iSimangaliso Wetland Park is located on the east coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, approximately 235 km (146 mi) north of Durban by road. It is South Africa's third-largest protected area, covering 280 km (170 mi) of coastline. The park stretches from the border with Mozambique in the north to Mapelane, which is south of the Lake St. Lucia estuary. It includes about 3,280 km² (1,270 sq mi) of natural ecosystems, which are managed by the iSimangaliso Authority.

The park was previously called the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park but was renamed on November 1, 2007. The word "iSimangaliso" means "a miracle" or "something wondrous" in Zulu. The name originated from a story about a person sent by Shaka to the land of the Tsonga. When he returned, he described the beauty he saw as a miracle.

Transfrontier parks

The park is part of a marine conservation area called the Ponta do Ouro-Kosi Bay Transfrontier Conservation Area. This area spans three countries: South Africa, Mozambique, and Eswatini. The marine conservation area is also part of the Greater Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation Area.

History

Until 1895, the bay was home to the Tsonga people and their fish kraal. This area is the original and natural home of the Tsonga people, who lived there for more than 1,000 years. Early records from Portuguese sailors correctly identified this region and other areas farther south as places where the Tsonga people lived. The area was also called Tembeland or Thongaland, but these names were no longer used by the early 1900s. The region was led by a group of the Vahlanganu people called the Tembe. A Swiss missionary, Reverend Henri-Alexandre Junod, studied the Tsonga people and their culture in the early 1890s. He created a detailed map showing that the Tsonga Tembe people lived in the bay. Junod’s map also showed that the area was called Tembeland and that the Tembe capital city was located in St. Lucia Bay. By 1906, the Tsonga people lived from St. Lucia to Valdezia in the Spelenkon district of the Transvaal Province, now known as Limpopo Province. St. Lucia Bay and Maputo Bay are part of the same land, which belonged to the Tsonga people. Tsonga villages were built from St. Lucia Bay to Maputo, and no natural barriers separated these areas. Around St. Lucia, the ruling chief was the Tembe Royal Family, while near Maputo, the ruling family was the Maputo Royal Family. Both groups are part of the Vahlanganu branch of the Tsonga people. In and around Maputo and St. Lucia Bay (Tembeland), the language spoken is Ronga. According to Reverend Junod, Ronga is not a separate language but a dialect of Xitsonga because of their similarities.

St. Lucia was first named in 1554 as Rio dos Medos do Ouro (River of the Gold Dunes) by survivors of the Portuguese ship Saint Benedict. At that time, only the mouth of the Tugela River was known as St. Lucia. Later, in 1575, the Tugela River was named Tugela. On December 13, 1575, which was the feast day of Saint Lucy, Manuel Peresterello renamed the mouth area to Santa Lucia.

In December 1999, the park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site during a ceremony where Nelson Mandela was a guest. In 2025, the area protected under the heritage designation was expanded to include the Maputo National Park in neighboring Mozambique.

Biodiversity

The park was declared a world heritage site because of its rich biodiversity, unique ecosystems, and natural beauty found in a small area. The variety of plants and animals in the park is due to the many different ecosystems present, such as coral reefs, sandy beaches, subtropical dune forests, savannas, and wetlands. Animals found in the park include elephants, leopards, black and southern white rhinos, Cape buffalo, and in the ocean, whales, dolphins, and marine turtles like the leatherback and loggerhead turtles.

The park is also home to 1,200 crocodiles and 800 hippopotami.

In December 2013, after 44 years without them, African lions were reintroduced to iSimangaliso.

Large underwater reef areas in the park are home to brightly colored fish and corals. Some of the most diverse coral communities in the world are found in Sodwana Bay, and octopus and squid species are common. Whale sharks are sometimes seen in the area.

Twenty-four species of bivalve molluscs have been recorded in St. Lucia Lake, which makes up a large part of the park.