Cape Coloureds

Cape Coloureds

Extended coloured family with roots in Cape Town, Kimberley and Pretoria.
Regions with significant populations
South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe
Languages

Afrikaans, Kaapse Afrikaans, South African English

Religion

Christian (80%), Muslim (5%)[1]

Related ethnic groups

Afrikaners, European, Khoikhoi, Xhosa, Cape Malay, Indian South Africans

The Cape Coloureds form a minority group within South Africa, however they are the predominant population group in the Western Cape. They are generally bilingual, however subsets within the group can be exclusively Afrikaans speakers, whereas others primarily speak English. In addition, some Cape Coloureds may "code switch", resulting in a variation of Afrikaans and English, called Kaapse Afrikaans. Cape Coloureds were defined under apartheid as a subset of the larger Coloured race group,

The Cape Coloureds are a heterogeneous South African ethnic group, with diverse ancestral links. Ancestry may include European settlers, indigenous Khoisan and Xhosa people, and slaves imported from the Dutch East Indies (or a combination of all) [2]. People from India and the islands within the Indian Ocean region were also taken to the Cape and sold into slavery by the Dutch settlers. The Indian slaves were almost invariably given Christian names but their places of origin were indicated in the records of sales and other documents so that it is possible to get an idea of the ratio of slaves from different regions. These slaves were, however, dispersed and lost their Indian cultural identity over the course of time. Slaves of Malay ancestry were brought from Indonesia, Malaysia, Madagascar, and Mozambique. This diverse assortment of people was subsequently classified as a single group under the Apartheid regime. [3][4]

Under Apartheid, under the Population Registration Act as amended, the term Cape Coloured referred to a subset of Coloured South Africans, with subjective criteria having been used by the bureaucracy to determine whether a person was a Cape Coloured, or belonged to one of a number of other related subgroups such as the "Cape Malays", or "Other Coloureds"[1][2].

Cape Coloureds in the media

A group of Cape Coloureds were interviewed in the documentary series Ross Kemp on Gangs. One of the gang members who participated in the interview mentioned that black South Africans have been the main beneficiaries of South African social promotion initiatives while the Cape Coloureds have been further marginalized.

The award winning film I'm Not Black, I'm Coloured - Identity Crisis at the Cape of Good Hope (Monde World Films, 2009 USA release) is one of the first historical documentary films to explore the legacy of Apartheid through the viewpoint of the Cape Coloured community, including interviews with elders, Pastors, members of Parliament, students and everyday people struggling to find their identity in the new South Africa.

Famous Cape Coloureds

Politics

Trevor Manuel, former Finance Minister, currently Head of National Planning Commission.
Patricia de Lille, former PAC, then Independent Democrats leader, currently Democratic Alliance mayor of Cape Town.
Gerald Morkel, the former mayor of Cape Town.
Dan Plato, Western Cape Community Safety Minister.
Percy Sonn, former president of the International Cricket Council.
Adam Small (Writer)

Artists and writers

Richard Rive
Tyrone Appollis
Willie Bester
Peter Clarke
Mustafa Maluka
Tracey Rose
Robin Rhode
Berni Searl

Sport

Athletics

Sergio Mullins, 2008 Olympian, S.A Sprinter.
Shaun Abrahams, 800m Runner.
Geraldine Pillay, 2004 Olympian,Commonwealth medalist.
Donovan Wright, marathon runner.
Leigh Julius, 2004 Olympian.

Cricket

Omar Henry
Basil d'Oliveira
Jean-Paul Duminy
Herschelle Gibbs
Ashwell Prince
Robin Peterson
Charl Langeveldt
Garnett Kruger
Wayne Parnell
Paul Adams

Rugby

Bryan Habana
Breyton Paulse
Adrian Jacobs
Conrad Jantjes
Ashwin Willemse
Ricky Januarie
Gio Aplon
Bolla Conradie
Peter de Villiers (coach)
Chester Williams

Football

Benni McCarthy
Mark Williams
Shaun Bartlett
Andre Arendse
Delron Buckley
Quinton Fortune
Lance Davids
Nasief Morris
Leroy Maluka
Steven Pienaar
Moeneeb Josephs

Entertainment

Jonathan Butler, Jazz musician.
JJ Damon , Afrikaans Hip-Hop artist.
Meryl Cassie, actress from Sci-Fi series The Tribe.
Lesley-Ann Brandt, actress from Spartacus Blood and Sand TV series.
Jean Grae, Hip-Hop artist.
Kurt Schoonraad, South African comedian.
Soli Philander, television and radio presenter.
Marc Lottering, comedian.
Jenny Powell, television presenter.
Jeremy Friedricks,cricket commentator and presenter

See also

References