The San / Bushmen
The Bushmen or San are regarded as the original inhabitants in southern Africa. After they could realize their traditional way of life as hunters and gatherers for thousands of years their living space was increasingly restricted by immigration of African tribes and later of the white colonizers / settlers. The allocation  of reservations in which it is also prohibited for the Sam to use the natural resources, limits their  living space. Today it is supposed that still about  40.000 Bushmen live in Namibia, but  however, only 10 % of them still practise their traditional, nomadic lifestyle. Most San people now live or work on farms in eastern Namibia or live in remote communal areas in Otjozondjupa and Omusati, having been strong influenced in their way of life by Western culture, economies and lifestyle.
 

The Nama
The people of Nama lived initially  as cattle breeding nomads  northern and southern of the Oranje River, before they later  moved further to the north and were involved into belligerent quarrels with the Herero. The Boers gave them the name "Hottentots", which has a negative touch and therefore uncustomary to day. The Nama  name themselves "Khoi-Khoi - the true  / real people. Known historical leaders of the Nama were Janker Afrikaaner and Hendrik Witbooi. In the Naukluft environd an insight can be gained into lifestyle of the Nama people by visiting the small community at Nabasib, 15 km south of Büllsport.

The Damara
The Damara are regarded as the oldest nation of Namibia next to the San. They stood  a long time under displacement and suppression through the later immigrated Herero and Nama whose language they picked up also later. They call themselves with proud "Nu khoin" - Black people. The Damara make up a component of 8.5% of the Namibian nation. The majority live in the north-western regions of the country but others are found widely across Namibia, where they live and work in towns, on commercial farms, on mines, as well as at the coast.
 

The Herero
The Herero are a pastoral cattle breeding people who migrated to Namibia several centuries ago. The wealth and the prestige are determined by the number of  cattle. The remarkable and voluminous dress clothing of the Herero-women comes from the German colonial time (Wilhelminische Tracht) that the more traditional of them wear to this day. During the revolt of the Herero a majority of their people was killed and the rest was mainly driven out into Botswana of to day. Now about 100.000 live in Namibia again. The towns Okahandja and Okakarara are Herero-strongholds.

The Himba
The traditionally nomad pastoral tribe of the Himba or Ovahimba lives today still in very initial manner in the Kaokoland. Initially they belonged to the Herero and in contrary to them they have preserved most of their traditions. The Himba, especially the women, are noted for their unusual sculptural beauty, enhanced by intricate hairstyles and traditional adornments. They rub their bodies with red ochre and fat, a treatment that protects their skins against the harsh desert climate. A family may move from one home to another several times a year to seek grazing for their goats and cattle. Men, women and children wear body adornments made from iron and shell beads.
 

The Owambo
With a part of about 50 % the Owambo set the by far greatest population group of Namibia. Their traditional settlement area is the central water-rich north at the boundary to Angola above the Etosha National Park. Owambo houses are traditionally of rondaval type, mostly surrounded by palisades and often connected by passages. Cattle kraals usually form part of the complex, which is surrounded by cultivated lands. The Owambo practise a mixed economy of agriculture, mainly mahangu (pearl millet), sorghum and beans, and animal husbandry (cattle) supplemented by fishing in shallow pools and watercourses called oshanas.
 

The Kavango
Forming the border between Namibia and Angola for more than 400 km is the Okavango River, lifetime of the Kavango people, who make a traditional living from fishing, cattle farming and cultivating sorghum, miller and maize on the wide fertile plains on either side. Closely related to the Owambo, the Kavango also originate from the large lakes of East Africa. To day, thousands of young Kavango works as migratory labourers on farms, in mines and in urban centres. An important local industry is woodcarving, Bowls, masks, ornaments, furniture and other functional items are produced for the tourist and other markets.
 

The Caprivians
Just under 80.000 people live in East Caprivi, which borders on Angola, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana. Most Caprivians are linguistically related to the Lozi and Makololo of Barotseland in Zambia. Most Caprivians are subsistence farmers who make their living on the banks of the Zambezi, Kwando, Linyanti and Chobe rivers. Land is cultivated under a system of individual right of occupation as allocated by the people' authorities. Grazing and veldt products are used on a communal basis. In addition to fishing and hunting, a significant but not exclusive element of the local economy, they keep cattle and cultivate the land.

The Topnaars
Only about 400 members of the in total 3.000 Topnaars still live in the Namib. The history and culture of this desert nation is closely associated with the Nara melon from whose kernels a very nutritious edible oil can be extracted and it is said to have medicininal properties. Nowadays it is to be attempted by a cultivation of the plant  to give a better economic future to the nation of the Topnaars  and therefore to preserve also their traditional way of life. To day the Topnaars tend their sheep and goats in the harsh environments. Some members of the community work in Walvis Bay. The Topnaar people have many unique traditions and customs linked to their existence in the Namib.
 

The Rehoboth Baster
The history of the Rehoboth Basters goes back to the settlement of the first Dutch colonists under Jan van Riebeeck, who landed at the Cape of Good Hope in 1652. European settlers came into contact with the indigenous Khosan people (Nama). The children born from this association whose mixed blood origins were obvious, were called "coloureds" or "bastards". In 1868 a group of some 90 Baster families moved to Namibia from the Cape. To day the Baster community consists of approx. 72.000 people and most of them live in the South of Windhoek. Their home language is Afrikaans and their way of life is similar to that of their Afrikaner forebears. While they are traditionally stock and crop farmers, today many of them are involved in other sections of the community, especially the building trade. A large number of Rehoboth Basters commute to Windhoek on a daily or weekly basis. In the sphere of culture and religion they maintain a Western way of life. It was their wish to keep the name "baster" also in future and they are proud of it.