The town of Upington in the Northern Cape is named after him, as was the short-lived Boer republic of Upingtonia.
The state was named after Thomas Upington, prime minister of the Cape Colony, from whom the new state was hoping for support.
Having bought a large area of land from the Ovambo people, Jordan donated some of it to Boer settlers who in 1885 established the short-lived republic of Upingtonia.