Otjimbingwe
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| Otjimbingwe | |
  Otjimbingwe
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| Coordinates: 22°21′27″S 16°7′43″E / 22.3575°S 16.12861°E | |
| Country |  Namibia |
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| Region | Erongo Region |
| Time zone | South African Standard Time (UTC+1) |
Otjimbingwe is a small city in Erongo, Namibia (22°22′S 16°07′E / 22.36°S 16.12°E). It has approximately 8000 inhabitants (2005 census).
The Rhenish Mission Society used Otjimbingwe as a central location for their Namibian mission in 1849. Johannes Rath and his family settled in the area on 11 July that year, and the settlement was declared official in 1864. A Rhenish church, constructed in 1867, is still standing and is considered one of the city's main attractions.
In 1855, copper was found in the nearby Khomas highlands and the Walwich Bay Mining Company established its offices in the city. However the supply had been exhausted by 1860 and the buildings were shut down.
Under the control of Commissioner Dr Heinrich Ernst Göring, the city became the Namibian capital in the late 1880s. However, control gradually shifted to Windhoek, and the civil administration moved there in 1892. The railway line from Windhoek and Swakopmund was completed in the early 1900s, bypassing Otjimbingwe, and the city greatly declined in size thereafter.
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