History of the Jews in South Africa persons became known as "Boerejode" (Boer Jews). A measure of intermarriage also occurred and was generally accepted. The South African gold rush began after 1886, attracting many Jews. In 1880, the Jewish population of South Africa numbered approximately 4,000; by 1914 it had grown to more than 40,000. So many of them came from Lithuania that some referred to the population as a colony of Lithuania; Johannesburg was also occasionally called "Jewburg". Jews fought on both sides during the Second Boer War (1899–1902). Some of the most notable fights during the three years' Boer War — such as the Gun
History of Johannesburg of Gauteng. The region surrounding Johannesburg was originally inhabited by San people. They were hunter-gatherers who used stone tools. There is evidence that they lived there up to ten centuries ago. By the 13th century, groups of Bantu-speaking people started moving southwards from central Africa and encroached on the indigenous San population. Stone-walled ruins of Sotho–Tswana towns and villages are scattered around the parts of the former Transvaal in which Johannesburg is situated. Many of these sites contain the ruins of Sotho–Tswana mines and iron smelting furnaces, suggesting that the area was being exploited for its mineral wealth before the