Descendants of the aboriginal Bushmen, Boer voortrekkers, British Uitlanders, and recent arrivals fleeing poverty in Zimbabwe and Mozambique. This exciting work is the definitive guide to a nation so diverse that its people were once famously described by Archbishop Desmond Tutu as the "rainbow people of God."

Nelson Mandela's release from prison in February 1990 was the defining moment in South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy. But as this fascinating study shows, the racial history of South Africa is much more complex than a simple struggle between black and white.

How did South Africa become a crossroads for peoples as diverse as the Zulu, the Xhosa, the Dutch, and the Chinese? Did the end of apartheid really herald a new dawn in race relations, or have the scars of those years yet to truly heal? To answer these questions, this timely volume examines South Africa's ethnic history over 500 years. From the earliest contacts between Europeans and Africans to the country's changing role in the post-apartheid era, this reference work traces the fascinating racial history of South Africa before, during, and after the apartheid years.  less