Amraal Lambert, Nama name: ǂGaiǀnub, (ca. 1774 – 13 February 1864) was the first

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the Kaiǀkhauan ( Khauas Nama), a subtribe of the

Orlam 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 Dam ...

, in the eastern area of Namaland, today's

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

. Amraal Lambert was born around 1774 near Hex River in the Clanwilliam district in the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony (), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope. It existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with three ...

(today's

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

). A Cape

Khoikhoi Khoikhoi (Help:IPA/English, /ˈkɔɪkɔɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''KOY-koy'') (or Khoekhoe in Namibian orthography) are the traditionally Nomad, nomadic pastoralist Indigenous peoples, indigenous population of South Africa. They ...

descendant, his status was little better than that of a slave, and he was forced to work in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

and

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

in his youth. In 1814 Lambert moved to Namaland (today's eastern-central Namibia), accompanied by

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

Heinrich Schmelen, who baptised him in Bethanie in 1815. Schmelen and the Kaiǀkhauan group led by Lambert stayed together for 14 more years but Schmelen closed the missionary station in Bethanie in 1822 and travelled on. Lambert accompanied Schmelen on his travel to

Walvis Bay Walvis Bay (; ; ) is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies. It is the List of cities in Namibia, second largest city in Namibia and the largest coastal city in the country. The city covers an area of of land. The bay is a ...

in 1825. Between 1830 and 1860, Amraal Lambert and his cousin

Jonker Afrikaner Jonker Afrikaner (3 February 1785, 18 August 1861, Okahandja) was the fourth Captain of the Orlam in South West Africa, succeeding his father, Jager Afrikaner, in 1823. Soon after becoming ''Kaptein'', he left his father's settlement at Bly ...

controlled much of southern and central

South-West Africa South West Africa was a territory under South African administration from 1915 to 1990. Renamed ''Namibia'' by the United Nations in 1968, it became independent under this name on 21 March 1990. South West Africa bordered Angola ( a Portu ...

. Together they have been described as "super-power in the cattle raiding business". From 1825 onwards Jonker Afrikaner and his council played a dominant political role in

Damaraland Damaraland was a name given to the north-central part of South West Africa, which later became Namibia, inhabited by the Damaras. It was bordered roughly by Ovamboland in the north, the Namib Desert in the west, the Kalahari Desert in the e ...

and Namaland, creating a '' de facto'' state. In 1840 Lambert and his people moved to Naosanabis (today Leonardville) where they allied with ǁOaseb, leader of the Khaiǁkhaun (

Red Nation "Red Nation" is a song by American rapper and West Coast hip-hop, West Coast hip hop artist The Game (rapper), Game featuring vocals from rapper Lil Wayne, from his anticipated fourth studio album ''The R.E.D. Album''. Released as the album's lead ...

). In 1855 or 1856 they abandoned Naosanabis and moved to ǂKoabes. Amraal, who spoke only

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

, could not pronounce the Nama name for this settlement, and changed it to its now common name

Gobabis Gobabis (, ) is a town in eastern Namibia. It is the regional capital of the Omaheke Region, and the district capital of the Gobabis electoral constituency. Gobabis is in the heart of the cattle farming area. It had a population of 33,418 peop ...

. In the 1860s the Kaiǀkhauan were severely weakened in their political and economic power. Their cattle died of lung disease, and

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

befell the Nama community at Gobabis. Many members of the Lambert family succumbed to the disease, among them Amraal who died on 13 February 1864 in Gobabis. His grandson Andreas Lambert succeeded him as Captain of the Kaiǀkhauan at the age of 20.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lambert, Amraal Nama people 1770s births 1864 deaths People from the Western Cape People from Omaheke Region Deaths from smallpox