Coloured people in Namibia

Coloured people in Namibia are Namibians of mixed ancestry, generally combining European and Indigenous African (particularly Khoisan and Bantu). Also, in some cases, Indian, Malay, and Malagasy lineage, especially in coastal regions and areas near the South African border.

Some coloured people in Namibia are immigrants, while others were born in the country or returned after periods of residence abroad. These successive waves of arrival from diverse backgrounds have contributed to the development of a heterogeneous Coloured population. South African authorities further classified the community into three groups: Basters, Cape Coloureds, and Namibian Coloureds.

Another distinct community was located in Walvis Bay, which remained under South African control until 1994. This group maintained close cultural and social ties to the Cape Coloured population.

The most significant cultural conflict occurred in the mid-1980s, when students influenced by teachers returning from the University of the Western Cape (UWC) began challenging older community leaders, many of whom served on Coloured Councils or in Rehoboth self-government structures and opposed SWAPO. Younger people increasingly embraced Black nationalism, rejected the label "so-called Coloured," and advocated for a racially unified, independent Namibia. Many echoed the view of Norman Duncan, who stated that "there's no such thing as a Coloured culture, Coloured identity."

Since the early 2000s, however, more scholarship has argued that Coloured communities in Namibia are experiencing marginalisation.