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| Vaal | |
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 The Vaal River seen from the N3 national freeway, upstream from the Vaal Dam. Here it forms the border between the Gauteng and Free State provinces.
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| Country | South Africa |
| Regions | Free State, Gauteng |
| Landmarks | Vredefort crater, Vaal Dam |
| Length | 1,120 km (696 mi) |
| Watershed | 196,438 km² (75,845 sq mi) |
| Discharge at | Orange River |
| - average | 125 m³/s (4,414 cu ft/s) |
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 Clarens in the Free State at a source known as the Ash River. It then flows southwest to its conjunction with the Orange River southwest of Kimberley in the Northern Cape. It is 1,120km in length, and forms the border between Mpumalanga, Gauteng and North West Province on its north bank, and the Free State on its south.
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Importance to industry and agriculture
Water is drawn from the Vaal to meet the industrial needs of the Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area and a large part of the Free State Province. As a part of the Vaal-Hartz Scheme it is a major source of water for irrigation. Water drawn from the Vaal supports 12 million consumers in Gauteng and surrounding areas.
History
Historically, the river formed the boundary between two Boer republics, and later provinces, Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The geographic name Transvaal comes from the name of this river, meaning "Beyond the Vaal river". This was in respect to the Cape Colony and Natal, which were the main areas of European settlement at the time, and lay south of the Vaal.
Vaal is a Dutch name (later Afrikaans), translated by the Griquas or Boers1 from an earlier Kora Khoikhoi name Tky-Gariep (/hei !garib, drab river).2 Both Vaal and Tky mean "drab" or "dull", which alludes to the colour of its waters, especially noticed during flood season when much silt is carried. In the upper reaches the river was named Likwa (Sindebele), Ikwa (isiZulu), Êjkwa (siSwati) or cuoa by the Khoikhoi, all referring to the plain it traverses.2
References
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Notes
- ^ Thompson, G. (1827). Travels and Adventures in Southern Africa I. Henry Colburn, London. pp. 74.
- ^ a b du Plessis, E.J. (1973). Suid-Afrikaanse berg- en riviername. Tafelberg-uitgewers, Cape Town. pp. 326, 221. ISBN 0-624-00273X.
Gallery
 Sunrise over the Vaal River near Parys |
 Prospectors on the Vaal River |
 Diggings at Gong-gong falls, 1880, where some of the Vaal river's first alluvial diamonds were found. |
