I interpret your first sentence to say that towns or villages in South Africa have a distinct character. That, by all means, suggests that Towns in South Africa might be a viable article. It doesn't explain why WP:RFFL wouldn't apply, barring the redirect from a non-English word for them, even though you chose to use that word in your first sentence. For example, Greek cuisine is distinctive, but we don't have a redirect to it from the Greek word for cuisine, κουζίνα. Turkish coffee is distinctive but we don't have a redirect to it from the Turkish word for coffee, kahve.
