The Khoisan Genocide: South Africa's First Peoples
The Story of South Africa: Empire, Apartheid, and Transformation — Fexingo HistoryPlay episode
Show notes
Long before the Dutch arrived at Table Bay, the Khoikhoi and San peoples had inhabited southern Africa for millennia. When Jan van Riebeeck established the VOC refreshment station in 1652, relations with the local Khoikhoi were initially cautious but cooperative. Within decades, however, smallpox epidemics, land dispossession, and violent reprisals decimated the Khoisan population. This episode focuses on the little-told story of the Khoisan genocide — the deliberate destruction of herder and hunter-gatherer societies. We trace the arrival of the Dutch, the breakdown of trade relationships, the devastating epidemic of 1713, and the commando raids that drove survivors into the interior. We also discuss the legacy of Krotoa (Eva), the Khoikhoi interpreter caught between two worlds, and the later ethnocide under the apartheid regime, which classified Khoisan descendants as 'Coloured' and severed their cultural identity. This is a sobering look at the first colonial genocide in South African history. #Khoisan #Khoikhoi #San #Genocide #JanvanRiebeeck #VOC #Smallpox #CommandoRaids #Krotoa #Eva #Colonialism #SouthAfricanHistory #CapeTown #IndigenousPeoples #Ethnocide #History #FexingoHistory #SouthernAfrica Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
