Bernert Willemsz Wijlant, the first White baby, is born at the Cape

Date: 6 Jun 1652
Updated: 30 Sep 2019

Bernert Willemsz Wijlant, the first White baby, is born at the Cape

Two months after Dutch man Jan Van Riebeek and the Dutch East India Company arrived in the Cape, the first white baby was born. The baby was named Bernert Willemsz Wijlant and he would be the first of many European babies to be born in the Cape. Baby Wijlant and his parents were officially the first family to move into the Cape Fortress. His father Barenz Wijlant was a sick-comforter. Sick-comforters would comfort the dying, read them Christian scriptures and help them draw up wills. The birth of baby Wijlant signaled the beginning of a second generation of settlers in the Cape.

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01Geni South Africa – Timeline [online] Available at: www.geni.com [Accessed on 27 May 2013]
02Tutor Gig Encyclopedia 1650’s in South Africa [online] Available at: www.tutorgigpedia.com [Accessed on 27 May 2013]

Last updated · 30 Sep 2019

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2013, May 31). Bernert Willemsz Wijlant, the first White baby, is born at the Cape. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095803

South African History Online (2013) 'Bernert Willemsz Wijlant, the first White baby, is born at the Cape', South African History Online, 31 May. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095803 (Accessed: 18 August 2026).

South African History Online, Bernert Willemsz Wijlant, the first White baby, is born at the Cape [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095803, (accessed 18 August 2026).

"Bernert Willemsz Wijlant, the first White baby, is born at the Cape." South African History Online, 31 May 2013, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095803. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

South African History Online. "Bernert Willemsz Wijlant, the first White baby, is born at the Cape." South African History Online. May 31, 2013. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095803.