Diocese of Mthatha
Umtatan(us)
Suffragan diocese · Latin Church · Mthatha, South Africa
The Diocese of Mthatha (formerly Umtata) is a Latin rite suffragan see in the ecclesiastical province of Durban, South Africa, established as an apostolic prefecture in 1930 and raised to a diocese in 1951. After Bishop Sithembele Sipuka was appointed Archbishop of Cape Town in January 2026, Bishop Thulani Victor Mbuyisa of Kokstad was named Apostolic Administrator of the vacant see.
The see
- Rank
- Suffragan diocese
- Tradition
- Latin Church
- Erected
- 11 January 1951
- Latin
- Umtatan(us)
- Patron
- All Saints
- Annuario code
- 001000042
The see in figures
- Catholics
- 68,198
- Population
- 1,717,676
- Catholic share
- 4.0%
- Priests
- 21
- Catholics per priest
- 3,248
- Extent
- 22,500 km²
- Catholics per km²
- 3.0
of the people living within its bounds
Figures as recorded in the register, from the Annuario Pontificio and the see's own published statements. Shares and ratios are computed from the two figures shown beside them.
The bishop
- Apostolic Administrator
- Thulani Victor Mbuyisa
- Born
- 13 February 1973
- Birthplace
- Exobho
- Institute
- MISSIONARI DI MARIANNHILL
A see whose chair stands empty is recorded as vacant rather than filled with a guess. On what a bishop is, see the bishop.
The cathedral
Cathedral of All Saints stands in Mthatha, the church that holds the cathedra from which this see takes its name.
On what a cathedral is, see the cathedral; every see church on earth is gathered at the cathedrals.
The province of Durban
A suffragan of Archdiocese of Durban.
The sees of this province:
- Archdiocese of DurbanDurban
- Diocese of DundeeDundee
- Diocese of EshoweEshowe
- Diocese of KokstadKokstad
- Diocese of MariannhillMariannhill
- Diocese of UmzimkuluUmzimkulu
On how the Church is ordered into provinces, see the diocese.
What is kept by invitation
The record above is published because it is public: what this see is, when it was erected, who holds its chair, and where it stands among its neighbours.
The working record is not. The chancery's address, telephone and email, the clergy of the see, and the hours of Mass, confession and adoration in the parishes within it are kept for members, and a person reads every request.
Sources
The see's own website · Wikipedia · GCatholic
This record is compiled from the published statements of the see and the references of the Holy See, among them the Annuario Pontificio. On the method, see the keeping of the record. Whoever finds an error is asked, in charity, to write: [email protected].