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Namibia is a big, young country with a very small human population, but the country has still managed to put a few names on the world map of famous figures. Here are five famous Namibians, dead and alive, that you should know:
Percy Montgomery
Born in Walvis Bay in 1974, Percy Montgomery went on to play 102 games for the Springboks (South Africa’s national side) before he retired in 2008. He was the first Springbok player to win 100 caps and remains their all-time leading points scorer with 893 points. He was well-known for his Hollywood looks and his big boot. He is one of many Namibian rugby players to have plied their trade across the border in South Africa.
Frank Fredericks
Affectionately known as “Frankie”, sprinter Fredericks won four Olympic silver medals over his illustrious career, as well as golds at the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games among others. He retired in 2004, but still holds the world indoor record for 200 metres and remains the only Namibian to have won an Olympic medal. He currently serves as a council member for the International Association of Athletics Federations.
Behati Prinsloo
Prinsloo hails from the small city of Grootfontein in central Namibia and is a world-renowned model and Victoria’s Secret Angel. She’s appeared on the cover of Vogue and the Daily Telegraph magazine, and walked the runway for the likes of Prada, Louis Vitton and Chanel. She’s made guest appearences on Hawaai Five-O and in a Maroon 5 music video. She’s married to Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine. She is one of the most famous Namibians today.
Anton Lubowski
Born in Luderitz on Namibia’s west coast in 1952, Anton Lubowski was a controversial and celebrated political activist and advocate. He was one of very few white Namibians who openly supported SWAPO, the main black majority liberation movement that fought for independence from colonial domination and racial segregation. In 1989, Lubowski was shot by a group of assailants in front of his house in Windhoek. Today, there is a street named after him in Namibia’s capital Windhoek.
Hendrik Witbooi
Born in 1830, Witbooi was a Namaqua chief lauded as the first African leader and revolutionary to have taken up arms against the German imperialists. He died in action in 1905, but remains a celebrated national hero. His face was portrayed on the obverse of all Namibian dollar banknotes until 20 March 2012, and is still on all N$50, N$100 and N$200 notes.
