Namibian War of Independence

The armed struggle against South African rule in Namibia, fought from 1966 to 1989. It formed part of the wider campaign for Namibian self-determination and ended with independence in 1990.

South African Border War: A conflict in southern Africa, chiefly involving South Africa, Angola, and Namibia, from 1966 to 1989. The war’s military operations were closely entangled with South Africa’s broader conflict in the region.
South African administration of South West Africa: South Africa’s governance of the former German colony of South West Africa after World War I. The struggle arose from decades of South African administration and resistance to its continuation.
Sam Nujoma: A Namibian independence leader who headed SWAPO and became Namibia’s first president. As SWAPO’s leader, he directed its political campaign and represented it in negotiations.
Namibian independence: The establishment of the Republic of Namibia as a sovereign state on 21 March 1990. Independence fulfilled the central political aim of the struggle.
People's Liberation Army of Namibia: The armed wing of the South West Africa People's Organisation, which fought South African rule. PLAN conducted the insurgency that defined the independence struggle’s armed phase.
South West Africa: The former name of Namibia, used during the period of South African rule. The territory’s colonial history explains the name used during much of the conflict.
Hage Geingob: A Namibian politician who led SWAPO’s diplomatic mission to the United Nations and later became president. His diplomatic work helped advance international support for Namibian self-determination.
Namibian general election, 1989: The 1989 election for a constituent assembly that selected representatives to prepare Namibia’s independence. The UN-supervised election translated the ceasefire into a political transition.
South West Africa People's Organisation: A Namibian liberation movement that led the campaign for independence from South African rule. SWAPO combined armed resistance with diplomacy and became the governing party after independence.
Herero and Namaqua genocide: The mass killings and forced displacement of Herero and Nama people by German colonial forces from 1904 to 1908. German colonial dispossession formed part of the history of land and sovereignty contested later.

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