Namibia Holiday & Travel - People of Namibia - The Nama
The only true descendants of the Khoekhoe in Namibia are the Nama, whose ancestors originally lived north and south of the Orange River. Eight Nama tribes were already living north of the river when Jager (father of Jan Jonker) and Jonker Afrikaner crossed it with the Afrikaner tribe. The Afrikaners and four other tribes represent the so-called Oorlam group, which entered the country during the nineteenth century. Pushed continuously northwards by a rapidly advancing white farming community, the Nama, led by the famous Jan Jonker Afrikaner, settled further north in the southern and central areas of the country. Early resistance leader against European colonisation and nephew of Jonker Afrikaner, Hendrik Witbooi, was another important Nama chief. His face is portrayed on the Namibian dollar note and a statue was erected in his honour in the Parliament Gardens in Windhoek.
As pastoral nomads, the Nama traditionally had little need to build permanent structures. Their beehive-shaped rush-mat houses were ideally suited to their lifestyle. The concept of communal land ownership still prevails with all tribes, except for the =|Aonin or Topnaars, whose !nara fields are the property of individual lineages. Today most Nama live in permanent settlements. They have adopted Western lifestyles, as well as the Christian religion, and work within the formal economy.
The Nama have much in common with the San. They are comparatively light in colour and generally short in stature, with certain distinctive characteristics, such as the women’s small and slender hands and feet. They also share their linguistic roots with the San, speaking with the distinctive clicks. The Khoekhoegowab Dictionary with an English–Khoekhoegowab Index, compiled by Professor Wilfrid Haacke and Eliphas Eiseb, was published in 2004.
Traditionally the Nama are cattle farmers. Their socioeconomic unit is the patrilineal family group that functions within the wider Nama group. The individual groups originally functioned separately under chiefs and councillors who sometimes united against a common enemy such as the Herero but often clashed with one another. With the entry of the Herero and their intrusion into the pasturelands of the Nama, a fierce and prolonged conflict arose between these two groups. The struggle was brought to an end by German colonial forces in the late 1800s, and home areas such as Berseba, Bondels, Gibeon (Krantzplatz), Sesfontein, Soromas and Warmbad were placed at the Namas’ disposal.
Numbering approximately 117 000, the Nama consist of thirteen tribes or groups. These are the !Kharkoen (Simon Kooper), |Hôa-|aran (also referred to as //Aixa-//ais meaning Angry Nation), =|Aonin (Topnaar), Kai//Khaun, Khauben (Rooi Nasie), |Hai-|Khauan (Berseba tribe), Oorlams (Vaalgras), //Haboben (Velskoendraers), Kharo-!oan (Keetmanshopers), //Khau/-gôan (Swartbooi), !Gami-=|n˜un (Bondelswarts), |Khobesen (Witbooi), //Okain (Groot Doders) and Kai|khauan or Gaikhauan (Lamberts).
Nama people have a natural talent for music, poetry and prose. An example of a traditional dance is the well-known Nama stap. Numerous proverbs, riddles, tales and poems have been handed down orally from generation to generation. Nama praise poems range from impromptu love songs and formalised praise of heroic figures, to songs of the animals and plants in their environment.
Nama women are highly skilled in sewing. Their embroidery and appliqué work, regarded as a traditional art form, consists of brightly coloured motifs inspired by the rural environment and lifestyles of the Nama people. The content of the work is often expressive and humorous. The traditional patchwork dresses that the Nama women wear are especially typical. Two projects in the south which co-ordinate these talents and market the products are ANIN in the Hoachanas region, and Gibeon Folk Art in the village of Gibeon.
Kaross floor rugs or blankets of sewn skins of domestic animals or antelope are a speciality of the area. They are produced by Namas as well as Basters, and are sold by vendors along the main tarred road leading southwards.
