The Miss South Africa is a national beauty pageant in South Africa that selects South African representatives to compete in one of the Big Four international beauty pageants Miss Universe, and also selects another representative to participate in Sub-major international pageant Miss Supranational. The Miss South Africa organisation resorted to a contemporary format in selecting representatives which was inaugurated in 2018. Following their newer method, both a Miss World South Africa and a Miss Universe South Africa were selected as representatives. From 2021 onwards, the winner of Miss South Africa will be competing in Miss Universe, and Miss Supranational. The current Miss South Africa 2023 is Natasha Joubert. On May 11, 2023, the Miss South Africa Organisation has lost its license as a Miss World licensee holder to Carol Bouwer Productions, which has taken over the license of Miss World South Africa pageant.^[1]

History

Established in 1956 in Apartheid South Africa, the first official Miss South Africa pageant was only open to "white" (Caucasian) females and was organized to send a representative to London for the Miss World pageant. That year Norma Vorster was crowned Miss South Africa. Two years later, an 18-year-old secretary from Durban, Penny Coelen, was crowned and would later go on to make history and win Miss World. It was not until 1977 that all persons of all races were allowed to compete in the Miss SA competition. Prior to that, people of colour competed in the Miss Africa South pageant,^[2] which was renamed Miss Black South Africa in 1977.

This was just the beginning for the Miss South Africa organisation; of the 60 women who have worn the crown, only the last 27 winners have been chosen from the entire population of South Africa and not just white individuals. Since then, hundreds of young women have entered the pageant vying for the title.^[3]

Miss South Africa (or a runner-up in some instances) has always competed at Miss World, but the first Miss South Africa to compete at Miss Universe was Kerishnie Naicker in 1998.

Prior to 1998, South Africa's representatives at Miss Universe qualified via other national pageants.

Three Miss South Africas, namely Rolene Strauss, Anneline Kriel and Penelope Coelen, have won the Miss World titles in 2014, 1974 and 1958 respectively. Three women from South Africa have won the title of Miss Universe - Margaret Gardiner in 1978, Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters in 2017 and Zozibini Tunzi in 2019.

Prior to the establishment of the official Miss South Africa, South African Pictorial ("The Union's National Weekly") held annual Beauty Competitions starting in 1923. This evolved later into Miss South Africa. The first winner of this prize was Mrs. Doris Ferramosca (née Doris Gwendoline Helliwell).

In 2020, Miss South Africa franchised the Miss Supranational license.^[4][5] In 2022, Miss South Africa 2021, Lalela Mswane became the first South African woman have won the title of Miss Supranational.^[6]

International crowns

Hosts

• Richard Steinmetz
• Bonang Matheba
• ProVerb
• Anele Mdoda
• Nico Panagio

Titleholders

See also

• Miss Earth South Africa
• Miss Grand South Africa

References

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Miss South Africa.

• Official Miss South Africa website