History of Namibia

The San (Bushmen) are the oldest inhabitants of Namibia — and according to genetic findings, one of the oldest human groups on Earth. For at least 20,000 years, possibly over 100,000 years, they have lived as hunters and gatherers in the Kalahari and the arid regions of southern Africa.

Their rock paintings and engravings — found in Twyfelfontein (UNESCO World Heritage), at Brandberg (the famous "White Lady"), and hundreds of other sites — are between 2,000 and 6,000 years old and document a world full of wildlife, hunting scenes, and spiritual symbols.

The San developed unique survival techniques for life in the desert:

• They find water where others perish — in Bi-tubers (underground melons) and hollow tree trunks
• Their click sounds (click languages) are among the most complex phonetic systems in the world
• Their tracking skills are used today in science (tracking) and even in counter-terrorism

Today, only a few thousand San live in Namibia, many in the Nyae-Nyae Conservancy in the northeast. Their traditional living area has been curtailed over centuries by Bantu peoples, colonists, and modern farmers. Projects like the Living Culture Foundation aim to preserve their cultural heritage.

From the 14th century, Bantu peoples migrated from the north and displaced the San into inhospitable desert areas. The main groups:

• Ovambo (Oshiwambo): By far the largest population group in Namibia (about 50%). They traditionally live in the fertile north (Ovamboland) and engage in agriculture and livestock farming. The SWAPO liberation movement emerged from the Ovambo
• Herero: Cattle herders who migrated from East Africa in the 17th/18th century and settled in the central highlands. Recognizable by the Victorian dresses of the women — an adaptation of 19th-century missionary clothing, now proudly worn as a cultural symbol
• Nama/Damara: Khoi-San-related groups who lived as shepherds and traders. The Nama under Captain Hendrik Witbooi were the last to resist the German colonists
• Kavango, Caprivians, Tswana: Other groups in the north and northeast

This ethnic diversity still shapes Namibia today — the country has 13 recognized ethnic groups and over 30 languages and dialects.

In 1883, the Bremen merchant Adolf Lüderitz acquired a piece of coast near the present-day town of Lüderitz — a purchase agreement whose fairness is highly questionable from today's perspective. In 1884, Chancellor Bismarck placed the area under German "protection" — German South West Africa was born.

The German colonial rule lasted 30 years and left deep scars:

• Settlers: German farmers settled in the central highlands, established farms, and displaced the Herero and Nama from their grazing lands
• Infrastructure: Railways, churches, administrative buildings — many of which still stand today
• Protection force: The German military secured the colony with increasing brutality

The growing land expropriation and humiliation of the indigenous population led to the Herero uprising in January 1904 — followed by one of the darkest chapters in German history.

The genocide of the Herero and Nama (1904–1908) is one of the worst crimes in German colonial history — and is classified by historians as the first genocide of the 20th century.

After the Herero uprising in January 1904, Berlin dispatched General Lothar von Trotha, who issued his infamous extermination order on October 2, 1904:

"Within the German border, every Herero, with or without a gun, with or without cattle, will be shot. I no longer accept women and children."

The Herero were driven into the waterless Omaheke Desert, where thousands perished from thirst. Survivors were interned in concentration camps — on Shark Island near Lüderitz and in Windhoek. Forced labor, hunger, disease, and medical experiments (skull measurements) claimed thousands more victims.

The toll: Of approximately 80,000 Herero, only about 15,000 survived. The Nama lost about half of their population.

Germany officially recognized the genocide only in 2021 and pledged 1.1 billion euros in development aid over 30 years — a sum criticized by many Herero and Nama representatives as insufficient, as it does not go to direct descendants but to state projects.

After World War I, South Africa took over the administration of the territory — initially as a League of Nations mandate, then as a de facto colony. From 1948, South Africa introduced the apartheid system in South West Africa as well: strict racial segregation, homelands, pass laws, and systematic discrimination against the black population.

Resistance formed in the SWAPO (South West Africa People's Organisation), founded in 1960 under the leadership of Sam Nujoma. From 1966, SWAPO led an armed liberation struggle against the South African occupation — the "Bush War," which lasted over 20 years and was mainly fought in the north (Ovamboland).

Under international pressure and after the end of the Cold War, the first free elections were held in 1989. On March 21, 1990, Namibia became independent — as one of the last countries in Africa. Sam Nujoma became the first president.

Since independence, Namibia has been a stable democracy — a rarity on the continent. SWAPO has governed continuously, but elections are considered free and fair. Press freedom is among the best in Africa.