History
Namibia's first inhabitants were the Bushmen (Sands). The rock paintings
in Daramaland bear witness to this period. Around 1300, the Namas
and the Damaras came from the north pushing the Bushmen towards
the Kalahari Desert.
Around 1500, the Owambos settled on the high plateaus and in the
Okavongo delta. Around 1600, Herero herdsmen arrived from the north.
With the beginning of German migration from 1850 onwards, Germany
annexed Namibia and in 1884 made war on the local ethnic groups.
By 1907, this war had claimed the lives of half of the Africans.
Germany then introduced racial segregation and the exploitation
of the diamond mines begun.
Culture
The Namibian people belong to many different cultural groups, which
is divided into several cultural groups such as the Owambo,Kavango,
Herero, Nama, Bushmen (San) and etc.
The Owambo, a tribe which live in northern Namibia and southern
Angola. The Owambo practice mainly a mixed economy of agriculture
and animal husbandry (cattle) supplemented by fishing in shallow
pools. Large numbers of Owambo workers migrate to other parts of
the country to seek employment. Today,workforce in the mining and
fishing industries consist primarily of Owambos.
The Kavango group is closely related to the Owambo, they originate
from the large lakes of East Africa. The traditional economy in
Kavango is based on a combination of horticulture and animal husbandry.
Today thousands of young Kavangos work as migratory labourers on
farms, in mines and in urban centres.
The Herero are a pastoral cattle-breeding people who migrated to
Namibia several centuries ago. Today, the Herero number over 200
years and it's divided into several different smaller groups.
The Nama are the only true descendants of the Khoikhoi in Namibia.
The Nama, now is led by the famous Jan Jonker Afrikaner, settled
in the south and central areas of Namibia. The Nama have much in
common with the Bushmen, sharing their linguistic roots and to some
extent their features. They number approximately 90,000 and consist
of thirteen Nama tribes or groups. They have a natural talent for
music, poetry and prose. Aside to that, Nama women are highly skilled
in sewing from embroidery to traditional patchwork.
Approximately 27 000 Bushmen also known as the San; live in Namibia.
These hunter-gatherers roamed the plains of Southern Africa for
thousands of years and are regarded as the earliest inhabitants
in Namibia. Today the Bushmen occupy only remote areas in the east
of Namibia and the Kalahari Desert in Bostwana. They are great story
tellers, and love music, mimicry, and dance. It is believe that
their songs and stories will survive as a record of their ancient
culture.
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