The Kora

The Korana or Kora were a nomadic Khoikhoi tribe that probably derived its name from a chief called Kora (or Gora), who was originally a leader of the Gorachouqua (`-qua’ meaning ‘people of’). He detached himself and his followers and became the first great chief of the Korana. Others say that the name Korana could mean ‘the real thing’, signifying that they thought of themselves as purebred Khoikhoi.

Initially there were two main groups, the Great Korana and the Little Korana. Each of these broke into splinter groups that kept dividing until there were so many insignificant clans that their names have been forgotten. Quarrels over water and grazing rights, or the ownership of women or livestock usually caused these divisions. When parties split up they usually assumed the name of their leader. But sometimes they took the name of a place where they had stayed for a long time. One such case was the name Hoogekraal (`High Kraal’), the original name for Pacaltsdorp, near George. Korana family names tended to signify a special characteristic or occupation such as the Towenaars (Sorcerers) and the Regshande (Right-handers). Where the first Chief Kora lived is anyone’s guess, but in early times, most Korana lived near the Gariep, Vaal and Harts rivers and others moved into the Overberg and the Karoo.

The Great River. The last great Korana trek took place during the late seventeenth century, when they trekked from their chiefdoms in the south-western Cape to escape the pressures of white settlers. These Korana trekkers travelled along the western trading routes as far north as the great river that they called Gariep, which means ‘river’. The early pioneers added ‘Groot’ (Great) to it, and after that, it was simply known as the Groot Rivier. A Dutch soldier of Scottish extraction, Robert Jacob Gordon, who was commander of the garrison at the Cape in 1777, renamed it the Orange after the Prince of Orange, but many still referred to it as the Groot Rivier. After the 1994 change of government, it was given back its original name, Gariep.

For many centuries the early people lived along this river and its tributaries because the game grazed in the vleis and the berry trees and bulbous plants grew in profusion. There, the Korana settled among the Nama herders and groups of San hunter-gatherers. By then, the Korana had become well-armed bandits who lived very much in the style of the ‘Wild West’ rustling sheep and cattle from their neighbours. They knew how to ride horses, understood the value of keeping their mounts in prime condition, and frequently raided the farms south of the great river and the Baster communities. They expertly rounded up the livestock, and, with as much booty as they could manage to carry, made a swift getaway to the densely wooded islands in the Gariep River.

They also settled in what is today the Free State, where they harassed the Bantu-speaking peoples and the white trekkers. Those living in the district that became known as Koranaland (Gordonia) took to roving about, hunting and plundering. Karel Ruyter or Ruiters, an escaped slave, became chief of the Hoengei group of Gona in the Zuurveld in the mid-eighteenth century. Other leaders were Piet Rooi, Jan Kupido, Klaas Lukas and Pofadder. Klaas Lukas, who had his headquarters at Olyvenhoutsdrift (Upington), was the most powerful chief.

Both Klaas Lukas and Pofadder, who had his kraal at Kakamas, remained neutral at first, but by 1868, the Korana marauders had made life so intolerable that the colonial government was forced to create a special magisterial district. The Northern Border Protection Act was passed to permit action against the troublemakers. A special border unit was stationed at Kenhardt; but the handful of police and burghers were to few to protect a 330 km stretch of land and they found it impossible to keep the lurking Korana gangs numbering some 300 to 400 at bay, nor could they drive them from the densely wooded islands in the great river. This led to the Korana wars of 1869 and 1878.

In 1869, the Frontier Armed and Mounted Police and a small detachment of the Royal Artillery arrived in the area, led by Sir Walter Currie. Together with 400 mounted Boers and Basters, 100 Xhosa and 200 regulars, Currie was soon able to scatter the rustlers, but he could not catch them. Klaas Lukas eventually captured the Korana gang leaders and handed them over to the colonial authorities, who banished them to Robben Island. Later, a prolonged drought forced white settlers and Coloured farmers, as well as the Korana, to move closer to the Gariep River. Such a conglomeration of herds close to their lairs made it easy for Korana gangs to prey on the herds. Their activities aroused the ire of the colonials.

Klaas Lukas, no longer neutral, gathered together 1,000-armed men to defend their lifestyle. His supporters included almost all the Korana, the Nama Afrikanders led by Jacobus Afrikander, and a number of Griqua rebels under Gamka Pienaar. The colonial authorities defeated them and once again, they came under the control of the Cape Government. Those Korana who rejected a future under colonial rule trekked further into the Kalahari. The Cape Government settled the Basters near Upington to form a buffer between the Boers and the Korana. Today, the Korana have completely disappeared as a separate group through being absorbed by the Coloureds and the Basters.

Source: Howcroft