Windhoek is the capital and also the largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around 1,700 metres above sea level, almost exactly at the country’s geographical centre. The population of Windhoek in 2020 was 431,000 and is also said to be growing continually due to an influx from all over Namibia.
Languages
In public life, Afrikaans, and to a lesser extent German, are still used as lingua francas even though the government only uses English
Currency
The dollar replaced the South African rand, which had been the country’s currency while it was under South African rule as South-West Africa from 1920 until 1990, at par. The rand is still legal tender, as the Namibian dollar is linked to the South African rand and can be exchanged on a one-to-one basis locally. Namibia was also part of the Common Monetary Area from independence in 1990 until the introduction of the dollar in 1993.
Culture
Independence Memorial Museum, Aerial view (2017)
Windhoek is known as the art capital of Namibia. The National Art Gallery of Namibia is located in Windhoek.
The National Museum of Namibia is located in Windhoek with two locations Alte Feste Museum (historical): showcases a range of colonial items such as wagons and domestic items. Owela Museum (scientifically – named after a traditional game played with pebbles): contains displays of minerals, fossils and meteorites and gives an insight into traditional village life. There are also the Independence Memorial Museum, the National Library of Namibia and the Windhoek Public Library – built in 1925, next to the Alte Feste.
Climate
Windhoek has over 300 sunny days per year. It experiences a hot semi-arid climate (BSh) according to Köppen climate classification as the annual average temperature is above 18 °C (64 °F). The temperature throughout the year would be called mild, due to altitude influence. The annual average high and low temperature range is 13.4 °C (56.1 °F). The coldest month is July, with an average temperature of 13.1 °C (55.6 °F), while the hottest month is December, with average temperature 23.5 °C (74.3 °F). Due to its location near the Kalahari Desert, the city receives 3,605 hours of sunshine. Precipitation is abundant during the summer season, and minimal during the winter season. The average annual precipitation is 367.4 millimetres (14.46 in), with lows of 106.7 millimetres (4.20 in) in the 2018/19 rainy season, and 97 millimetres (3.8 in) in 1929/30.
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