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| Total population | |
|---|---|
| c. 30,000 (c. third ofWhite Namibians) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Central and South Namibia | |
| Languages | |
| German,Afrikaans,English | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholic,Lutheran | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| White Namibians,Afrikaners,White South Africans,German South Africans |
German Namibians (German:Deutschnamibier;Afrikaans:Duitse Namibiërs) are a community of people descended fromethnic German colonists who settled in present-dayNamibia. In 1883, the German traderAdolf Lüderitz bought what would become the southern coast of Namibia fromJosef Frederiks II, a chief of the localOorlam people, and founded the city ofLüderitz. The German government, eager to gain overseas possessions, annexed the territory soon after, proclaiming itGerman South West Africa (German:Deutsch-Südwestafrika). Small numbers of Germans subsequently immigrated there, many coming assoldiers (German:Schutztruppe), traders, diamond miners, or colonial officials. In 1915, during the course ofWorld War I, Germany lost its colonial possessions, including South West Africa (seeHistory of Namibia) to the Western Allies; after the war, the former German colony was administered as aSouth African mandate. Roughly half of the German settlers were allowed to remain and, until independence in 1990,German remained one of the three official languages of the territory, alongsideAfrikaans andEnglish.[citation needed]
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 fromEast Germany after Namibian independence as well as theGerman reunification) still speak German orNamibian Black German, respectively.[1]
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 isAfrikaans 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, two thirds of all German Namibians are fluent in Afrikaans and are either familiar with English or can speak it fluently.[2] German and Afrikaans (along with its parent languageDutch) are closely relatedGermanic languages.
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 South West Africa. They engaged in cultural work, but also laid the groundwork for later colonisation.[3]
Later traders arrived and after the landing of the shipTilly in Lüderitz Bay in 1883, a rising number of German officials, settlers, workmen and soldiers. After South West 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.[4]
Migration stagnated after the end of World War I, when Germany lost all sovereignty over its colonies in theTreaty of Versailles. The governance of South West Africa was transferred to South Africa by the League of Nations. During the subsequent 'South-Africanisation' of South West 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, 3,200 Germans took up the opportunity of acquiring citizenship.
At the start ofWorld War II, 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 South West 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 South West 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.
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.[5] Today[update] many Germans in Namibia aresmall and medium entrepreneurs.[6]
Many German-speakers live in the capital,Windhoek (German:Windhuk), and in smaller towns such asSwakopmund,Lüderitz andOtjiwarongo, 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-independencemayor of Windhoek,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. TheGoethe-Institut in Windhoek lobbies on behalf of the German community.[6] The legacy of German colonisation in Namibia can also be seen in theLutheran Church, which is the largest religious denomination in the country.[7]
Many place names in Namibia carry names of German origin. The main road in the capital city, Windhoek, retained the nameKaiserstrasse ("Emperor Street") untilNamibian independence in 1990.[8]
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.[9]
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%).[10]
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%).[11]
Deutsche Höhere Privatschule Windhoek, a German international school, is in the country's capital, Windhoek.[12]
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