South Africa is a very diverse country, one the most multi-cultural nations in the entire world. Many groups of different ethnicity live together and work together, in business such as a local restaurant or marketplace, a farm to a boutique hotel. Cape Town residents and all those living in the various cities must have rules of etiquette to avoid offending those with which they spend so much time. As well as the indigenous tribes of the region, immigration has brought in those from China, India, and white Europeans. These are all cultures that are drastically different from one another. It is difficult to outline a general set of etiquette, as a result of the great diversity, however for those traveling or moving to the country there are some guidelines.
The family unit is of utmost importance. Extended family members are considered close, as close as the nuclear family ties. Many of the people are moving to the larger cities such as Johannesburg and Cape Town, from their small villages in search of work and the opportunities provided in those cities, and it is quite common for those in the cities to continue to support those members still living in their hometowns.
There is quite a difference in those that are living in the urban districts and those living in the rural communities. Those living in the cities live in the fast paced world common to all large cities of the world. Those in the cities are sometimes regarded as materialistic, opposite of those on the farms and in the small villages, who are characterized as valuing the human decency over economic wealth and material gain. City dwellers are known in some cases to view those on the farms, as less sophisticated, which is true in many societies, not just those in South Africa. All the friendships and relationships of the cultures rely on the understanding and respect of the customs and the traditions of those they live amongst.