geography

Namibia is situated in southwest Africa, with the Atlantic Ocean as its western border.  Namibia also shares borders with Angola, Botswana, South Africa and Zambia.  It covers approx 824000 sq km, this is twice the size of California and more than a third larger than Germany and the UK combined with a population of around 2 million.
Central Namibia consists of a 2000m high hilly plateau, which runs down the spine of the country, this area contains most of Namibia’s farmland.  The plateau drops off an escarpment to the Namib Desert, which runs the entire coastline of Namibia from the Orange River in the South to the Kunene River, which borders Angola, in the North.  To the east the land gently descends to the huge sand

Climate

Namibia is an arid country, with an annual rainfall of about 270mm which is extremely erratic and has a high potential of evaporation.  Most rain falls between December and March and generally in the afternoons.
May to September are considered to be the best months to visit the interior but travel is possible all year round.  Temperatures in some areas can reach 35°C with the South and Northern areas generally the hottest.
Coastal regions are usually much cooler and in summer offer a welcome relief from inland heat.

History

Prior to the migration of Bantu people into Namibia around the 9th century, the country was inhabited by San hunter-gatherers, also known as Bushmen, who lived in small groups throughout the country.  Then, approx 2,500 years ago, Khoikhoi pasturalists, the ancestors of the Nama people, migrated into Namibia from Botswana.
The first European to walk on Namibian soil was the Portuguese explorer\navigator Diego Cão who landed at Cape Cross in 1486.  Four centuries passed then Britain annexed Walvis Bay in 1878 and 5 years later the German flag was raised at Luderitz.  In 1907 after several years of war with the Namibian people, Germany expropriated the country.  In 1915 South Africa was awarded the administration by a League of Nations mandate.  An uprising by the Namibian People in 1966 finally led to Namibia’s independence on March 21st 1990.  Walvis Bay, the main harbour town, was handed into Namibian hands in 1994.

 

The People of Namibia

Hunter-gatherers, nomadic pasturalists and subsistence farmers all lived here and all had their small part to play in the history and development of Namibia. The major ethnic groups are the Owambo, consisting of several smaller tribes, the Kavango, the Herero, to which the Himba are related, the Nama, Damara and Khoisan, more commonly known as Bushmen or San people.  There are several other groups making up the balance of what is today’s Namibia. Of the European groups Germany has left the deepest mark on the country as you will find much German architecture throughout and German is also spoken in much of the Country.
Afrikaans is still the main language spoken here but it is fast losing ground as many young Namibians choose English as their second tongue.

 

Wildlife

Namibia has about 250 indigenous mammal species and several unique species that have adapted to life in this harsh environment, Damara Dik-Dik, Oryx, Cheetah, Desert Elephant, Desert Rhino and Hartmann's Mountain Zebra among them.  Bird life is prolific, of over 900 species in southern Africa, about 660 have been recorded in Namibia and the majority of these are residents.
About 15% of Namibia is given over to Reserves protected by Government decree with a much larger portion being held in private reserves.  Of the National Parks in Namibia, Etosha ranks among Africa's greatest, there are also several private reserves around the park extending as far as the Skeleton Coast, which is in itself a major conservation area. The Namib Naukluft is one of the largest conservation areas in the world, and do not be fooled by it’s apparent harshness, life abounds here.