South West Africa

The old country of German South West Africa
Before Namibia became known as what it is today, it went through two previous name changes. Between 1915 and 1990 it was referred to as South West Africa, while prior to this between 1884 and 1915 it was known as German South West Africa. This was due to the German occupation of the country prior to World War 1. There was contact between the region and European settlers prior to the German occupation of the region and this mainly came from various sailors and traders who would frequent the area looking for new land and opportunities. There were never any major European settlements in the area however, and they only ever remained fairly small and temporary. The United Kingdom sent several ships to the region in an attempt to settle there but these were never successful.

It wasn't until several German ships went to the area and founded some smaller churches in what would later become Namibia, that the country began seeing any form of settlement.
When the country was settled in 1884, there was little resistance, however in 1893 there begun several attempts to overthrow the German rulers of the area.

Numerous significant black leaders of the country were not entirely successful, and during World War 1 South African troops set against the Germans and eventually over ran the occupation.

South Africa would then remove the 'German' part from the countries title and remain in control until the Namibian Independence in 1990. Despite this, German influences are still found spread right across the entire country of Namibia and it still remains a strong part of Namibian history.

When you visit Namibia attempt to see how much of this influence you can find to really see the true history of the now beautiful country.