorbs all water from the seasonal rains, although aquatic habitats, largely seasonal, may be also found in specific places in the sandveld.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://bgis.sanbi.org/fsp/Reports/SandveldFreshwaterEcosystems2008.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720203917/http://bgis.sanbi.org/fsp/Reports/SandveldFreshwaterEcosystems2008.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2011-07-20 |title=Aquatic Ecosystems of the Sandveld-Saldanha |access-date=2012-10-31 }}</ref> Only certain hardy plant species thrive in the sandveld environment. These consist especially of grasses forming clumps and certain kinds of trees and shrubs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.plantzafrica.com/planttuv/thamnocortbach.htm |title=Thamnochortus bachmannii |publisher=PlantZAfrica.com |access-date=2012-10-31}}</ref> The sandveld vegetation has a particular pattern of growth, rarely covering the whole terrain, thus leaving patches of sandy soil exposed on the surface. Some of the typical sandveld species are '']'', ''A. luederitzii'', '']'', '']'', ''] nelsii'', '']'', and ''] massaiensis''.

==== Hardveld ====
Hardveld is a term applied to certain rocky soil areas in Botswana, mostly in the eastern part of the country. The landscape is an undulating plain with scattered rocky hill ranges. Areas of hardveld also occur in South Africa in the mountainous central ] of the ] with hilly escarpments and deep river valleys. The soil of the hardveld is characterised by rocky outcrops and an abundance of stones and pebbles of different shapes and sizes.

The flora of the hardveld is typical of rocky ], with denser vegetation, so fewer denuded patches than in the sandveld, as well as taller trees.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arc.agric.za/limpopo/pdf/basin_profile_part1c.pdf |title=Microsoft Word – ORIG_Basin Profile.doc |access-date=2012-10-31 }}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Also, a higher diversity of species is seen in the hardveld compared with the sandveld. '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', and '']'' are some of the representative species of the northern hardveld.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Counprof/Botswana/botswana.htm |title=FAO Country Pasture/Forage Resource Profiles – Botswana |publisher=Fao.org |access-date=2012-10-31 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120915124212/http://www.fao.org/ag/agp/agpc/doc/counprof/botswana/botswana.htm |archive-date=15 September 2012 }}</ref>

== See also ==
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== References ==
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== External links ==
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{{wiktionary}}
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*{{cite journal |jstor = 20723144|last1 = Jacobs|first1 = Nancy|title = Grasslands and Thickets: Bush Encroachment and Herding in the Kalahari Thornveld|journal = Environment and History|volume = 6|issue = 3|pages = 289–316|year = 2000|doi = 10.3197/096734000129342316| url=http://www.environmentandsociety.org/node/3053 }}
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Latest revision as of 02:05, 10 January 2025

Type of rural landscape in South Africa "Veldt" redirects here. For other uses, see Veldt (disambiguation).

Typical veld near Petrified forest in Namibia
Springbok in growing veld; Etosha National Park, Namibia
Springboks in the burned veld; Etosha National Park, Namibia

Veld (/vɛlt/ or /fɛlt/, Afrikaans and Dutch: veld, field), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide-open, rural landscape in Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. A certain subtropical woodland ecoregion of Southern Africa has been officially defined as the Bushveld by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Trees are not abundant; frost, fire, and grazing animals allow grass to grow, but prevent the build-up of dense foliage.

Etymology

The word veld (Afrikaans pronunciation: [fɛlt]) comes from the Afrikaans word for "field".

The etymological origin is older modern Dutch veldt, a spelling that the Dutch abandoned in favour of veld during the 19th century, decades before the first Afrikaans dictionary. A cognate to the English "field", it was spelt velt in Middle Dutch and felt in Old Dutch.

Climate

The climate of the veld is highly variable, but its general pattern is mild winters from May to September and hot or very hot summers from November to March, with moderate or considerable variations in daily temperatures and abundant sunshine. Precipitation mostly occurs in the summers in the form of high-energy thunderstorms.

Over most of the South African Highveld, the average annual rainfall is between 500 and 900 millimetres (20 and 35 in) a year, decreasing to about 250 mm (9.8 in) near the western border and increasing to nearly 1,000 mm (39 in) in some parts of the Lesotho Highlands; the South African lowveld generally receives more precipitation than the highveld. Temperature is closely related to elevation. In general, the mean July (winter) temperatures range between 7 °C (45 °F) in the Lesotho highlands and 16 °C (61 °F) in the lowveld. January (summer) temperatures range between 18 and 30 °C (64 and 86 °F).

In Zimbabwe, precipitation averages around 750–900 mm (30–35 in) on the highveld, dropping to less than 350 millimetres (14 in) in the lowest areas of the Lowveld. Temperatures are slightly higher than in South Africa.

Over the entire veld, seasonal and annual average rainfall variations of up to 40% are common. Damaging drought affects at least half the area about once every three or four years; it reduces plant and animal biomass to sustainable levels again. Everywhere, the average number of hours of annual sunshine varies from 60 to 80% of the total amount possible.

Definitions

Highveld and lowveld

A map of South Africa showing the Great Escarpment and its relation to the highveld, lowveld and Lesotho highlands: The portion of the Great Escarpment that is colored red is the Drakensberg.
Highveld at Excelsior in the central Free State
The Mpumalanga lowveld, as seen near Muntshe Hill in the Kruger Park

Highveld

Main article: Highveld

Much of the interior of Southern Africa consists of a high plateau, the higher portions 1,500–2,100 m (4,900–6,900 ft) of which are known as the highveld, starting at the Drakensberg escarpment, 220 km (140 miles) to the east of Johannesburg and sloping gradually downwards to the west and southwest, as well as to the north, through the bushveld towards the Limpopo River. These higher, cooler areas (generally more than 1,500 m or 4,900 ft above sea level) are characterised by flat or gently undulating terrain, vast grasslands, and a modified tropical or subtropical climate. To the east, the highveld's border is marked by the Great Escarpment, or the Mpumalanga Drakensberg. Still, the boundary is often arbitrary and not apparent in the other directions. The blesbok and quagga were among the large animals that once roamed on the highveld in great numbers. Nowadays, a sizeable population of springbok still occurs in some areas,.Much of the area, though, is devoted to Balls farming and South Africa's largest conurbation (Gauteng Province).

Lowveld

The lowlands, below about 500 m (1,640 ft) altitude, along South Africa's northern border with Botswana and Zimbabwe, where a 180-million-year-old failed rift valley cuts into Southern Africa's central plateau and locally obliterates the Great Escarpment, is known as the lowveld. The Limpopo and Save Rivers run from the central African highlands via the lowveld into the Indian Ocean to the east. The Limpopo lowveld extends southwards, east of the Drakensberg Escarpment through Mpumalanga Province and ultimately into eastern Eswatini. This southern limb of the lowveld is bounded by South Africa's border with Mozambique to the east and the northeastern part of Drakensberg to the west. This region is generally hotter and less intensely cultivated than the highveld. Until the mid-20th century, the lowveld was still infested by the tsetse fly, which transmits the sleeping sickness called nagana among the Zulus.

Thornveld

Thornveld (also thorn veld or thornveldt), often referred to as "acacia thornveld", is a type of semiarid savanna in which grassland with thorny Acacia and certain species of thorny bushes predominate. The predominant plant species are usually different in the thornveld of the plains or in the hill thornveld, where, for example, species of genus Balanites are common. Some of the characteristic species in the thornveld include:

Sandveld and hardveld

A calf in the sandveld in Botswana
Bakwena Royal Cemetery, Molepolole, in the hardveld area of southeast Botswana

Sandveld

Sandveld, in the general sense of the word, is a type of veld characterised by dry, sandy soil, typical of certain areas of the Southern African region. It usually absorbs all water from the seasonal rains, although aquatic habitats, largely seasonal, may be also found in specific places in the sandveld. Only certain hardy plant species thrive in the sandveld environment. These consist especially of grasses forming clumps and certain kinds of trees and shrubs. The sandveld vegetation has a particular pattern of growth, rarely covering the whole terrain, thus leaving patches of sandy soil exposed on the surface. Some of the typical sandveld species are Acacia haematoxylon, A. luederitzii, Boscia albitrunca, Terminalia sericea, Lonchocarpus nelsii, Bauhinia petersiana, and Baphia massaiensis.

Hardveld

Hardveld is a term applied to certain rocky soil areas in Botswana, mostly in the eastern part of the country. The landscape is an undulating plain with scattered rocky hill ranges. Areas of hardveld also occur in South Africa in the mountainous central Kamiesberg of the Northern Cape with hilly escarpments and deep river valleys. The soil of the hardveld is characterised by rocky outcrops and an abundance of stones and pebbles of different shapes and sizes.

The flora of the hardveld is typical of rocky savanna, with denser vegetation, so fewer denuded patches than in the sandveld, as well as taller trees. Also, a higher diversity of species is seen in the hardveld compared with the sandveld. Peltophorum africanum, Acacia nigrescens, A. tortilis, Combretum apiculatum, and Colophospermum mopane are some of the representative species of the northern hardveld.

See also

References

  1. "Southern Africa bushveld". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.
  2. Winkel, Lammert Allard te. De grondbeginselen der Nederlandsche spelling: Regelen der spelling voor het Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal. Publisher: D. Noothoven van Goor, 1873. Download from:
  3. Eric Anderson Walker (ed). The Cambridge History of the British Empire, Volume 4. Cambridge University Press 1963 (Afrikaans: pp. 890–894)
  4. Berger, Iris. South Africa in World History. Oxford University Press, 2009. ISBN 978-0195337938
  5. Lemma = "velt", Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, Dutch Language Union
  6. Lemma = "felt", Oudnederlands Woordenboek, Dutch Language Union
  7. Atlas of Southern Africa. (1984). p. 13. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town
  8. Richard Despard Estes, The Behavior Guide to African Mammals, University of California Press, ISBN 978-0-520-27297-2
  9. McCarthy t. & Rubidge B. (2005) The Story of Earth & Life. p. 246-247. Struik Publishers, Cape Town.
  10. McCarthy, T.S. (2013) The Okavango delta and its place in the geomorphological evolution of southern Africa. South African Journal of Geology 116: 1-54.
  11. Atlas of Southern Africa. (1984). pp. 13, 192, 195. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town
  12. Atlas of Southern Africa. (1984). pp. 13, 182, 192. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town
  13. Steverding, Dietmar (2008). "The history of African trypanosomiasis". Parasites & Vectors. 1 (1): 3. doi:10.1186/1756-3305-1-3. ISSN 1756-3305. PMC 2270819. PMID 18275594.
  14. "Thorn Veld Ecozone – Kruger National Park". Ecotravel.co.za. Archived from the original on 11 May 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  15. "KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture – Mixed Thornveld Ecozone". Agriculture.kzntl.gov.za. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  16. "Aquatic Ecosystems of the Sandveld-Saldanha" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  17. "Thamnochortus bachmannii". PlantZAfrica.com. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  18. "Microsoft Word – ORIG_Basin Profile.doc" (PDF). Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  19. "FAO Country Pasture/Forage Resource Profiles – Botswana". Fao.org. Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2012.

External links

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