Griqua
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).
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.
# 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 â€" 118.# Jeroen G. Zandberg. 2005. Rehoboth Griqua Atlas. ISBN 90-808768-2-8.
