Where is --?

You could try expanding these projects https://www.geni.com/projects/South-African-Timeline/7658 and https://www.geni.com/projects/South-African-Genealogical-Reference-... - see place names section.

There is a handy list of the province name changes with their dates over on WikiTree here: https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Project:South_African_Roots/Sources2 Hope it helps a bit.

Thx Tracy !
Thank you June .
Find the names of towns changing as interesting as any Geneology
Not nitpicking but getting it right .

I also noticed on old maps the boundaries were some places very different 1900 than 1910 .Like ZAR boundaries into Natal during 2nd Anglo-Bboer War.

The Mafeking area similar .

This is a huge problem throughout Geni as every record is added individually and many people tend to use modern place and area names even if they didn't exist at the time the person listed was alive. All one can do it fix them according to the correct historical names on a case-by-case basis.

Cape/Kaap Natal Transvaal Free State//Vrystaat
1652-04-06 – 1795-09-16
Cabo de Goede Hoop
Cape of Good Hope, Dutch Cape Colony
de Caep de Goede Hoop
1795-09-17-1803-02-20
Cape Colony
1803-02-21-1806-01-18
Dutch Cape Colony
1806-01-19 to 1910-05-30
Cape Colony
Kaap Kolonie
1910-05-31 - 1961-05-30
Unie van Suid Afrika
Kaapprovinsie, Unie van Suid Afrika
Cape Province, Union of South Africa
1961-05-31
Republiek van Suid Afrika of slegs Suid Afrika
Republic of South Africa or just South Africa
(Slegs RSA gaan as fout wys - Only RSA will show an error) 1816 - 1897
Zoeloeland
Oct 1838
Republiek van Port Natal
Republic of the Port of Natal
1839
Natalia Republiek
Natalia Republic
1843-05-04
Natal Kolonie
Natal Colony
1856
Natal
Natal
1910-05-31
Unie van Suid Afrika
Provinsie van Natal, Unie van Suid Afrika
Province of Natal, Union of South Africa
1961-05-31
Natal, Republiek van Suid Afrika of net Suid Afrika
Natal, Republic of South Africa of net South Africa
1994-04-27
KwaZulu-Natal, Republiek van Suid Afrika of net Suid Afrika
KwaZulu-Natal, Republic of South Africa or just South Africa
(Slegs KZN gaan as fout wys - Only KZN will show an error) 1844
Transvaal Republiek
Transvaal Republic
1852-01-17
Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek
Zuid-Afrikaansche Republic
1902
Transvaalse Kolonie
Transvaal Colony
1910-05-31
Unie van Suid Afrika
Transvaal Provinsie, Unie van Suid Afrika
Transvaal Province, Union of South Africa
1961-05-31
Transvaal, Republiek van Suid Afrika of net Suid Afrika
Transvaal, Republic of South Africa or just South Africa
Slegs TVL gaan 'n fout wys . Only TVL will show an error) 1848-02-03
Transoranje
1852-01-17
Oranje Vrijstaat
1900-10-06
Oranjerivierkolonie
1902-05-31
Oranje Unie
1910-05-31
Unie van Suid Afrika
Oranje Vrystaat, Unie van Suid Afrika
Orange Free State, Union of South Africa
1961-05-31
Oranje Vrystaat, Republiek van Suid Afrika of net Suid Afrika
Orange Free State, Republic of South Africa or just South Africa
(slegs OVS gaan as fout wys - Only OFS will show an error)

Not sure if this will help.
I got this list from Wikitree and seems to be accurate

Thx Marco

Very good and interesting report, thanks Marco, it brings all the province name changes up to date.
Now for the cities and towns - if you can find such an updated list !?

David --that list is for the rest of us to create now.

Geni has the totally unacceptable and ridiculous feature of prompting place names to the current version. I started my Geni site in 2016 but stopped when I realised this. Recently I discovered that one can bypass this stupidity by only using the place name edit feature, whereby one can enter the historic name.
That way one can enter the LOCATION NAME AS AT THE TIME OF THE EVENT, which obviously is the way to do it.
The list from Wikitree, given above, is very good except for one glaring mistake: The name "Dutch Cape Colony" never existed historically (it is an English descriptive term not an original area name). For events during 1652 - 1795 and 1803 - 1806 the correct name is Cape of Good Hope or better still Cabo de Goede Hoop or de Caep de Goede Hoop for the Cape Town area.
With this exception, I therefor recommend that everybody uses the Wikitree list.
I agree with Lee Cahill that it is an enormous task to fix all the mistakes (mainly caused by Geni prompting); so we should do it like you eat an elephant: one bite at a time.
Jan Hendrik Vorster

Concur - Jan Hendrik .
Discovered the same for Dutch Cape Colony .

Do you want to expand this section in https://www.geni.com/projects/South-African-Genealogical-Reference-...?

Or do you want to create a separate SA Place Names Project?

I can help get you started with the second if you need help.

Think a project with place names through the ages for SA on GENI evenbetter than one on Wiki , not a bad idea

Lee Cahill , Marco Nel , Jan Hendrik , Tracey Frayne , David Sieff .. you up to it ?
As a good reference guide for all on GENI

Thanks Marco was just busy yesterday trying to decipher the periods of name change. Concur with the same needed for place names - going to be a long list which has grown in the last 20+ years.

I have compiled a document "A Guide to the Colonies, Republics, etc, of South Africa" which is a work-in-progress but is fairly comprehensive in its present form.
However, as it is not in PDF format and as I am useless at computer conversions, I am a little wary of posting it on this site because it could be altered in its current format which I will certainly not be happy to see.
It can, however, in the meantime be viewed on the Facebook Group page 'Indexing South African Records on Familysearch'.
I am open to suggestions
Thank you and kind regards,
Denys Botha

Thx Denys !

Here you go: https://www.geni.com/projects/SA-Place-Names-Over-Time/4475914

I think it's important to remember that there are millions upon millions of records globally needing indexing.This is done entirely by volunteers. I like you have grown frustrated by the indexing problems and Decided to try and become part of the solution via the FB group specifically for South African indexers.
Not all volunteers who index and review Family Search records, are familiar with South African history or, indeed, the multiple languages of records being indexed.
In addition to that Family Search introduced another voluntary task last year - to standardise names of places in many countried because these are inconsistently recorded on original documents. Once again, people who wanted to do a GOOD deed, ended up making it more complex. Because it caused such huge problems for South African records, South African records are no longer part of that project.

Exactly why Port Elizabeth ended up in Limpopo on Familysearch , far away from the sea because of PC interference
The volunteer just had to check and confirm online , or in an Atlas , put some effort into it.
FB blocked me for objecting to Israel being called Palestine . Check where that name originate from ---

Every time I access familysearch I make a point of correcting a surname , name or Place according to how it is known in South Africa or correct the spelling as in 1700, 1880 or 1910. NOTthat difficult and does not take that much more time to do.

Gail - Also why this project now would be of good use to do exactly that with input from everyone : build / create a proper place name register for South Africa according to time that can be used as reference .
Not political just as it was called at that point in time , even add other names in other local languages used at that time.

Go for it, please.

Than you Sharon for project !

:-)

@ Rina Grové
Phillipp,
If you remember a few crucial dates you will be able to find answers to most of your questions:
1652 Verenigde Oost Indiese Kompanjie sent Jan van Riebeeck to the Cape
1652 -1795 They governd the Cape which was only known as Cape of Good Hope
1795-1802 The British Governed the Cape
1802-1806 They gave it back to the Netherland Which was then known as the "Betaafse Republiek"
From January 1806 -1910 The Cape Province was Governed by the British
1838-1843 Die Republiek Natalia
1843- British annexed Natal and it became a province of the Cape Colony in May 1844
1852 The Zuid Afrikaanse Repubiek was founded in the Transvaal
1902 After the Anglo-Boer war it came the Transvaal Colony
1854 The Republic of the Oranje Vrystaat founded
1902 After the Anglo Boer war it became the Orangeriver Colony
1910 Partly independence was granted by the British and the Union of South Africa was formed which included the provinces of the Cape Colony, Natal, Orange Freestate and Transvaal.
1961 The Union of South Africa became the independent Republic of South Africa

If one keep this dates in mind some of the problems solve it self.

Rina Grové

baie dankie / Thank you Rina .
You are right use one's brains more !

Just an FYI: The rule when indexing is to only index the information written on the page and not to make assumptions.

Ok - so ii it it says Bloemfontein, South Africa can one assume it is the one in Orange Free State ?