Hendrina Martha Afrikaner (1952–2011) was

Chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

of the

Orlam The Oorlam or Orlam people (also known as Orlaam, Oorlammers, Oerlams, or Orlamse Hottentots) are a subtribe of the Nama people, largely assimilated after their migration from the Cape Colony (today, part of South Africa) to Namaqualand and Dam ...

Afrikaners in

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

, the first woman to occupy that position.

Early life

Afrikaner was the great-granddaughter of

Jan Jonker Afrikaner Jan Jonker Afrikaner (c. 1820 in Bethanie, South West Africa – 10 August 1889 near Tsoabis, South West Africa) was the second oldest son of Jonker Afrikaner and Beetje Boois. He became the sixth and last Captain of the Orlam Afrikaners in ...

. She grew up in

Hoachanas Hoachanas (Khoekhoe: ) is a settlement of 3,000 inhabitants in the Hardap Region of southern central Namibia, located northeast of Kalkrand. It is situated at the junction of the main road C21 from Kalkrand, and C15 from Dordabis to Stamprie ...

and

Okahandja Okahandja is a city of 24,100 inhabitants in Otjozondjupa Region, central Namibia, and the district capital of the Okahandja electoral constituency. It is known as the ''Garden Town of Namibia''. It is located 70 km north of Windhoek on the ...

where she attended the Augustineum.

Career

Afrikaner worked as a nurse when she was in her twenties. After

Namibian independence The history of Namibia has passed through several distinct stages from being colonised in the late nineteenth century to Namibia's independence on 21 March 1990. From 1884, Namibia was a German colony: German South West Africa. After the First W ...

she joined the Ministries of Education, and of Gender Equality and Child Welfare. She became chief of the Afrikaner clan in 2004 and occupied that position until her death. In 2016, Eduard Afrikaner (b.1948) was elected as the chief.Eduard Afrikaner elected chief of /Hoa /Aran //Aixa //Aes
Namibia News Agency, 25 July 2016

Death

Hendrina Afrikaner died on 19 August 2011 in a car accident between

Keetmanshoop Keetmanshoop is a city in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia, lying on the Trans-Namib Railway from Windhoek to Upington in South Africa. It is named after Johann Keetman, a German industrialist and benefactor of the city. History Befo ...

and

Tses Tses is a village in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia with a population of approximately 1000; probably 1000 more live in the surrounding semi-desert farming hinterland. It is situated one kilometre off the main B1 highway from Windhoek t ...

, and was buried next to Jan Jonker Afrikaner in Okahandja.

References

1952 births 2011 deaths Namibian politicians Road incident deaths in Namibia Augustineum Secondary School alumni {{Namibia-politician-stub