XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Ovambo, northern Namibia and southern Angola
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The Ovambo famine of 1914–1915 was a severe subsistence crisis caused by failed rains within a longer sequence of droughts and famines during the late German period. It brought mass starvation, social disruption, population movements, and high mortality across Ovambo communities. The crisis weakened political authority, encouraged migration toward the Police Zone and missions, and helped South African officials establish an administrative foothold in the north.
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Le récit
By the time of the South African invasion, Ovambo was suffering from one of the most destructive famines of the twentieth century. Remembered as ondjala yawekotoko, the famine peaked after the rains failed in 1914 and 1915. It formed the climax of repeated droughts and famines that had affected the region during the late German period.
The famine produced mass starvation and a breakdown of ordinary social relations. Hospitality toward refugees, normally a strong tradition, was denied as communities faced their own scarcity, and people moved both within Ovambo and southward. Conditions varied: southern Angola was especially hard-hit, while a successful melon harvest slightly eased the situation in Ondonga, but all Ovambo communities experienced intense suffering.
Mortality was high, although the estimates cited on these pages conflict. South African estimates suggested that 25,000 people died from a population of 156,000, whereas missionaries in southern Angola placed the number of deaths at 50,000. Many vulnerable people turned to missions, and migration toward the Police Zone brought further deaths, especially at Karibib, while some migrants established permanent settlements in the south.
XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Ovambo, northern Namibia and southern Angola
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The Ovambo famine of 1914–1915 was a severe subsistence crisis caused by failed rains within a longer sequence of droughts and famines during the late German period. It brought mass starvation, social disruption, population movements, and high mortality across Ovambo communities. The crisis weakened political authority, encouraged migration toward the Police Zone and missions, and helped South African officials establish an administrative foothold in the north.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
By the time of the South African invasion, Ovambo was suffering from one of the most destructive famines of the twentieth century. Remembered as ondjala yawekotoko, the famine peaked after the rains failed in 1914 and 1915. It formed the climax of repeated droughts and famines that had affected the region during the late German period.
The famine produced mass starvation and a breakdown of ordinary social relations. Hospitality toward refugees, normally a strong tradition, was denied as communities faced their own scarcity, and people moved both within Ovambo and southward. Conditions varied: southern Angola was especially hard-hit, while a successful melon harvest slightly eased the situation in Ondonga, but all Ovambo communities experienced intense suffering.
Mortality was high, although the estimates cited on these pages conflict. South African estimates suggested that 25,000 people died from a population of 156,000, whereas missionaries in southern Angola placed the number of deaths at 50,000. Many vulnerable people turned to missions, and migration toward the Police Zone brought further deaths, especially at Karibib, while some migrants established permanent settlements in the south.
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