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Concept
Basters
Summary
The Basters (also known as Baasters, Rehobothers, or Rehoboth Basters) are a Southern African ethnic group descended from Cape Coloureds and Nama of Khoisan origin. Since the second half of the 19th century, the Rehoboth Baster community has been concentrated in central Namibia, in and around the town of Rehoboth. Basters are closely related to Afrikaners, Cape Coloureds, and Griquas of South Africa and Namibia, with whom they share a language and culture. They are also related to the local Nama, with the Rehoboth Basters being considered a Nama clan by many, having a "Kaptein" (meaning clan chief) just like many Nama settlements in Southern Namibia.
Other people of similar ethnic origin, living chiefly in the Northern Cape, also call themselves Basters.
The name Baster is derived from "bastaard", the Dutch word for bastard (or "crossbreed"). While some people consider this term demeaning, the Basters reappropriated it as a "proud name", claiming their ancestry and history, treating it as a cultural category in spite of the negative connotation. Their 7th Kaptein is Jacky Britz, elected in 2021; he has no official status under the Namibian constitution. The Chief's Council of Rehoboth was replaced with a local town council under the new government.
The current numbers of Basters remain unclear; figures between 35,000 and 40,000 are estimated. Survival of the Baster culture and identity have been called into question in modern Namibia. Modern Namibia's politics and public life are largely dominated by the ethnic Ovambo and their culture. Baster politicians and activists have called Ovambo policies oppressive towards their community.
Basters were mainly persons of mixed-race descent who at one time would have been absorbed in the white community. This term came to refer to an economic and cultural group, and it included the most economically advanced non-white population at the Cape, who had higher status than the natives. Some of the Basters acted as supervisors of other servants and were the confidential employees of their white masters.
Official source
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