Kanaimba (Kaneimba), Paul (Paulus) * ?, ? † . The father of Paul Kanaimba was chief Kanaimba who lived near the Nossob. During an expedition to the southeastern Herero in August 1872, Brincker was given the task to inquire the possibilities to have RMS missionaries to settle amongst these Herero. "Wir hatten die onganda (werft) des Kanaimba vermißt, spannten deßhalb bei einer Wasserstelle aus und sandten unsern Wegweiser zu der onganda, um die Leute zu uns zu rufen. Gegen Mittag kam Kanaimba mit einigen Männern und einigen Bergdamra, die sich von den Afrikanern zu ihm geflüchtet haben. Er hatte einen hohen Hut auf und machte auf den ersten Augenblick eine sonderbaren Eindruck auf uns. Er ist aber gar kein übler Mann, und verlangt bald einen Missionar bei sich zu haben. Am Nachmittag zeigte er uns seinen Platz, auf welchem er mit seinen Lehrer zu wohnen wünsche und fragte uns, ob der Platz dazu uns tauglich erscheine. Der Name desselben ist Otyitueze [sic] und liegt an dem besagtem Nosobflusse, 21/2 Tagereisen von Windhoek nach Osten und 5 Tage von Neu-Barmen. Ein großer und schöner Platz mit vielem Gartenland im Bette des Flusses, das sich auf dieser Stelle sehr erweitert und nach dem Westen hin eine herrliche Aussicht bietet. Korn kann auch ziemlich viel dort gesät werden. Es schien uns einer der besten Plätze dieses Landes zu sein; freilich etwas weit abgelegen. Kanaimba hat viele Leite; er selbst sagte uns, daß, sobald er einen Lehrer bekäme, er seine Leute, die jetzt noch zerstreut lägen, zu sammeln gedächte, dann hätte er eine große onganda. Sein Sohn Paulus ist von Bruder Hahn auf Otyimbingue getauft, wohnt aber jetzt in Okahandya. Wir schieden von ihm mit der Versicherung, daß wir sein Gesuch unserer geehrten Gesellschaft vortragen würden. Er gab uns ein Stück Schlachtvieh."1 According to Henrichsen, big game hunt became an important source of income in the 1870'tees for Herero from the mission stations. Paul Kanaimba, for example, used the earnings from big game hunt to pay his outstanding debts at local Kaptein, teacher and evangelist at the same time. Started mission work at Otjituezu (a branch of Otjihaenena) and build a church together with his congregation. The small church had place for 250 people. B. p. 147 In April 1900, Viehe wrote a request to Wuppertal, asking for a church bell for the church ("Kirche aus Ziegelsteinen") which was build by Paul Kanaimba in Otjituezu.("Es würde mir eine ganz besondere Freude sein, wenn Freunde in der Heimat denselben eine solche (Glocke) schenken würden, um so dem Paul Kanaimba und die junge Gemeinde noch mehr zu ermutigen.") RMG1.603e:94, Together with Manasse [Kujatura], Paul Mbanowandu, Julius Kauraise and Paul Kanaimba this evangelists established a congregation of 400 baptized christians at Otjihaenena with missionary Lang.2 On the 21.01.1900, 57 "heathens" were baptised on the branchstation Otjituezu [sic]. This is where Paul Kanaimbe is working. (170 adults attended the church services by Lang.3) At this station, the people had build a "Kreuzkirche aus Ziegelsteinen" out of their own initiative, and requested the mission society for a church bell. A few month later, Lang writes about 50 "heathen" being baptised in Otjituezu.4 Hendrik Cloete, the brother of Daniel Cloete, got involved in trading activities in the beginning of the 20th century. He owned his own waggon and team of oxen and traded with products he had on commission from a trader in Windhoek. During the Herero-German war he was captured by the Herero of Otjituezu (under Paul Kanaimba), his products were looted and he was taken with them on their warpath until Cloete and his family managed to escape near Otjihaenena. Rust published a statement, which is labeled as the personal account of Hendrik Cloete. According to this account, Samuel Maharero came to Otjituezu, consulted Paulus Kanaimba, and both left with a strong group of soldiers to the railway-line near Okahandja. Cloete was forced to follow this detachment to Ogandjira [Ongandjira] , where a decisive battle against the German "Schutztruppe" was fought. As maintained by Cloete, Paulus Kanaimba had the command over the Herero forces on the left side of the [Otjisazu] river. When evening fell the Herero left their positions to the advancing German forces after the loss of 10 "cloth-Herero" on their side.5 Rust writes about the execution of three Herero by German soldiers who were tried by "court martial" because of cattle- and horse theft in early February 1904 on the farm Kromhoek near Windhoek. The three argued during their interrogation that they acted only on order of "Großmann Paul" - who had escaped on horseback during the approach of the German troops - and that they were not aware of the actual military situation.6 In the end of January 1904, Maria Cain [She was a farmer's wife, and was of Irish and Herero origin. Her father John Cain was a trader, who lived in Okahandja with his Herero wife and several children. He had a row with some Nama people in Windhoek in 1863. John Cain left Hereroland before November 1887. (Tabler 1972:18)] was forced by Herero troops to follow them to the main camp of Tjetjo in Oviombo, where most of the Herero forces had concentrated. Here she witnessed the church services held by Julius [Kauraisa] (from Okahandja), Christian [Mupurua] (from Otjiruse), Elifas [Karamo] (of Otjimbingwe), Elifas [Katuairua] (no place of origin mentioned) Josaphat [Kamatoto] (no place of origin mentioned), Romatoto [sic] (no place of origin mentioned) and Johannes [Mupurua] (no place of origin mentioned). Maria Cain remained for 5 month in the camps of the Herero, before she was send by Samuel Maharero to Omaruru. Rust qouted her account partly in direct speech.7 Gewald describes the four months before the deciding battle at Hamakari as the "phoney war", a time when the Herero did not attempt to sabotage the German telephone lines or attack the German supply lines. When the Herero retreated towards the plains between the Omuramba Omatako and the Waterberg, church services were held in the Herero laagers by the evangelists Julius (Okahandja) - this must have been Julius Kauraisa - , Christian (Otjiruse) - this must have been Christian Nathanael - , Elifas (Otjimbingwe) - this must have been Eliphas Karamo - , Elifas (Otjosazu) - most probably this was Eliphas Katuairua - , Josephat, Komatoto (sic!) - this must have been Josaphat Kamatoto - , Johannes (Okahandja) - this must have been Johannes Mupurua."8 According to Rust the farm Frauenstein was attacked on the 13.1.1904 by a group of Herero under the command of Paul Kanaimba. The German settler Pilet was shot and his wife and her sister were taken to Otjitueze to Paul Kanaimba. Kanaimba ordered that they should be given a hut and looked after them. He issued them with a letter of protection and had the Boer Keet take them to Otjosazu where they were taken into the care of RMS missionary Brockmann.9 It was also Rust who perpetuated the claim in German colonial literature that Paulus Kanaimba gave the order to abduct two German women (Pilet and Dömski) from the farm Frauenstein (30 km east of Windhoek) to Otjitueze and tolerated the looting of thei clothes they were wearing.10 Rust also published an account of the Boer Jakobus Keet during the first days of the war in Otjitueze. According to Keet, the two sons of Paul Kanaimba, Johannes and Hesekiel, were implicated in the killing of the German farmer von Falkenhausen.11 End of May 1904, the former "auxiliary soldier" Arastus, who had been send as a messenger to Samuel Maharero by the German military command, managed to escape from the Herero camps and reported back to the German forces. According to his account - on which the later attack on the Herero troops at Waterberg was based - the Herero chiefs (amongst them Paulus Kanaimba) had concentrated their forces at the Waterberg. It was Arastus who disclosed that most of the Herero chiefs favored a continuation of the war, while Samuel, Zacharias, Michael and Paulus Kanaimba were inclined to make peace.12 Bei dem folgenden Angaben ist nicht ganz klar, ob es sich um Mbenovandu, Paul oder um Kanaimba (Kaneimba), Paul (Paulus) handelt. Im Jahre 1896 heißt es über einen Evangelisten Paul: "[...] der Evangelist Paul ist dort [nach dem Osten zu (Nosobgebiet)] durch die schlechte Behandlung, die er erfuhr, wohl auch durch die Unruhen, die sich an dem Namen des Nikodemus knüpften, überflüssig geworden. In der Nähe [von Ovikokorero], westlich davon, in Ombujokaheke, arbeitet jetzt der Evangelist Paul."13 BMS (Berlin Mission Society) missionary Johannes Neitz was requested by the "Synodalversammlung Transvaal Nord" in September 1907 to visit the Herero who had settled at Groenfontein (at the Sepalala river) after their flight from Namibia. Neitz insists that, with very few exeptions, most of the Herero at Groenfontein were Christians and their total number - including those who travelled to Johannesburg - was 250-300. 5 days away, in the direction of Khamas country, - Neitz was told - about 450 - 500 more people were living under "dem großen (wie sie sagen) Evangelisten Paulus". 14 "In 1992, one of my informants Mrs. Magdelina [sic] Kanaimba told me of her childhood in Nigel in the Transvaal, where they had been the only Herero family present in the early 1920. In Nigel, Mrs. Kanaimba's father, who had been an evangelist for the Lutheran missionaries in German South West Africa, had worked at one of the mines as a first-aid orderly. Every Sunday her father used to travel by train from Nigel, via Springs to Mayfair station, from where he would then walk to the Crown Mines Herero Location where he would preach from German psalm books and Bibles. Throughout the early 1900s the Rhenish Missionary Society received requests, from the various assorted preachers of the Transvaal, for Herero Bibles and hymn books as well as proof of baptism and confirmation for various Herero miners. The existence of a specific Herero community on the Rand appears to have come to an end in the early 1930s.15 Kanaimba [Vater von Paul Kanaimba?] soll zu dem Rat von Kamaharero gehört haben.16 In June 1900 Irle (sen.) visited the station branch Otjituezu. By this time the evangelist Paul Kanaimba had build a brick church, which had a church bell. Because of the work involved in visiting this branch, Irle handed it over to Lang.17 1907 Traugott Tjetjoo läßt Gouverneur Schuckmann über Missionar Meier ausrichten, dass er ohne etwas zu befürchten nach DSWA zurückkommen kann. Dort sollen sie sich auf Otjihaenena mit ihrem Vieh niederlassen dürfen, ohne dass ihnen das Land gehören solle. Die Älteren der evtl. zurückkehrenden Herero sollen "die jüngeren Leute als Arbeiter stellen".18 Married: Children: Education: Other family members connected to RMS: Mission Stations: History with the RMS: 1 BRGM 1873:229. 2 Irle 1915:24. 3 JBRMG 1899:28. 4 BRMG 1900:229. 5 Rust 1905:135. 6 Rust 1905:180. 7 Rust 1905:135. 8 Gewald 1999:170, Footnote: Quoting Rust 1905:135 9 Rust 76-79. 10 Rust 1905:142. 11 Rust 1905:106. 12 Nuhn 1989:196. 13 JBRM 1896:27. 14 RMG 2.660:1-6. 15 Gewald 1999:214. 16 Henrichsen 1997:402. 17 Irle o. d.:(24). The name Kanaimba has been marked with a question mark. 18 AELCRN II 11.4:ohne Blattzählung. --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------