Description
The Boers in Angola: 1928–1975 by Nicol Stassen chronicles the remarkable and often overlooked story of the Afrikaner communities who settled in Angola. Following waves of migration in the 19th and early 20th centuries, these Boers found themselves isolated from their homeland and enduring extreme hardships, yet striving to maintain their cultural identity, or “Afrikanerskap,” in a challenging foreign environment. Stassen details the community’s complex relationship with the Portuguese authorities, the economic and educational limitations they faced, and the resulting cycles of poverty, adaptation, and resilience. Approximately 2,000 Boers were repatriated to South-West Africa (now Namibia) in 1928, while the remaining small group—often described as a “living fossil”—persisted in Angola under increasingly difficult conditions. The narrative explores their livelihoods, from mixed farming and transport riding to hunting, alongside the social and cultural practices that allowed them to survive for decades. Stassen also examines the ultimate exodus of the last Afrikaners following the outbreak of civil war in Angola in 1975.
Combining detailed historical research with engaging storytelling, this book provides insight into the determination, wanderlust, and perseverance of a community living on the margins of history, offering an essential account for readers of South African and colonial history.
