 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| ~ 6,285,300[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| South Africa (Western Cape andNorthern Cape),Namibia,Botswana,Zimbabwe | |
 South Africa | 4,832,900(2015; estimated)[2] |
 Namibia | 143,799[3] |
 Zimbabwe | 17,923[4] |
 Zambia | 3,000[5] |
| Languages | |
| Afrikaans,English | |
| Religion | |
| predominantlyChristianity, other religions | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Afrikaners,Cape Dutch,Cape Coloureds,Cape Malays,San people,Khoikhoi,Xhosa,Saint Helenians,Rehoboth Basters,Tswana | |
0–20% 20–40% 40–60% | 60–80% 80–100% |
<1 /km² 1–3 /km² 3–10 /km² 10–30 /km² 30–100 /km² | 100–300 /km² 300–1000 /km² 1000–3000 /km² >3000 /km² |
InSouth African,Namibian,Zambian,Botswanan, andZimbabwean context, the termColoured (Kleurlinge inAfrikaans) is used to refer to people of mixedEuropean andKhoisan orBantu ancestry.
They form the majority of theNorthern Cape andWestern Cape populations. Most Coloured speak Afrikaans as their first language, although there are some nativeEnglish speakers. The majority of Coloureds living inCape Town are able to speak both languages.
Because of South Africa's history of racial discrimination, many feel that the termcoloured is derogatory. The official term is "Coloured people", but many Coloureds prefer to call themselves "Black", "Khoisan", or just "South African".
Duringapartheid, people were classified into four groups: White, Black, Coloured, and Asian. The Cape Malays, who are of Asian descent, were not classified as Asians, but as Coloureds.
Although they were discriminated upon by the government, many Coloureds and Asians got to enjoy certain rights during the apartheid era. For example, they did not have to carry around a passbook, had limited political representation, and were considered citizens of South Africa.