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German Namibians (german: Deutschnamibier) are a community of people descended from ethnic German colonists who settled in present-day
Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
. In 1883, the German trader
Adolf Lüderitz Franz Adolf Eduard Lüderitz (16 July 1834 – end of October 1886) was a German merchant and the founder of German South West Africa, Imperial Germany's first colony. The coastal town of Lüderitz, located in the ǁKaras Region of southern N ...
bought what would become the southern coast of Namibia from Josef Frederiks II, a chief of the local
Oorlam people The Oorlam or Orlam people (also known as Orlaam, Oorlammers, Oerlams, or Orlamse Hottentots) are a subtribe of the Nama people, largely assimilated after their migration from the Cape Colony (today, part of South Africa) to Namaqualand and D ...
, and founded the city of Lüderitz. The German government, eager to gain overseas possessions, annexed the territory soon after, proclaiming it German South West Africa (german: Deutsch-Südwestafrika). Small numbers of Germans subsequently immigrated there, many coming as
soldiers A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...
(german: Schutztruppe), traders, diamond miners, or colonial officials. In 1915, during the course of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, Germany lost its colonial possessions, including South West Africa (see History of Namibia); after the war, the former German colony was administered as a South African mandate. The German settlers were allowed to remain and, until independence in 1990,
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
remained an official language of the territory alongside
Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gr ...
and
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
.


Language

Today, English is the country's sole official language, but about 30,000 Namibians of German descent (around 2% of the country's overall population) and possibly 15,000 black Namibians (many of whom returned from
East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In t ...
after Namibian independence) still speak German or Namibian Black German, respectively. However, the numbers of German Namibians, rather than of Namibian speakers of German, are uncertain. Many Namibians of German descent still speak German and prefer classification as Namibian Germans not as Afrikaners. German Namibians retain a fully-fledged culture in German within Namibia, with German-medium schools, churches, and broadcasting. Television, music and books from Germany are widely popular in the community. Often German Namibian youth attend university or technical school in Germany. This is despite the fact that in most areas and in Windhoek, the broader lingua franca is
Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gr ...
while English is now often the sole language used in many other spheres such as government or on public signs and product packaging. Unlike in South Africa, German Namibians have not been absorbed into the larger Afrikaans- and English-speaking communities. However, virtually all German Namibians are fluent in Afrikaans and are either familiar with English or can speak it fluently.


History of German settlement

The first Germans in Namibia were missionaries, initially sent through the London Missionary Society and then later also the Rheinish Missionary Society. Both institutions worked closely together towards the end of the 18th century, as the Rheinish Missionary Society did not yet have any established facilities in Southern Africa. From 1805 the Albrecht brothers, followed by a number of other missionaries, settled in Southwest Africa. They engaged in cultural work, but also laid the groundwork for later colonisation. Later traders arrived and after the landing of the ship ''Tilly'' in Lüderitz Bay in 1883, a rising number of German officials, settlers, workmen and soldiers. After Southwest Africa was officially declared a German colony in 1884, as well as receiving recognition by England, an increasing number of migrants arrived from Germany. This migration flow reached its high point during the first Lüderitz diamond discoveries. Migration stagnated after the end of World War I, when Germany lost all sovereignty over its colonies in the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1 ...
. The governance of Southwest Africa was transferred to South Africa by the League of Nations. During the subsequent 'south-africanisation' of Southwest Africa, around half of the remaining 15 000 German residents were deported with their farms being handed over to South Africans. This so-called 'degermanisation' policy only changed after the London Agreement of 23 October 1923, according to which the remaining Germans were afforded British citizenship. German immigration as well as the spread of the German language were also expressively encouraged. In all 3200 Germans took up the opportunity of acquiring citizenship. At the start of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, South Africa aligned itself to the United Kingdom by a slim majority, and on 6 September 1939 South Africa officially declared war on Germany and the Axis. In 1939 those in Southwest Africa of German origin were put under house or farm arrest and then in 1940 transferred to South Africa to be interned in camps, where they would remain until 1946. From 1942 their British citizenship, afforded to them in 1923, was revoked. The Apartheid policy of South Africa came under increasing criticism and resulted in the founding and strengthening of the black resistance movement, including in Southwest Africa. At this time relations between the South African government and the German population were warming, leading to an increase in migration from Germany being viewed more favourably.


Communities

Most of the current German Namibians are descendants of farmers, officials, craftsmen and relatives of the so-called Schutztruppe (protection troops) as well as descendants of the migration waves following both of the world wars. Since around 1980, an increase in tourism has led to a rise in ownership of holiday and retirement homes by Germans. many Germans in Namibia are small and medium entrepreneurs. Many German-speakers live in the capital,
Windhoek Windhoek (, , ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek in 202 ...
(german: Windhuk), and in smaller towns such as
Swakopmund Swakopmund (german: Mouth of the Swakop) is a city on the coast of western Namibia, west of the Namibian capital Windhoek via the B2 main road. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. The town has 44,725 inhabitants and covers ...
, Lüderitz and
Otjiwarongo Otjiwarongo ( hz, beautiful place) is a city of 28,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It is the district capital of the Otjiwarongo electoral constituency and also the capital of Otjozondjupa. Otjiwarongo is situated in c ...
, where German architecture, too, is highly visible. Many German Namibians are prominent in business, farming, and tourism or as governmental officials. For example, the first post-independence
mayor of Windhoek The city of Windhoek, capital of South West Africa, then Namibia, was officially founded on 18 October 1890 by Curt Karl Bruno von François, an Imperial German Colonial Official in the '' Schutztruppe'', to serve as capital of German South W ...
, Björn von Finckenstein, is a German Namibian. The interests of the community are frequently voiced through Africa's only German-language daily, '' Die Allgemeine Zeitung''. The
Goethe-Institut The Goethe-Institut (, GI, en, Goethe Institute) is a non-profit German cultural association operational worldwide with 159 institutes, promoting the study of the German language abroad and encouraging international cultural exchange ...
in Windhoek lobbies on behalf of the German community. The legacy of German colonisation in Namibia can also be seen in the
Lutheran Church Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
, which is the largest religious denomination in the country. Many place names in Namibia carry names of German origin. The main road in the capital city, Windhoek retained the name ''Kaiserstrasse'' ("Emperor Street") until
Namibian independence The history of Namibia has passed through several distinct stages from being colonised in the late nineteenth century to Namibia's independence on 21 March 1990. From 1884, Namibia was a German colony: German South West Africa. After the First ...
in 1990.


Decline

The percentage of the population of Namibia formed by Germans has declined recently, spurring speculation that the overall number of German Namibians is decreasing. The decline in the percentage of German Namibians is mainly due to their low birth rates and the fact that other Namibian ethnic groups have higher birth rates and bigger families. Unlike other southern African white groups, emigration to Europe, Australia or North America is not common. German Namibians tend to emigrate instead to South Africa. According to the 2001 Census, only 1.1% of all Namibian households use German as a home language (3,654 households), which is much less than that for Afrikaans (39,481 or 11.4%) or English (6,522 or 1.9%). As per the 2011 census, 0.9% of all Namibian households used German as a home language (4,359 households), as compared to 10.4% using Afrikaans (48,238) and 3.4% using English (15,912). German is spoken by only 0.3% of the rural Namibians as compared to 1.7% of the urban Namibians. The maximum concentration can be found at Erongo (2.8%), Khomas (2.6%) and Otjozondjupa (1.4%).


Education

Deutsche Höhere Privatschule Windhoek The ''Deutsche Höhere Privatschule'' (DHPS) is a bilingual private school in Namibia. Situated in the capital Windhoek, The DHPS also offers boarding school facilities, a kindergarten and pre-school and primary and secondary grades from Grade ...
, a German international school, is in the country's capital, Windhoek.


List of German Namibians

* Dieter Aschenborn (1915–2002), painter *
Uli Aschenborn Hans Ulrich "Uli" Aschenborn (born 6 September 1947 in Johannesburg, South Africa) is a Southern African animal painter.
(born 1947), South African-born Namibian
animal painter An animal painter is an artist who specialises in (or is known for their skill in) the portrayal of animals. The '' OED'' dates the first express use of the term "animal painter" to the mid-18th century: by English physician, naturalist and wr ...
*
Chris Badenhorst Christopher Badenhorst (born 12 December 1965) is a South African former rugby union player. Playing career Born and schooled in Windhoek, Namibia, Badenhorst made his provincial debut for the in 1986 and continued to represent the union 221 ...
(born 1965), South West African-born former Springbok test rugby union player *
Beate Baumgartner Beate Baumgartner (born 9 May 1983), also known as "Yola B", is an Austrian-Namibian singer. She was born in Windhoek, South-West Africa (now Namibia), and gained her initial fame by participating in the talent show '' Starmania'' in 2002–3. Sh ...
(born 1983), Namibian-born Austrian singer * Monica Dahl (born 1975), swimmer * Klaus Dierks (1936–2005), government minister *
Till Drobisch Till Drobisch (born 2 March 1993) is a Namibian professional bicycle racing, racing cyclist. He rode in two events at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. In February 2016 he won the 2016 national road cycling championships, Namibia National Individual T ...
(born 1993),
road bicycle racer Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most commo ...
* Kerstin Gressmann (born 1994), tennis player * Otto Herrigel (1937–2013), lawyer, businessman, and politician *
Erik Hoffmann Erik Hoffmann (born 22 August 1981) is a Namibian professional road bicycle racer. He was born in Windhoek. He moved to University of Stuttgart, Germany in 2001 to study Electrical Engineering. During 2002 - 2004, he was part of Team Stuttgar ...
(born 1981), road bicycle racer *
Adolph Jentsch Adolph Stephan Friedrich Jentsch (29 December 1888 Dresden – 18 April 1977 Windhoek) was a German-born Namibian artist. He studied at the Dresden ''Staatsakademie für Bildende Künste'' ( Dresden Art Academy, today's ''College of Fine Arts' ...
(1888–1977), South West African artist *
Friedrich Wilhelm Kegel Friedrich Wilhelm Kegel (1874–1948), from 1924 to 1933 director of the mining operations at Tsumeb mine, Namibia. He was German until his naturalisation in South West Africa. After his resignation he lived in Switzerland. He visited the Tsumeb min ...
(d. 1948), South West African businessman *
Ingeborg Körner Ingeborg Körner is a Namibian-born German actress. Selected filmography * ''Dangerous Guests'' (1949) * '' Unknown Sender'' (1950) * '' Abundance of Life'' (1950) * '' The House in Montevideo'' (1951) * ''Toxi'' (1952) * ''When The Village Mus ...
(born 1929), South West African-born German actress * Richard Kunzmann (born 1976), novelist * Bradley Langenhoven (born 1983), rugby union player * Jörg Lindemeier (born 1968), swimmer * Anton Lubowski (1952–1989), South West African
anti-apartheid activist The Anti-Apartheid Movement (AAM), was a British organisation that was at the centre of the international movement opposing the South African apartheid system and supporting South Africa's non-White population who were persecuted by the polici ...
* Henning Melber (born 1950), political activist * Oliver Risser (born 1980), footballer *
Wilko Risser Wilko Rudi Risser (born 11 August 1982, in Windhoek) is a Namibian-German Association football, footballer who plays for Chippa United in the South African Premier Soccer League. Club career Wilko Risser began his career with Ramblers Windhoek ...
(born 1982), Namibian-German footballer * Friedhelm Sack (born 1956), sport shooter * Wolfgang Schenck (1913–2010), South West African-born German
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
fighter ace *
Calle Schlettwein Carl-Hermann Gustav "Calle" Schlettwein (born 13 June 1954) is a Namibian politician who has served in the country's cabinet since 2012. In March 2020, he was appointed the Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform after serving as the Min ...
(born 1954), politician and current
Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...
* Bernard Scholtz (born 1990), cricketer * Nicolaas Scholtz (born 1986), cricketer * Phillip Seidler (born 1998), swimmer * EES (Eric Sell, born 1983), rapper * Hans Erik Staby (1935–2009), politician and architect * Manfred Starke (born 1991), footballer * Sandra Starke (born 1993), Namibian-born German footballer *
Gerhard Tötemeyer Gerhard Karl Hans Tötemeyer (born 21 May 1935) is a professor emeritus and retired Namibian politician who served as minister of local government between 2000 and 2004. He was born in Gibeon, and spent the first four years of his life in Keetman ...
(born 1935), Namibian professor and former politician * Raimar von Hase (born 1948), farmer and leader of the Namibia Agricultural Union * Günther von Hundelshausen (born 1980), footballer * Hellmut von Leipzig (1921–2016), Namibian-German World War II recipient of the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight' ...
* Anoeschka von Meck (born 1967), Afrikaans-language author * Anton von Wietersheim (born 1951), politician


See also

* Germany–Namibia relations *
Ethnic Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
* German South West Africa * Deutscher Pfadfinderbund Namibia


References


External links


German Website of some German Namibians in Europe/Germany
{{Authority control ! White Namibian people German minorities
Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
European diaspora in Africa Ethnic groups in Namibia Germany–Namibia relations
Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
History of Namibia