The term Batlôkwa refers to several Kgatla communities that reside in Botswana, Lesotho and South Africa. It comprises the followers of Tlôkwa kings and the members of clans identified as Tlôkwa, or individuals who identify themselves as of Tlôkwa descent. Most of the Batlôkwa clans trace their royal lineages to Kgwadi son of King Tabane, who was the father and founder of the Batlokwa nation. The Tlôkwa considers the Tlokwe-cat as their original totem which has since become extinct due to over-hunting for its fur, which was used by clan chiefs.
The Mfecane, also known by the Sesotho names Difaqane or Lifaqane is a historical period of heightened military conflict and migration associated with state formation and expansion in Southern Africa. The exact range of dates that comprise the Mfecane varries between sources. At its broadest the period lasted from the late eighteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century CE, but scholarship often focuses on an intensive period from the 1810s to the 1840s. The concept first emerged in the 1830s and centered on the actions of Shaka Zulu, who was alleged to have waged near-genocidal wars that depopulated the land and sparked a chain reaction of violence as fleeing groups sought to conquer new lands. Since the later half of the 20th century this interpretation has fallen out of favor due to a lack of compelling historical evidence. Current scholarly understanding revises the mortality figure significantly downward and attributes the root causes to complex political, economic, and environmental developments. The Mfecane is significant in that it saw the formation of novel states, institutions, and ethnic identities in Eastern Southern Africa. The Mfecane's historiography itself is also historically significant, with different versions having been employed to serve a range of political purposes since its inception as a historical concept.
The Northern Cape is the largest and most sparsely populated province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley. It includes the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park, part of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park and an international park shared with Botswana. It also includes the Augrabies Falls and the diamond mining regions in Kimberley and Alexander Bay.
The Griquas are a subgroup of heterogeneous former Khoe-speaking nations in Southern Africa with a unique origin in the early history of the Cape Colony. Under apartheid they were given a special racial classification under the broader category of "Coloured". The Griqua are also found in the Xhosa subgroup referred to as Amagqunukwebe that is a mixture between Xhosa and Khoi clans. They are known by the Xhosa as Giqwa or oGiqwa.
Griqualand West is an area of central South Africa with an area of 40,000 km2 that now forms part of the Northern Cape Province. It was inhabited by the Griqua people – a semi-nomadic, Afrikaans-speaking nation of mixed-race origin, who established several states outside the expanding frontier of the Cape Colony. It was also inhabited by the pre-existing Tswana and Khoisan peoples.
Kuruman is a small town with just over 13,000 inhabitants in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. It is known for its scenic beauty and the Eye of Kuruman, a geological feature that brings water from deep underground. The abundance of water produces an unexpected swathe of green amidst the barren plains and is known as the Oasis of the Kalahari. It was at first a mission station of the London Missionary Society founded by Robert Moffat in 1821. It was also the place where David Livingstone arrived for his first position as a missionary in 1841. The Kuruman River, which is dry except for flash floods after heavy rain, is named after the town.
Campbell is a small town situated on the edge of the Ghaap Plateau in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. It is located 48 km east of Griquatown. It was originally known as Knovel Valley and then Groote Fontein, but was renamed in honour of the Reverend John Campbell who visited the Cape Colony in 1813.
The following lists events that happened during 1823 in South Africa.
Griekwastad is a country town in South Africa. It is sometimes still called Griquatown, a name which is now considered historical. The town is in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa 168 kilometres (104 mi) by road west from the city of Kimberley. It was the first town to be established in the country north of the Orange River.
Robert Moffat was a Scottish Congregationalist missionary to Africa, father of Mary Moffat Livingstone and father-in-law of David Livingstone, and first translator of the Bible into Setswana.
Andries Waterboer was a leader ("kaptijn") of the Griqua people.
The Sotho-Tswana peoples are a meta-ethnicity of southern Africa and live predominantly in Botswana, South Africa and Lesotho. The group mainly consists of four clasters; Southern Sotho (Sotho), Northern Sotho and Western Sotho. The last group is sometimes referred to as the Eastern Sotho and consists of the Pulana, Makgolokwe/Bakholokoe the Pai and others.
William Anderson was an English Christian missionary who relocated to South Africa under the auspices of the London Missionary Society. He was one of the earliest missionaries in the region. Anderson was instrumental in the foundation of the South African town Griquatown.
The concept of the Northern Cape as a distinct geo-political region of South Africa coalesced in the 1940s when a "Northern Cape and Adjoining Areas Regional Development Association" was formed and the first map featuring the name "Northern Cape" was published. The geographic spread to which the term applied was not fixed until 1994, however, when it attained precise definition as the Northern Cape Province, one of South Africa's nine post-apartheid provinces. Since then there have been boundary adjustments to include parts of the former Bophuthatswana adjacent to Kuruman and Hartswater. Vryburg and Mafikeng, in the north eastern extremity of the former Cape Province - and hence regarded as part of the pre-1994 "Northern Cape" - are excluded, being part, now, of the North West Province in the North.
The Asbestos Mountains is a range of hills in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, stretching south-southwest from Kuruman, where the range is known as the Kuruman Hills, to Prieska. It passes Boetsap, Danielskuil, Lime Acres, Douglas and Griekwastad. The range lies about 150 km west of Kimberley and rises from the Ghaap Plateau.
Isaac Hughes was a British Calvinist missionary and preacher. He was born to Welsh parents Edward and Mary Hughes in Manchester. His father came from Bontuchel in Denbighshire and his mother came from Brynsiencyn in Anglesey. After some time in Sheffield and Rotherham, he married Elizabeth Jones from Llangollen on 18 August 1823 and departed Britain a month later on 24 September on a ship from Gravesend, arriving in Cape Town, South Africa on 30 December. He initially worked as a blacksmith, reaching Kuruman in August 1824 and Griquatown in late 1827, also working in Lattakoo and Graham's Town. In 1839 he became a missionary. In 1845 he worked along the Vaal River and opened a new station in Backhouse, which later developed into the town Douglas. After his wife died he remarried a missionary's daughter, Anne Magdalena Vogelgezang, in 1850. He died on 23 June 1870 after a 47-year career.
Schmidtsdrift is a town in Pixley ka Seme District Municipality in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. Situated 80 km west of Kimberley, it was originally a ford across the Vaal River which is now bridged on the N8 National Route from Kimberley to Campbell and Griquatown.
Mmanthatisi was the leader of the Tlokwa people during her son's minority from 1813 until 1824. She came to power as the regent for her son, Sekonyela, (Lents'a) following the death of her husband Kgosi Mokotjo. Mmanthatisi was known as a strong, brave and capable leader, both in times of peace and war. She was referred to by her followers as Mosanyane because of her slender body.
Kgosi (Chief) Luka Jantjie was a hunter, trader, diamond prospector, and farmer. He was a chief of the Batlhaping ba Manyeding group of the Batswana in Kuruman. He was born in Kimberley, South Africa in 1835 and was the son of a Christian convert. Jantjie spent most of his life protecting the rights to land of his people and is considered a struggle hero for his battle against British colonialism. He was the cousin of Kgosi Galeshewe.
Corneli(u)s Kok II was a leader ("captain") of the Griqua people in South Africa.
