Griqua
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| Griqua | |
|---|---|
| Total population | 100,000-300,000 |
| Regions with significant populations | South Africa |
| Language | Afrikaans, English |
| Religion | Protestantism |
| Related ethnic groups | Coloureds, Khoikhoi, Namaqua, Basters, Afrikaners |
- For the Currie Cup rugby union club, see Wildeklawer Griquas.
The Griqua (Afrikaans Griekwa) are a subgroup of South Africa's heterogeneous and multiracial Coloured people.
The Griqua are often considered to be a racially and culturally mixed people whose origin goes back to the intermarriages or sexual relations between European colonists in the Cape and the Khoikhoi already living there in the 17th and 18th centuries. This notion apparently derives from the name given in 1813 by Rev. John Campbell (London Missionary Society) to a mixed group of Grigriqua (a Cape Khoikhoi tribe), 'bastaards', Koranna, and Tswana living at the site of present day Griekwastad (formerly "Klaarwater"). According to a map by Isaac Tirion, by 1730 the Grigriquas already lived in this northeastern section of the Cape Colony.
Genetic evidence indicates that the majority of the present Griqua population is a racial mix of Khoikhoi and African (mainly Tswana) peoples, with only small contributions of Bushman and European genes.
In the 19th century the Griqua controlled several political entities that were governed by Kapteins (Afrikaans for "Captain", i.e. leader) and their Councils, with their own written constitutions. Today, Basters are a separate ethnic group of similarly mixed origins living in south-central Namibia. The Griqua largely adopted the Afrikaans language before their migrations.
The Griqua have their own church, the Griqua Church, which is Protestant with a strong focus on maintaining the Griqua identity.
The total population is somewhere between 100.000 and 300.000. The great variance between the two figures is partly due to the definition of Griqua and of political controversy between various political leaders (and academics).
The Griqua are primarily found in the Northern Cape (the historic territory of Griqualand West) and the Western Cape (around the cities of Kranshoek and Plettenberg Bay).
[edit] Griqualand
The Griqua give their name to several parts of south Africa as Griqualand as they migrated away from other areas of population.
- Griqualand East is an area around Kokstad on the frontier between the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. This area was settled by Adam Kok III and 2,000 Griquas who followed him over the Drakensberg in 1861. The Griqua there were largely absorbed into the local Xhosa population.
- Griqualand West is the area around Kimberley and became significant when diamonds were discovered there; it has also been known for its rugby and cricket teams.
[edit] Links
[edit] Notes
- ↑ Alan G. Morris. 1997. The Griqua and the Khoikhoi: Biology, Ethnicity and the Construction of Identity. / In: Kronos Journal of Cape History, No. 24, page 106 – 118.
- ↑ Jeroen G. Zandberg. 2005. Rehoboth Griqua Atlas. ISBN 90-808768-2-8.
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Ethnic Groups of South Africa |
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| Afrikaner | Anglo-African | Asians | Bushmen | Cape Coloured | Cape Malay | Coloured | Griqua | Ndebele | Sotho | Tsonga | Swazi | Tswana | Venda | Xhosa | Zulu |
