Until 1995 the Johannesburg municipality had an area of slightly more than 300 sq km (100 sq mi). That year Johannesburg and more than 400 suburbs and townships were united to create a Greater Johannesburg area of about 800 sq km (300 sq mi). Under apartheid, the rigid policy of racial segregation in effect in South Africa from 1948 to the early 1990s, non-whites were pushed to the outskirts of the city. Most blacks in the metropolitan area live in Soweto, a township southwest of Johannesburg with an area of only 65 sq km (25 sq mi). The other main black township is Alexandra to the northeast. The largest concentrations of Asians and Coloured (mixed-race) people are found southwest of Soweto at Lenasia (an Asian township) and Eldorado Park (a Coloured suburb), areas to which people were moved under apartheid legislation. Historically white areas include southern suburbs such as Turffontein and Liefde-en-Vrede, western suburbs such as Roodepoort, and the more exclusive northern neighborhoods of Houghton, Sandton, Bryanston, and Randburg. Just north of the city center is Hillbrow, an area of high-rise apartments, which was one of the first white areas to experience desegregation after the dismantling of apartheid.
Black township standard of living is generally significantly lower than all other areas.
Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2001 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Johannesburg Information info
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