The San-Bushmen of the Kalahari

Some scientists are calling the San-Bushmen of the Kalahari the "Genetic Adam". This means that the San could be the tribe, from which all humans on earth could trace their genetic heritage. There is, so far, no proof for this theory. However, we have genetic evidence which dates back for more than 25.000 years.

Being the "Genetic Adam" or not, the San-Bushmen are considered the oldest culture in the world. They were first modern human beings in southern Africa. We have archaeological finds, dating back 25.000 years. Tools from the Stone-Age and rock paintings in the caves of the Tsodilo-Hills in the eastern Kalahari.

The San-Bushmen always have been hunter-gatherers and they are until today. They are living on roots and plants and occasionally they are hunting some wildlife. However, more than 80 % of their diet is vegetarian. They are constantly moving around, searching for food and water. During the night they are building shelters out of branches and grass.

Today the governments of the countries sharing the Kalahari ,are counting all in all about 82.000 bushmen. Although, this figure includes all groups and tribes. The estimation for the original San is somewhere at 3000. These are living in the traditional groups of 10 - 15 people. Each member of the group is specialized in a certain task and has the sole responsibility.

In 1980 the San-Bushmen reached some quick international fame, when one of the tribe named N!xau, was the lead actor in the movie "The Gods must be crazy". A comedy, where an empty Coke-bottle creates havoc amongst the San, and N!xau gets the task to bring it back into modern civilization.

Unfortunately today, there is some truth behind the comedy. After decades of dislocation by the governments, for tourism and diamond mining, these ancient people are threatened by our modern world and they are at the brink of extinction. We should do our utmost, to guarantee the survival of the ancestors of mankind.

The Kalahari Geography & Climate

The Kalahari is the 4.th biggest desert on Earth. She is covering, with more than 900.000 square kilometers (or 363.000 square miles), most of Botswana and parts of Namibia and South-Africa.

The Kalahari is at the southern part of Africa and she is a mixture of plateau and desert. Some animals and plants are exclusively living here, because there actually is some rainfall, usually between 10 and 20 cm annually. This allows these animals and plants to survive even in this harsh region of our planet. Actually, some parts of the Kalahari are more semi-desert than a classical desert. Especially the parts in South-Africa offer excellent grazing after good rains.

The temperatures in the summer are usually between 20 and 40 degrees Celsius. In winter, on cold days, the temperature on cold days can drop to an below-zero average.

Surrounding the Kalahari is the Kalahari Basin. This covers more than 2,5 mio. square kilometers and reaches even into Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The only permanent river, the Okavango, forms a Delta and the marshes in this Delta are amongst the most interesting regions of the Earth, concerning the Wildlife.

Nowadays, although it is still a hostile and rough environment, the Kalahari and the Kalahari Basin, are frequently visited by tourists. Safari-Tourism is one of the main income producers, next to diamonds and sand.