Coloured

In South African, Namibian, Zambian, Botswanan, and Zimbabwean context, the term Coloured (Kleurlinge in Afrikaans) is used to refer to people of mixed European, Khoisan, Bantu, Indian or Cape Malay ancestry.

Coloureds

Extended coloured family with roots in Cape Town, Kimberley, and Pretoria.
Total population
~ 6,285,300[1]
Regions with significant populations
South Africa (Western Cape and Northern Cape), Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe
South Africa	4,832,900 (2015; estimated)[2]
Namibia	143,799[3]
Zimbabwe	17,923[4]
Zambia	3,000[5]
Languages
Afrikaans, English
Religion
predominantly Christianity, other religions
Related ethnic groups
Afrikaners, Cape Dutch, Cape Coloureds, Cape Malays, San people, Khoikhoi, Xhosa, Saint Helenians, Rehoboth Basters, Tswana

Coloured people as a proportion of the total population in South Africa.

0–20%   20–40%   40–60%

60–80%   80–100%

Density of the Coloured population in South Africa.

<1 /km²   1–3 /km²   3–10 /km²   10–30 /km²   30–100 /km²

100–300 /km²   300–1000 /km²   1000–3000 /km²   >3000 /km²

A genetic clustering of South African Coloured and five source populations.^[6] Each vertical bar represents individual.

They are the biggest group in the Northern Cape and Western Cape populations. Most Coloureds speak Afrikaans as their first language, although there are some native English speakers. The majority of Coloureds living in Cape Town are able to speak both languages.

Because of South Africa's history of racial discrimination, many feel that the term coloured is derogatory. The official term is "Coloured people", but many prefer to call themselves "Black", "White", "Bantu", "Khoisan", "Afrikaner", "Anglo", "Indian", "Cape Malay" or just "South African".

The majority of coloureds are found in the Western Cape, but are prevalent throughout the country. According to the 2022 South African census, Coloureds represent 8.15% of people within South Africa, while they make up 42.1% of the population in the Western Cape and 41.6% in the Northern Cape, representing a plurality of the population in these two provinces of South Africa.^[7] In the Western Cape, a distinctive Cape Coloured and affiliated Cape Malay culture developed. Genetic studies suggest the group has the highest levels of mixed ancestry in the world.

Apartheid

During apartheid, people were classified into four groups: White, Black, Coloured, and Asian. The Cape Malays, who are of Southeast Asian descent, were not classified as Asians, but as Coloureds, since only South Asians can be classified as Asians, not East Asians or Southeast Asians.

Although they were discriminated against by the government, many Coloureds and Asians got to enjoy certain rights during the apartheid era. For example, they did not have to carry around a passbook, had limited political representation, and were considered citizens of South Africa.