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De Aar, originally
the name of a a small
Karoo farm, means ‘the
artery’ because of the life-sustaining underground
water courses.
 In
1881 a portion of the De Aar farm was
purchased to establish a junction for the new Cape Town
to Kimberley railway.
 It was called Brounger Junction after the
railway engineer William Brounger, but the name soon
reverted back to the name of the farm. For much of
the 20th century it was the second-most important
railway junction in South Africa.
 The area surrounding the town is
popular for hunting, despite the fact that the
region is arid.
There are ancient Khoisan
rock engravings nearby on the
Brandfontein
farm.
In the town the "Garden of
Remembrance", honours British troops
killed in the Anglo-Boer War.
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 Olive
Schreiner, the famous author and feminist
who wrote Women and Labour, lived in De Aar
with her husband Samuel Cronwright from 1907
to 1913. Their house, a national monument on
the corner of Crund Linch and Van Zyl
Street, is now a restaurant.
These days De Aar is particularly well
known for its paragliding school, attracting
hang gliding and paragliding enthusiasts
from all over Southern Africa and Europe.
 The
airdrome has four runways to deal with a
range of wind directions. Pilots are
launched with a "payout" winch fixed on the
back of a vehicle. A mountain launch is also
available. The surrounding area is abundant
semi-desert landscape with plenty of landing
options. Roads in all directions make for
easy recovery once you land.
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