San hunter-gatherers
San hunter-gatherers appears on the timeline as a people or culture of South Africa and Namibia (Central and Southern Africa) from c. 3200 BCE to the present, a span of more than 5,225 years. Its people spoke Khoisan languages (Khoekhoe, San).
Ancestors of the San hunted and gathered across southern Africa for tens of thousands of years and painted rock shelters from the Drakensberg to Namibia. Groups such as the Ju/'hoansi of the Kalahari keep parts of this way of life today.
See San hunter-gatherers on the interactive timeline
Facts
- Dates
- c. 3200 BCE to the present
- Duration
- more than 5,225 years
- Type
- People or culture
- Region
- South Africa and Namibia, Central and Southern Africa
- Language family
- Khoisan
Events in Central and Southern Africa during its time
- Bantu farmers reach the Great Lakes
- Iron smelting in the Great Lakes
- The Periplus describes Azania
- Ibn Battuta visits Kilwa
- Great Enclosure built at Great Zimbabwe
- Diogo Cão reaches the Congo River
- Kongo's king is baptised
- Vasco da Gama on the Swahili coast
Neighbours in Central and Southern Africa
- Swahili city-states
- Kingdom of Kongo
- Kingdom of Zimbabwe
- Zulu Kingdom
- Republic of South Africa (apartheid era)
- South Africa
- Congo Free State
- Kingdom of Buganda
- Kilwa Sultanate
- Bunyoro-Kitara
Elsewhere in the world at the same time
- Minoan civilization
- Republic of Venice
- Byzantine Empire
- Byzantine Empire
- Ghana Empire (Wagadu)
- Holy Roman Empire
- Kingdom of Aksum
- Srivijaya
- Ethiopian Empire (Solomonic dynasty)
- Moche (Mochica)
Questions
When did San hunter-gatherers exist?
c. 3200 BCE to the present, about more than 5,225 years. These dates are approximate, because the evidence for its beginning or end is uncertain.
Where was San hunter-gatherers?
South Africa and Namibia, in Central and Southern Africa.
What language did San hunter-gatherers speak?
Khoisan. This family includes Khoekhoe, San.