Tzaneen is a city in the Limpopo province of South Africa. It is the administrative seat of the municipality of Greater Tzaneen in the district of Mopani. The name probably comes from the North Sotho word tsaneng (German: meeting place) or from tzana (German: basket) for the city's location in the middle of hills. The city lies on the banks of the Letaba River. The climate is subtropical with warm, rainy summers and mild winters.
Various Sotho tribes had lived in the area around Tzaneen for a long time. Even before 1890, the Boers founded so-called occupation farms there, some of which were abandoned because of the isolation and the malaria-causing Anopheles mosquitoes. Tzaneen is located in a fertile region that allows the cultivation of tropical and subtropical fruits such as mangoes, bananas, oranges and avocados. Around Tzaneen there are pine and eucalyptus plantations as well as yellow, stink and ironwood trees. There are numerous sawmills.
Sights around Tzaneen include the Tzaneen Dam (formerly: Fanie Botha Dam), the Magoebaskloof pass, the Modjadji Cycad Forest and a tea-growing area. There are several animal sanctuaries nearby. Outside the city is a sanctuary for the southern green monkey monkey.
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