Photo by Dana Allen

Namibias People

Although Namibia is the second least populated country

on planet earth, more than 14 native groups, speaking 26 languages,

comprise the nations more than 2 million population. Half of all
Namibians speak Oshiwambo (Ovambo) as their first language,
although the most widely understood language is Afrikaans. Among
younger generations, English is rapidly gaining hold, making Namibia
a welcoming environment for North American travelers.

Baster People
The It is believed that this racethe descendants of the Cape Colony Dutch men and indigenous Khoi women from Southern
Africafinds its roots as early as 1652, the year of Jan van Riebeecks landing at the Cape in South Africa. The term Baster,
while considered offensive by some, is the communitys preferred nomenclature, and it is used with pride. This group adopted the
language (Afrikaans) and culture of their forefathers (which includes the fervid observance of Calvinist beliefs) and are quite
protective of their cultural heritage. In 1868, drought and discrimination forced the Basters to move north across the Orange
River into Namibia where they eventually, in 1870, reached Rehoboth, south of Windhoek. Today, many Basters work in Windhoek,
commuting some 110 miles daily in passenger cars, vans and small buses. They are artisans (bricklayers, carpenters, etc.), and
have built many a Windhoek building; salespeople and administrators; and, to a lesser extent, livestock farmers.
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Kavango People
This large nation of riverside people has often been described as one of the friendliest in Africa. The Kavango people comprise
five distinct tribal groups, nearly all of whom live along the banks of the Kavango River from Katwitwe in the west to Bagani
in the east. A small number of the Kavango people live in the major drainage area in the south of the Kavango, while some are
temporary residents alongside the main road between Grootfontein and Rundu, where they sell hand-made goods to passers-by.

Caprivi People
The population of the Caprivi is estimated at just under 100,000. There are two main tribal groups, the Fwe in the west and the
Subia in the east. Both live under strict tribal structures, in which the oldest male is the head of each village, having assumed
the position by descent, and groups of villages (called wards) are headed up by a senior Headman, who is elected. In addition to
hunting and fishing, the Caprivians till the soil, planting maize, millet, beans, sweet potatoes, groundnuts, pumpkins, melons
and sugar cane. They are also gatherers and pastoralists, with well-structured usage of the communal grazing areas. Due to
their isolation and remoteness, they continue to depend on a traditional subsistence agricultural economy.

Caucasian
White Namibians are descendants of European settlers, colonists and immigrantsall groups with a long history in Namibia.
The first European to take up permanent residence in Namibia is believed to have been Guilliam Visagie, who with his wife had
settled at what is now Keetmanshoop. Soon after, a number of explorers, ivory and big game hunters, travelled up from the
Cape in South Africa; the first missionaries, Abraham and Christian Albrecht, arrived at Warmbad in 1806. Throughout the 19th
century, the numbers of adventurers, prospectors, traders and explorers from Europe increasedespecially after diamonds were
discovered. Post-WWI farms and various other properties were bought by new settlers and the number of European residents
grew steadily. The majority of white Namibians, who comprise six to eight percent of the population, now own a disproportionate
share of the countrys wealth, because of the legacy of Apartheid from when Namibia was a South African territory. White Namibians primarily live in cities and major towns.

Damara People
The Damara make up about 8.5 percent of the Namibian populace. The majority live in the north-western regions of the country
but others are found widely across Namibia, where they live and work in towns, on commercial farms, on mines, as well as at the
coast. They have no cultural or blood relationship with any of the other tribes anywhere else in Africa and no longer possess their
traditions of origin, nor former linguistic and cultural affiliations.
In earlier times in Namibia, the Damara people are believed to have been hunter-gatherers, thereafter dominated by and working
for the Nama and the Herero. The development
of tourism since 1990 has drawn many Damaras
into related activities such as tour guiding and
nature conservation. The Damaraland region is
well known for its minerals and semi-precious
stones and many Damara have turned to
small-scale mining. They then sell their stones
along the roads leading into and out of their
settlements.

Herero People
The Bantu-speaking Herero nation moved south
from Angola into Namibia, it is thought, during
the 16th century. During the last decades of the
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19th century, as the Nama people immigrated north from South Africa and began displacing the Herero, conflict arose between
the groups and both sides suffered casualties and cattle thieving. This warfare resulted in the German government sending
the Schutztruppe (Protective Force) to Namibia to quell the conflicts. All land utilised by the Herero was confiscated by the
authorities and in 1920 a number of reserves (Ovitoto, Epukiro, Waterberg-East, Aminuis and Otjituuo) were created by the SWA
Administration, for exclusive use by the surviving few thousands of Herero.

Tswana People
The Tswana people are associated with the desert country of Botswana, whose name means Land of the Tswana, but a few
thousand Tswana also live in the neighbouring area of Namibia and Zimbabwe. About 60 percent of the Tswana profess Christianity, but only about 18 percent are practicing Christians, of which women outnumber men at least two to one. Traditional
Tswana society included men, women, children and badimo (ancestors, the living dead, who have metaphysical powers).
Historically, the Tswana do not think in terms of individual rights, but of responsibilities to their family and tribe.

Himba (Ovahimba) People

Photo by Dana Allen

In 1978, during a visit to one of the Himba villages in remote Kaokoland by a group of international journalists, one of them remarked, Look
at how uncivilized and backward these people
are. Its shocking! His remark was translated
from English into Herero. One of the Himba present, after a short exchange between himself and
the interpreter, responded in fluent Afrikaans,
Our life is good. We have no fighting, no crime,
no hunger and no hatred. We are satisfied. Do
you live as well in your land?
While the conservative Himba have tried fiercely
to stay true to their history, many of the younger
generation have begun accepting some changes, including education in the Namibian national system. Yet most of the older
generations, fearing that their children will abandon cultural traditions, still strongly encourage them to dress or undress,
according to traditional style and to live like a true Himba.

Bushman / San
The San, a small semi-nomadic ethnic group, numbering about 40,000, are more commonly known as Bushmen. They comprise
of one larger and four smaller groups. The Bushmen have lean and delicate limbs ideal physical features for endurance running. Relying more heavily on the gathering of roots, seeds, nuts and other edible plants than on hunting, they often go without
meat for lengthy periods. Their foraged veld food is also a crucial source of water for them. The Bushman is the only ethnic
group in Namibia which has no traditional area which they call home. For perhaps thousands of years they have followed the
migratory routes of the animals they hunted although these activities curtailed with the agricultural developments that took
place.

Nama People
Previously there was differentiation between the local Khoi peoples and those who moved into Namibia from South Africa. Today,
however, both are referred to as Nama. There are fifteen Nama tribes in Namibia, most of which are well proportioned and of
slender build. At Vaalgras, when Herero prisoners-of-war were released at the end of the hostilities in the early 1900s, they
stayed in the area and mingled with the local Nama. Today they live like the Nama and speak the Nama language.
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Ovambo People
The number of Ovambo people in Namibia, estimated at 700,000-750,000, fluctuates remarkably day-to-day, due to regular
cross-border movement resulting from the arbitrary colonial border between Angola and Namibia. There are eight main tribes
each with its own dialectbut only two written languages. Traditionally agriculturists and cattle breeders, Ovambo men also
often seek employment in mines, farms, factories and commercial enterprises. Exposure to the business environments created
by the Europeans triggered an astonishing development of entrepreneurial activity amongst the Ovambo; indeed, nearly every
Ovambo family is involved in some form of retail activity. The Namibian social and cultural evolution of the past thirty years has
fundamentally changed the groups traditional way of life, and many of the typical homesteads have made way for more modern
suburbs and villages, pushing agricultural and cattle herding activities out to rural areas. Many traditional villages still exist,
however, a living demonstration of the Ovambos orderly social structure.

ABOUT THE NAMIBIA TOURISM BOARD

With the mandate of promoting tourism both nationally and internationally, ensuring the quality
of accommodations
and other tourist facilities, and developing environmentally sustainable travel practices, the Namibia Tourism Board (NTB) was
formed by an act of Parliament in April, 2001. It brings together both the private and public sectors and is the only national body
devoted entirely to implementing the national policy on tourism. The NTBs domestic and international offices provide customtailored services to the members of the travel trade. http://www.namibiatourism.com.na/

North America Public Relations Contacts

Media Liaison: Malcolm Griffithsmalcolm.griffiths@aboutdci.com; 212-444-7112
Media Liaison: Gaye Jacobsgaye.jacobs@aboutdci.com; 310-541-5661