Okahandja means the place where two rivers (Okakango and Okamita) flow into each other to form one wide oneinOtjiherero.[5]
AGerman pastor, Heinrich Schmelen, became the first European to visit the town in 1827.[6] In 1844, two missionaries were permanently assigned to the town, Heinrich Kleinschmidt and Hugo Hahn. A church dates from this period. A military post was established at the initiative of Theodor Leutwein in 1894, and it is this date that is officially recognized as the town's founding.[7]
The population of Okahandja is growing rapidly. It stood at just over 14,000 as measured by the 2001 Population and Housing Census, and is estimated to have surpassed 24,000 in 2012.[8][9]
Von Bach Dam is situated outside of Okahandja. It provides the majority of Windhoek's water. An open-air curio market attracts tourists, and the town serves as the administrative centre for the Herero people.
In the 1870s Rhenish missionaries established the first school. The Augustineum School was reopened at Okahandja on 9 November 1905; it was later moved to Windhoek.
Today[update] Okahandja has six primary schools and two high schools. Namwater Vocational, situated outside the main town, is the only institute of higher education in Okahandja.
The National Institute for Educational Development (NIED) is today situated in Okahandja. NIED was created after independence as the institute from where a new national system of education was created, replacing the previous racist system of apartheid.
Previously the German school Regierungsschule Okahandja was in the city.[11]
Okahandja offers the following sports codes; Soccer, Netball, Basketball, Tennis, Horse Raising, Dancing, Running, Gym, Spin & Drifting, Radio Helicopters...
Okahandja United FC competes in the Namibia Premier Football League as of the 2023.[17] The oldest soccer club in town is known as Spoilers Sports Club that was founded in 1963 and managed over the years by "Ou Boss" Reinhardt Maletzky. In the 1970s, Okahandja Soccer Club had a competitive football team that won several competitions.[18]
In addition, local club Liverpool Okahandja were NFA-Cup winners in 1992 and Namibia Premier League champions in 2002. Other local teams were Magic Tigers, Battle Boys, Teenagers, Golden Arrows.
^Republic of Namibia 2001 Population and Housing Census (Basic Analysis with Highlights ed.). Windhoek: Central Bureau of Statistics, National Planning Commission. July 2003. p. 21. ISBN0-86976-614-7.
Namibia
