German Namibians
People descended from ethnic German colonists living in present-day Namibia / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about German Namibians?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
German Namibians (German: Deutschnamibier) are a community of people descended from ethnic German colonists who settled in present-day Namibia. In 1883, the German trader Adolf Lüderitz bought what would become the southern coast of Namibia from Josef Frederiks II, a chief of the local Oorlam people, and founded the city of Lüderitz. The German government, eager to gain overseas possessions, annexed the territory soon after, proclaiming it German South West Africa (German: Deutsch-Südwestafrika). Small numbers of Germans subsequently immigrated there, many coming as soldiers (German: Schutztruppe), traders, diamond miners, or colonial officials. In 1915, during the course of World War I, Germany lost its colonial possessions, including South West Africa (see History of Namibia); after the war, the former German colony was administered as a South African mandate. The German settlers were allowed to remain and, until independence in 1990, German remained an official language of the territory alongside Afrikaans and English.
Total population | |
---|---|
c. 30,000 (c. third of White Namibians) | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Central and South Namibia | |
Languages | |
German, Afrikaans, English | |
Religion | |
Roman Catholic, Lutheran |