Cape Colony
- proper noun
:
Colonia del Cabo
- The British high commissioner, Lord Alfred Milner, explained to the Germans that the British could not afford to arouse "the slightest suspicion" among Africans in the Cape Colony, particularly in view of the astute political consciousness of the colored population.
Examples
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The discovery of diamonds in Kimberly in the 1870s created a demand for cheap labor that was largely satisfied initially by "hired" convicts from the Cape Colony, and later by migrant workers from all over southern Africa.
Academic text (1998) -
During the South African War, the British occasionally closed the South West African border, which hit southern Namibia hard as the region depended on imports of grain from the Cape Colony.
Academic text (2006) -
Three issues were at stake: first, global political considerations; second, the political and security concerns of British South Africa; and third, the economic interests of the Cape Colony.
Academic text (2006) -
Towards the end of the 17th century, a lack of labor was considered the major obstacle to economic growth in the Cape Colony.
Academic text (2005) -
This article sought to examine the interaction between Africans and Europeans in the border region of German South West Africa and the Cape Colony.
Academic text (2006) -
Here, Islamized traders had established a vibrant market for slaves, making the region a prime destination for vessels from America and the Cape Colony.
Academic text (2005) -
In the lower Orange River region in the early twentieth century, physical and cultural boundaries were contested despite the official status of the river as the boundary between German South West Africa and the British Cape Colony.
Academic text (2006) -
The institution of tenancy was created in South Africa's Cape Colony and spread to Kenya, along with a number of South African settlers. Although European farmers acquired vast areas of the best land in the country, they lacked labor, and "with no labor on it, the land had little value."
Academic text (2005) -
The Cape Colony was established by the Dutch in 1652 and became a significant settlement in southern Africa.
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Historically, the Cape Colony played a crucial role in the development of trade routes around the Cape of Good Hope.
Synonyms
A former province in southern South Africa that split in 1994 into Western, Eastern, and Northern Cape
A former area in southern South Africa that was divided into smaller regions in 1994
A former province in western South Africa now part of several modern provinces
Surface Forms
Morphology
Cape + colony
A learner who knows 'cape' (a headland) and 'colony' (a territory governed by another power) can infer that this is a colony associated with a cape, so the general concept as a territorial/political entity is understandable. However, the specific historical/provincial identity and details (a former South African province with particular dates and political history) are proper-name information not derivable from the constituents, so the expression is only partially predictable.
Etymology
Cape Colony gets its name from a European colony of settlers at the Cape of Good Hope on South Africa's coast. People simply called the place the Cape Colony, and that name later became the name of the 'province' for the area.
