Triomf to Sophiatown

Joshua Donald
10R
 Why was Triomf named back to Sophiatown?

Triomf was originally named Sophiatown, a farm outside Johannesburg Transvaal (now
Gauteng). It was purchased by a Russian man named Herman Tobinsky, who named the land
he bought after his wife “Sophia”. Sophiatown subsequently became a ‘Whites only” area.
When a sewage dump was built next to the area, white people did not want to live there
anymore. Later Blacks, Coloureds, Indians and Chinese were given permission to settle in
Sophiatown by the owner, therefore creating a multi racial environment. When World War 1
started, many Black people moved to the cities in search of work. As the number of Black
people increased in the cities, Johannesburg City Council (JCC) passed The Slum Clearance
Program. The goal of this program was to remove black people from the inner cities. The
people who were victim to the Slum Clearance program had nowhere to go and thus went to
settle in Sophiatown. The next spurt in Sophiatown’s population growth happened during the
Second World War. As a result of this, Sophiatown became an overcrowded multi racial
population. Black landowners burdened with extremely high mortgages allowed these new
arrivals to live in their backyards. Sophiatown was regarded as a freehold township, it was
one of the few places in Johannesburg urban areas that black people were allowed to own
land. Sophiatown built its own character, houses were built according to one’s affordability,
taste and culture. Sophiatown became the political, social and creative hub for the people of
colour. Many famous people gained their popularity here, such as Miriam Makeba, Don
Mattera as well as artist Gerard Sekoto.

Source A:
A painting by Gerard
Sekoto called horse and
Cart, Sophiatown. Painted
in the 1940’s depicts the
vibrant community
sophiatown once was.

The social relation in Sophiatown defied the apartheid ideal, this is because it had become a
multi racial community. The Apartheid Government went to great lengths to propose forced
removals of people living in Sophiatown, to designated areas. The ANC protested the
removals and launched an eighteen month campaign against the proposed removals.
Campaigns included infamous slogans popularised by the congress such as: We Wont Move/
Ons Sal Nie Dak Nie/ Asihambi! 

Source B:
We wont Move
campaign, protest
against the forced
removals
On 9 February 1955, the head of the South African state, D F Malan sent two thousand
policemen armed with stun guns and rifles. They destroyed Sophiatown and removed sixty
thousand inhabitants. The People who settled in Sophiatown were moved to Meadowlands,
which formed a part of Soweto. The houses had no toilets, water and electricity. It was the
very essence of Sophiatown that Apartheid wanted to crush, a multi ethnic community. In
1964 Sophiatown was then renamed Triomf by the National Housing Commission, which is
the Afrikaans word for “triumph”. It represented the triumph of the Apartheid rule over the
people of colour, the triumph of the destruction of what Sophiatown stood for, and the
triumphant whites only area. Within two decades more than three million black South
Africans around the country were forcibly removed from their homes and neighbourhoods.

Source C:
The Apartheid government did not
only remove the people, they also
sent bulldozers and destroyed
houses. This rubble is a depiction of
that destruction.

In February 2006 Triomf was renamed Sophiatown by mayor Amos Masondo. This was done
on the 50th anniversary of the removals in a celebration depicting what Sophiatown stood for.
There was music and dancing and people dressed up in cultural attire. Sophiatown was
renamed in order to reclaim it back to what it originally was, this attempt was to preserve the
culture that it stood for. Although demolished in many ways, the renaming was an attempt to
allow its story to live on, to allow the vibrant memories of a creative multicultural
environment to live on in the new era. It is important to understand the significance of this
name change, Triomf is directly linked to the oppression of people of colour and it celebrated
that. This name change removed the connotations that Triomf had and offered healing to
many people. In fact, looking at the history of Sophiatown, this name change was so
important because it represented what the new South Africa and the new constitution stood
for. To recognise injustices of the past, honour those who suffered for justice, and to bring
healing of the past and create a community where all are equal. The renaming was to tell its
story in a way that we learn from it, and allow it to offer healing to many people. It was to
allow barriers to be broken, in a way that culture barriers and past resentment can be healed,
to allow people to come together as a community just as Sophiatown once did. This renaming
was necessary because Triomf did not represent the new constitution, in fact it represented
the opposite of the values of the new constitution. Triomf was always a reminder of the
terrible events that destroyed peoples lives, the renaming offered healing because it was a
reminder that even during those hard times, there was a place that people called home.

The renaming was an attempt to remember the ideologies birthed in the original Sophiatown,
that of racial acceptance, creativity as well as community. It was an attempt at healing and
reconciliation. To allow the ideals of the new South Africa, the democracy and freedom of all
people to live on. This ceremony was not a day of Triumph, but a celebration of merging the
old with the new. This is exemplified by the house of Dr AB Xuma. He was the first black
doctor in South Africa. Xumas house which was known as Empilweni (place of life), was
declared a national monument in 1988. It was bought by the City and renovated into the
Sophiatown heritage and cultural museum. Xumas house was one of the very few that
escaped the demolitions, it is now used as a place of remembrance for those effected by the
devastating Group Areas Act. This is important because it does not only tell the story of just
one person, but it tells the story of how the lives of every person in that community was
affected.
The museum allows this heritage to live on. The centre hosts walking tours as well as special
Jazz evenings. On the day of the renaming celebration, Mayor Masondo unveiled the plaque
describing the new cultural and heritage museum.

Source D:
The Plaque of DR AB Xumas
house, unveiled at the
Sophiatown renaming
celebration

This change has been further exemplified by the Trevor Huddleston CR Memorial Centre.
Trevor Huddleston, who is known for his missionary work as well as his contribution to the
Anti Apartheid Movement. The Trevor Huddleston CR Memorial Centre is a non profit
organization that aims at creating a Sophiatown where all people truly belong, where there is
healing, opportunity and prosperity, where resources are used to create a society where none
live in poverty. They host various events where people of all races come together to
celebrate, they also offer tours of Sophiatown, they live out the goal that Sophiatown aims to
achieve. This not only recreates what Sophiatown once was, but it aims to look at the past
and attempt to create an even better Sophiatown.

Source E:
Tour conducted by Trevor
Huddleston CR Memorial Centre,
attended by a group of multiracial
students.

This proves that this name change has been largely successful. It is a historical fact that the
Apartheid laws caused so much destruction to the lives of so many people, within that time,
there was a hidden gem, Sophiatown, which too was destroyed and to add to that, the
destruction of those people’s lives was celebrated.
This name change reversed those connotations and created an environment that is rich in
culture and heritage. The affect that it has had on the people, is one of social acceptance and
healing. Where people of all races can live in harmony as one big extended family.
The past is not forgotten, the stories are still told, but Sophiatown has become a place where
we learn from the past, those stories remind us of how far we have come now. Heritage are
things from the past, that a society considers important to its history and culture. The story of
Sophiatown is undeniably an important part of our history, and this heritage still lives on
today. In fact, Sophiatown has had many Heritage Day celebrations, people of all colours
come in their cultural attire, and celebrate who they are, and the fact that the land belongs to
them. This in combination with the Jazz festivals and community projects are examples that
this name change has been affective. All of these initiatives began after the name change, one
can also deduce that, had this name change not happened, all these heritage celebrations
might not have happened too.

Source F:
Heritage Day celebration in
Sophiatown

The affect that this has had on the people is that, not only are people of colour coming
together as they once did in Sophiatown, but white people are welcomed too. People of all
color, cultures and backgrounds are coming together as a community, living out what
Sophiatown wished to achieve. The fact that the name change ceremony was called a
celebration, and since then celebrations of various kinds occur in Sophiatown is just an
example of how successful this name change was. One cannot go into sophiatown and not see
evidence of the past in some way or another, this is the heritage of the land, a heritage that is
celebrated, because it is through those struggles that Sophiatown is what it is today. The
name change is significant in that it marked what the new constitution stood for, and sets as a
reminder of that constitution. The affect that it has had on the people is that of racial
acceptance and community. Sophiatown has not forgotten the past, an important point that
Mayor Masondo mentioned was that only Triomf was renamed to Sophiatown, the street
names stayed the same, to resemble the original Sophiatown, and to recreate what was
created in that time. This was a sincere attempt at bringing people of all colors together, and
it succeeded.
Bibliography:

Constitution Aims and Values.

https://www.justice.gov.za/legislation/constitution/FoundingProvisions_Con
stitution.pdf
Accessed 18 May 2022.

Forced removals of Sophiatown.

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/apr/11/story-cities-19-
johannesburg-south-africa-apartheid-purge-sophiatown
https://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/sophiatown-residents-are-
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https://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/final-evacuation-sophiatown-black-
residents
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/apr/11/story-cities-19-johannesburg-south-africa-
apartheid-purge-sophiatown

https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/article_image/
forced_removal_sophiatown.jpg
http://eugeniedrakes.com/index.php/item/38-heritage-day-in-sophiatown
Accessed 21 April 2022.
Gerard Sekoto Foundation.
https://www.gerardsekotofoundation.com/artwork.htm. Accessed 27 April
2022.
Heritage day celebrations
http://eugeniedrakes.com/index.php/item/38-heritage-day-in-sophiatown
Accessed 5 May 2022.

History of Soophiatown.
https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/grade-9-term-3-turning-points-south-
african-history-1960-1976-and-1990
https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/urban-removals-destruction-sophiatown
https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/destruction-sophiatown
Accessed 21 April 2022.
Island of spice.
https://islandofspice.wordpress.com/2009/04/17/poetry-politics-power-and-
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Renaming Sophiatown celebration.

https://www.news24.com/news24/sophiatown-regains-its-name-20060211
https://mg.co.za/article/2006-02-11-telling-the-story-of-sophiatown/
https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-31379211
https://www.lucilledavie.co.za/post/2011/11/04/sophiatown-and-its-people
https://gulfnews.com/world/africa/sophiatown-gets-back-name-after-51-
years-1.224954
Accessed 21 April 2022
Trevor Huddleston Museum.
https://www.facebook.com/FRHuddleston/photos/
a.1526952363995668/2490504917640403/
http://www.trevorhuddleston.org/events.html.
Accessed 22 April 2022.

We Wont Move Slogan.

https://digitalcollections.lib.uct.ac.za/collection/islandora-
7455#:~:text=Description,!%22%2C%20Sophiatown%2C%201955
Accessed 22 April 2022.