Originally home to the San, Damara, and Nama peoples, the area that is now Namibia (the driest region, it should be noted, in sub-Saharan Africa) was gradually overtaken by emigrating Bantu peoples - until the European powers scuttled in and started claiming bits and pieces and entireties. During the German South West Africa years, the colonizers exacted a genocide against the Herero peoples, then the South Africans took over from the Germans and effectively refused to acknowledge the right of the Namibians to self-governance (or even the right to call themselves by their chosen name - as you can see, while under South African mandate, and far beyond, the nation was known as South West Africa) for roughly 75 years - from 1915 until 1990, when Namibia’s declaration of independence (of 1968) was at last recognized by South Africa and the world. (It was even another four years before two of the original German settlements, Walvis Bay and the Penguin Islands, were surrendered by South Africa.)
Stamp details:
Top left:
Issued in: 1900
From: Windhoek, German South West Africa
MC #20
Top right:
Issued on: March 5, 1931
From: Windhoek, South West Africa
MC #142
Second row:
Issued on: November 1, 1978
From: Windhoek, South West Africa
MC #453
Third row:
Issued on: March 21, 1990
From: Windhoek, Republic of Namibia
MC #670
Fourth row:
Issued on: March 1, 1994
From: Windhoek, Republic of Namibia
MC #768-770
Stamp on bottom:
Issued on: March 21, 2015
From: Windhoek, Republic of Namibia
MC #1505
Recognized as a sovereign state by the UN: Yes (since April 23, 1990)
Official name: Republic of Namibia; Republiek van Namibië; Republik Namibia; Namibiab Republiki dib; Republika yaNamibia; Orepublika yaNamibia; Republika zaNamibia; Rephaboliki ya Namibia; Namibia ye Lukuluhile
Member of the Universal Postal Union: Yes (since April 30, 1992)
