Coordinates: 55°51′41″N 4°18′30″W / 55.861485°N 4.308304°W / 55.861485; -4.308304

Govan (/ˈɡʌvən/ GUV-ən; Scottish Gaelic: Baile a' Ghobhainn) is a district and former burgh now part of southwest City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated 2.5 miles (4.0 km) west of Glasgow city centre, on the south bank of the River Clyde, opposite the mouth of the River Kelvin and the district of Partick.

According to medieval legend, Constantine, a 7th-century King of Strathclyde, founded a monastery under the rule of Columbanus in Govan. During the Middle Ages, Govan was the site of a ferry which linked the area with Partick for seasonal cattle drovers. In the 18th and 19th centuries, textile mills and coal mining were important; in the early 19th century shipbuilding emerged as Govan's principal industry. In 1864, Govan gained burgh status, and was Scotland's fifth largest burgh. It was incorporated into the city of Glasgow in 1912. However, the people of Govan often proclaim to be Govanites first and Glaswegians second and when asked "are you from Glesga?", still reply with "na, Acumfaegovan" (No, I come from Govan).

Govan Archibald Mvuyelwa Mbeki (9 July 1910 - 30 August 2001) was a South African politician, and father of the former South African president Thabo Mbeki and political economist Moeletsi Mbeki. He was named in honour of Edward Govan, a Scottish missionary who founded Lovedale College, the school that he attended in the Eastern Cape.

He attended Fort Hare University, completing in 1936 a Bachelor of Arts degree in politics and psychology and a teaching diploma, and met other African struggle leaders there.

In 1954, he joined the editorial board of New Age, which was to be the only South African newspaper serving the liberation movement for the eight following years. Mbeki played an immensely important role in ensuring that the pages and columns reflected the conditions of the black peoples, their demands and aspirations. In November 1962, the then Minister of Justice, John Vorster, banned New Age. When the editorial board came out with its successor, Vorster went one step further by banning not the newspaper but its editors and writers.