Nirvana was proclaimed in November 1973 as a Group Area for Polokwane's Indian community, who had been moved there from 1967 under apartheid, on land that was once the Ivydale Agricultural Holdings.
It has since grown well beyond its origins into a self-contained area open to all residents, with two mosques, a Hindu temple, churches of several denominations, schools, pre-schools and a dense mix of formal and informal businesses.
Together with the adjoining Superbia, it forms the hub of Polokwane's western business district.
It remains one of the busiest and most diverse trading areas in the city.