The+Rainbow+Nation

The country of South Africa is known for several of things including it’s beauty, wildlife, and scenery. However, none of those things can truly compare to the amazing multicultural nature of the South African population and how that came to be. The term “Rainbow Nation” was made famous by  Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu after South Africa’s first fully democratic election in 1994. Tutu used the term to describe the incredible ethnic varieties that lived amongst the nation.

 But how exactly did this “Rainbow Nation” come to be? Well the first people to add color to this multicultural rainbow were a group of hunter-gathers called “San Bushmen.” Only a scarce amount of these people still remain in the country, mostly around the Northern Cape. Although there are not many left, the San Bushmen heritage lives on through their incredible ancient rock art.

 The next group of people to arrive in the country were a group known as “ Khoikhoi.” The Khois were remarkable farmers and passed down their agricultural skills to future generations. Unlike the San, the Khoi had a more complex social scale and society, setting up a structure for the future groups of settlers to follow. They mostly inhabited the area we know today as the Kalahari Desert.

 A bit after the Khoi, black migrants from sub- Saharan Africa, mostly from the Great Lakes and Congo regions, settled in the country. The migrants mostly dwelled in the northern and eastern parts of South Africa until they bumped into the Khoisan. The Khoisan eventually  pushed the migrants west into the drier regions of the Northern Cape. Groups of people like these morphed together into various South African tribes that are still present today. These tribes include The Sotho, Tswana, Xhosa and Zulu.

 In 1652 the Dutch and British arrived adding another dash of color to the country. Along with the Dutch came slaves that had been captured from the East Indies. These slaves became known as the “colored” people of South Africa. More small groups of people came to follow; such as a group of French settlers trying to escape religious persecution in their home country, Indian farmers, and lastly Chinese farmers. While the French blended in and assimilated with the Dutch, the Indian and Chinese mostly settled in KwaZulu-Natal and Johannesburg.

 For years upon years South Africa was a place of racial prejudices and hatred. Yet on April 27, 1994 all these judgements seemed to fade away. For this date was the day the nation held its first democratic election, and all people of all races were now treated as one colorful rainbow. As former South African President Nelson Mandela states, //"Each of us is as intimately attached to the soil of this beautiful country as are the famous jacarada trees of Pretoria and the mimosa trees of the bushveld – a rainbow nation at peace with itself and the world." //