Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes ProCon History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
apartheid
Table of Contents
References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images & Videos
racially restricted beach in apartheid-era South Africa apartheid-era sign Bantustans
Video thumbnail image shows Black South African schoolchildren standing behind a fence.
Uncovering apartheid history in Cape Town's District Six
aftermath of the deadly Sharpeville demonstration
The video thumbnail image shows a black and white image of Chief Albert John Mvumbi Luthuli.
Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela: From shepherd to president
For Students
apartheid summary
Related Questions
Read Next
Part of the crowd of 10 000 who took part in today's bloody riots in Soweto, near Johannesburg. They were protesting against the use of Afrikaans in school teaching. 6/16/76
The 40th Anniversary of the Soweto Uprising
Discover
A human Inuit skull in a stone chambered cairn in Ilulissat in Greenland. These ancient graves are pre christian and are at least 2000
14 Tough Questions Answered
earthquake. Heavily damaged school in the town of Yingxiu after a major earthquake struck China's Sichuan Province on May 12, 2008.
The 6 Deadliest Earthquakes Since 1950
Thanksgiving Turkey with all the sides
Why Do We Eat Turkey on Thanksgiving?
Baseball laying in the grass. Homepage blog 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society, sports and games athletics
10 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time
Ethel Rosenberg arrested in August 1950. Photograph dated Aug. 8, 1950. American civilians executed for espionage. Spies, communists, Julius Rosenberg
Spies Like Us: 10 Famous Names in the Espionage Game
John F. Kennedy as a boy with his family
What Did We Call America’s Elite Before the “1 Percent”?
Artist interpretation of a Space meteoroid impact. Meteor impact. Asteroid, End of the world, danger, destruction, dinosaur extinct, Judgement Day, Planet Earth, Doomsday Predictions, comet
10 Failed Doomsday Predictions

apartheid: Facts & Related Content

verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/facts/apartheid
Written and fact-checked by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Did You Know?

  • More than 3.5 million black South Africans were forced to live on arbitrary reservations called Bantustans, depriving them of political power and pushing them into poverty.
  • At the end of apartheid, white South Africans (who made up some 10% of the population of the country) owned roughly 90% of South Africa's land as a result of a series of Land Acts.
  • More than 170 people died in the Soweto student protests.

Photos and Videos

racially restricted beach in apartheid-era South Africa
apartheid-era sign
Bantustans
aftermath of the deadly Sharpeville demonstration
Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa
Nelson Mandela
Video thumbnail image shows Black South African schoolchildren standing behind a fence.
Uncovering apartheid history in Cape Town's District Six
The video thumbnail image shows a black and white image of Chief Albert John Mvumbi Luthuli.
Nelson Mandela: From shepherd to president
See All Videos and Images →

Related Topics and References

Topics
Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Key People

Daniel F. Malan
South African politician
Hendrik Verwoerd
Hendrik Verwoerd
prime minister of South Africa
Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom
Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom
prime minister of South Africa