Prehistory: Pre colonial farmers in Gauteng

Prehistory of Southern Africa

Farming people did not inhabit the Greater Johannesburg region until the Late Iron Age. Then, beginning in the 15th century, BaFokeng dominated the landscape. A few other Sotho-Tswana people, most notably BaKwena, also lived in the region. Large stonewalled settlements of both BaKwena and BaFokeng characterised the troubled times of the difaqane/mfecane at the end of the 18th century. Mzilikazi, however, depopulated the region in 1823; and so, the land appeared empty when Voortrekkers arrived.

To understand this brief outline, it is necessary to start at the beginning of the Iron Age, 1800 years ago.

The paper was written for SAHO in 2010 by Prof TN Huffman from the Archaeology Department at the University of the Witwatersrand.

References

• Hamilton, C. (Ed.). 1995. The Mfecane Aftermath. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press.
• Huffman, T.N. 2007. Handbook to the Iron Age. The Archaeology of Pre-Colonial Farming Societies in Southern Africa. Scottsville: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press.
• Legassik, M. 1969 .The Sotho-Tswana peoples before 1800. In Thompson, L. (ed.). 1969. African Societies in Southern Africa: Historical Studies.86-125.
• Maggs, T.M. 1976. Iron Age Communities of the Southern Highveld. (Occasional Publications, 2). Pietermaritzburg: Natal Museum.
• Mason, R.J. 1986. Origins of Black People of Johannesburg and the Southern Western Central Transvaal AD 350-1880. (Occasional Paper 16). Johannesburg: University of the Witwatersrand Archaeological Research Unit.
• Pistorius, J.C.C. 1992. Molokwane: an Iron Age BaKwena Village. Johannesburg: Perskor Printers.
• Tyson, P. D. & Lindesay, J.A. 1992. The climate of the last 2000 years in southern Africa.
   The Holocene 2:271-278.
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