Why did the Boers (a Dutch ethnic group) choose to settle in South Africa? I also have some questions about Afrikaans. I haven't gotten a clear answer on this from wikipedia (though maybe I didn't look hard enough). South Africa has always kind of struck me as an interesting and unusual place, so I've been trying to learn a bit more about it lately.

Basically, why South Africa? Why did a large number of dutch people choose to permanently settle in the most remote part of Africa? (well, the furthest from Europe)

Also, regarding Afrikaans, is it a merging of Dutch and local languages? Or just a dialect of Dutch that evolved in isolation? Do only the Boers speak it, or does it also have a following among the indigenous Africans?