Population of South Africa. Ethnic composition and indigenous population of South Africa

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:44

South Africa is the southernmost and most developed country on the African continent. The population of South Africa is represented by the largest number of whites and Asians on the mainland. Many nationalities live on its territory, representatives of some of them are constantly fighting for the right to be called indigenous people.

Population of the Republic of South Africa: structure and size

South Africa has a population of 52 million. The diversity of ethnic and racial composition of the country is one of the first on the continent. On the basis of ethnicity, residents can be divided into blacks, whites, coloreds and Asians. The number of whites is decreasing every year. The reason for this is emigration to other countries, as well as a significant increase in blacks.

The black population of South Africa is almost 80%. Most of them are Bantu peoples. These include the Zulus, Sotho, Tsonga, Xhosa, Tswana, Shangaan, Swazi, and others. Colored people also live in the country. These are mainly mulattoes - the descendants of mixed European and African marriages. To the south-Asians settled in the east, the vast majority of which are Indians. Colored population includes Cape Malays and Bushmen with Hottentots.

In connection with the huge national diversity, 11 official languages have been adopted in the republic. Ethnic Europeans speak Afrikaans. For some Europeans in the country, English is native, at the same time it performs the function of an international language. The rest of the state languages belong to the Bantu group.

Indigenous people of South Africa

The question of who rightfully owns the territory of the Republic of South Africa has always been acute. Black and white populations have long fought for the title of indigenous. In fact, both the Europeans who arrived in the 17th century and the Bantu tribes are colonizers for these lands. The true population of South Africa is the Bushmen and Hottentots.

The tribes of these peoples settled throughout South Africa, including South Africa. They belong to the capoid race, a subclass within the larger Negroid race. Both peoples are similar in appearance, for example, lighter than that of Negroes, skin with a reddish tint, thin lips, short stature, Mongoloid features. Their language belongs to the Khoisan group, distinguished from all world languages by clicking consonants.

Despite the external similarity, the tribes that make up the indigenous population of South Africa are different. The Hottentots are pastoralists and have a more developed material culture. They are a warlike people. Often they had to fight to defend the right to exist from the colonialists. bushmen,on the contrary, they are peaceful and calm. The colonialists massively exterminated these people, pushing them closer and closer to the Kalahari Desert. As a result, the Bushmen have developed excellent hunting skills.

Hottentots and Bushmen are not numerous. The first live in reservations, some live and work in cities and villages. Their number in South Africa is almost 2 thousand people. There are about 1,000 Bushmen in the country. They live in small groups in the desert and are endangered.

White population

Currently, the number of whites in the country is approximately 5 million. Only 1% of them are immigrants. The rest of the white population of South Africa is represented by the descendants of the colonizers. A significant group (60%) are Afrikaners, about 39% are Anglo-Africans.

The first Europeans to arrive in South Africa in 1652 were the Dutch. They were followed by the Germans, French, Flemings, Irish and other peoples. Their descendants are united in a nationality called Afrikaners. Their native language is Afrikaans, formed on the basis of Dutch dialects. Separately, among the Afrikaners, the subculture of the Boers stands out.

The population of South Africa is also made up of Anglo-Africans, as their native language they use English. Their ancestors arrived on the territory of the state in the 19th century, sent by the British government. Mostly they were English, Scots and Irish.

Apartheid

The population of South Africa was constantly in a state ofconfrontation. Enmity took place not only between the Bantu peoples and the whites, but also between groups of European settlers. At the beginning of the 20th century, the white population took a dominant position. Over time, the main goal was to separate the whites of the country from the blacks.

In 1948, the Afrikaners ideologically unite with the Anglo-Africans, heading for a policy of racial segregation, or apartheid. The black population was completely disenfranchised. He was denied a quality education, medical care and a normal job. It was forbidden to appear in white neighborhoods, ride in transport and even stand next to white people.

The world community and certain groups of people and organizations have been trying to end apartheid for more than 20 years. This was finally achieved only in 1994.