This part of the Cape of Good Hope is called “The Point” in South
Africa.
These are fishing boats in a harbor on Cape Cod.
ALL KINDS OF CAPES
A cape can be a coat that you throw over your shoulders. But a cape can
also be a piece of land that juts out into a body of water. Some capes
were named after the person who discovered them. Others were named
because of where they are. But still others were named for fish, fear,
hope, and a gray nose.
Cape Cod in Massachusetts got its name because of all the codfish caught
off its shores.
Cape Fear in North Carolina got its name because of all the storms in
the area. Sailors feared the dangerous waters around the cape.
The Cape of Good Hope at the tip of Africa got its name from a
king. When the explorer Bartolomeu Dias discovered the cape,
he called it the Cape of Storms. But the king of Portugal hoped
that the cape would be a
good sea route to India, so he renamed
it the Cape of Good Hope. Later another explorer, Vasco da Gama, proved
that the king was right. He sailed around the Cape of Good Hope and
continued on to India.
Cape Gris-Nez in France got its name because the cape looks like a big
gray nose. “Gris-Nez” means “gray nose.
