Cape Coloureds

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This article is about the ethnic group originating in the Cape. For the broader group of mixed-race people in South Africa, see Coloureds.
Cape Coloureds
Kaapse Kleurlinge
Coloured-family.jpg
An extended Coloured South African family with roots in Cape Town, Kimberley and Pretoria
Total population
5,247,740[1]
(In South Africa only, 2020)
Regions with significant populations
South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho
Languages
Afrikaans, South African English
Religion
Christian (80%), Muslim (5%)[2]
Related ethnic groups
Afrikaners, Khoisan, Basters, Oorlam, Griqua people, Cape Malays, Bantu peoples of South Africa, Indian South Africans

Cape Coloureds (Afrikaans: Kaapse Kleurlinge) are a South African ethnic group composed primarily of persons of mixed race. Although Coloureds form a minority group within South Africa, they are the predominant population group in the Western Cape.

They are generally bilingual, speaking Afrikaans and English, though some speak only one of these. Some Cape Coloureds may code switch,[3] speaking a patois of Afrikaans and English called Afrikaaps also known as Cape Slang (Capy) or Kombuis Afrikaans, meaning Kitchen Afrikaans. Cape Coloureds were classfied under apartheid as a subset of the larger Coloured race group.

At least one genetic study indicates that Cape Coloureds have an ancestry consisting of the following ethnic groups:[4]

Origin and history[]

The Cape Coloureds are a heterogeneous South African ethnic group, with diverse ancestral links. Ancestry may include European settlers, indigenous Khoi and San and Xhosa people, and slaves imported from the Dutch East Indies (or a combination of all).[5] 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 and other ancestry were brought from India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Madagascar, and Mozambique. This diverse assortment of people was subsequently classified as a single group under the Apartheid regime.[6]

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".[7][8]

Cape Coloureds in the media[]

Cape Coloured school children in Mitchells Plain
Cape Coloured children in Bonteheuwel township (Cape Town, South Africa)
The Christmas Bands are a popular Cape Coloured cultural tradition in Cape Town

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 marginalised.

The film (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. Sequel film “” (Monde World Films, 2016 USA release) [9]

Various books have covered the subject matter of Coloured identity and heritage.

Patric Tariq Mellet, heritage activist and author of 'The Camissa Embrace' and co-creator of The Camissa Museum, has composed a vast online blog archive ('Camissa People') of heritage information concerning Coloured ancestry tracing to the Indigenous San and Khoe and Malagasy, East African, Indonesian, Indian, Bengal and Sri Lankan slaves.

Terminology[]

The term "coloured" is currently treated as a neutral description in Southern Africa, classifying people of mixed race ancestry. "Coloured" may be seen as offensive in some other western countries, such as Britain and the United States of America.[10]

Notable people[]

Politicians[]

  • Midi Achmat, South African writer and LGBT rights activist
  • Zackie Achmat, South African HIV/AIDS activist & filmmaker
  • Neville Alexander, Political activist, educationalist & lecturer.
  • Allan Boesak (Political activist & Cleric).
  • Patricia de Lille, former PAC, then Independent Democrats leader, then Democratic Alliance mayor of Cape Town, now leader of Good Party
  • Tony Ehrenreich, South African trades unionist.
  • Zainunnisa Gool, South African Political activist & representative on the Cape Town City Council.
  • Alex La Guma, South African novelist & leader of the
  • Trevor Manuel, former Finance Minister, currently Head of the National Planning Commission of South Africa.
  • Peter Marais, former Unicity Mayor of Cape Town and Former Premier of the Western Cape
  • Gerald Morkel, former mayor of Cape Town
  • Dan Plato, Western Cape Community Safety Minister.
  • Dulcie September, political activist.
  • Adam Small, political activist, poet and writer.
  • Percy Sonn, former president of the International Cricket Council.

Artists and writers[]

  • Peter Abrahams, writer
  • Tyrone Appollis, academic
  • Willie Bester
  • Dennis Brutus, journalist, poet, activist
  • Peter Clarke
  • Phillippa Yaa de Villiers, writer & performance artist
  • Garth Erasmus, artist
  • Diana Ferrus, poet, writer & performance artist
  • Oliver Hermanus, writer, Director
  • Rozena Maart, writer
  • Mustafa Maluka
  • Dr. Don Mattera
  • James Matthews, writer
  • Selwyn Milborrow, poet, writer, journalist
  • Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh
  • Arthur Nortje, poet
  • Robin Rhode
  • Richard Moore Rive, writer
  • Tracey Rose
  • Adam Small, writer
  • Zoë Wicomb, writer
  • Athol Williams, poet, writer, scholar, social philosopher

Actors and actresses[]

Beauty queens[]

Musicians[]

  • AKA, hip hop recording artist
  • Jonathan Butler, jazz musician.
  • Paxton Fielies, singer
  • Jean Grae, hip hop artist.
  • Paul Hanmer, pianist & composer
  • Abdullah Ibrahim, jazz pianist
  • Robbie Jansen, musician
  • Trevor Jones, South African born film composer.
  • Taliep Petersen, musician & director
  • YoungstaCPT, rapper

Others[]

  • Marc Lottering, comedian
  • Jenny Powell, television presenter.

Athletics[]

Cricket[]

Field Hockey[]

Football[]

Rugby[]

Others[]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Mid-year population estimates, 2020 (PDF) (Report). Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  2. ^ "The Coloureds of Southern Africa". MixedFolks.com. Archived from the original on 17 May 2008. Retrieved 2009-10-23.
  3. ^ Stell, Gerald (2010). "Ethnicity in linguistic variation". Pragmatics. 20 (3): 425–447. doi:10.1075/prag.20.3.06ste. ISSN 1018-2101.
  4. ^ de Wit, E; Delport, W; Rugamika, CE; Meintjes, A; Möller, M; van Helden, PD; Seoighe, C; Hoal, EG (August 2012). "Genome-wide analysis of the structure of the South African Coloured Population in the Western Cape". Human Genetics. 128 (2): 145–53. doi:10.1007/s00439-010-0836-1. PMID 20490549. S2CID 24696284.
  5. ^ Khan, Razib (16 June 2011). "The Cape Coloureds are a mix of everything". Discover Magazine. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  6. ^ "History of Slavery and early colonisation in SA". South African History Online. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  7. ^ Valentine, Sue. "An appalling "science"". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 23 April 2012. Retrieved 2013-01-26.
  8. ^ Leach, Graham (1986). South Africa: No Easy Path to Peace. Routledge & Kegan Paul. pp. 70–. ISBN 978-0-7102-0848-4.
  9. ^ Szafraniec, Gina (3 April 2011). "Millions Will Watch". The Bloomington Crow. Archived from the original on 27 April 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  10. ^ "Is the word 'coloured' offensive?". BBC News. 9 November 2006. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
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