Empangeni

Empangeni, town, northeastern KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa, directly northwest of Richard’s Bay on the Indian Ocean and northeast of Durban. The beginnings of the modern settlement can be traced to 1851, when the Norwegian Missionary Society established a station in the valley of a stream named for the large number of mpange (hard pear) trees. The station was later moved to another location, but in 1894 a magistracy named Empangeni was established in the valley. The present town site was established in 1931, and Empangeni was declared a town in 1960. Located in one of the important cattle-raising areas in South Africa, the town is the centre of the sugar industry in Zululand and also a market centre for cotton, dairy products, fruits, timber, and vegetables. It is a junction on the main railway line from Durban to Swaziland and has an airfield. The Enseleni Nature Reserve, an area with a rich vegetation of wild figs, papyrus, and mangroves, is 9 miles (14 km) east of Empangeni. Pop. (2001) 13,310.