SAHO global search

1908-1992

Thayanayagie (Thailema) Pillay

Thayanayagie (Thailema), daughter of Veerammal Naidoo and Govindasamy Kristshnasamy Thambi Naidoo, was four years old when her family moved to the Tolstoy Farm…

B-0068309

Frank A. Pendla

Frank A. Pendla was the president of the Cape African Congress in the early 1940s until suspended by A. B. Xuma in September 1942. Born in the Cape, he…

B-0068307

1859-1936

Meshach Pelem

Meshach Pelem was born in Mxumbu near King William's Town in 1859 and studied at Healdtown, where he qualified as a primary school teacher. After teaching in…

B-0068303

Poonoosamy Ruthnam Pather

Poonoosamy Ruthnam Pather (PR) was born in Mauritius in 1895.  His grandfather settled in that country after emigrating from Tanjore in India in the 1840s. PR…

B-0068301

1924

Ahmed Ebrahim Patel

Born 1924. Agent. Key organiser since 1939 of the Transvaal Indian Congress on the East Rand, and appeared for the Congress before numerous hearings of the…

B-0068300

1936-2009

Dawood Parker

Dawood Parker was the Chairman of the Wynberg Civic Association. He played a prominent role in local civic affairs. He was a leading voice in the struggle…

B-0068299

1950-2008

John Alfons Pandeni

Namibian John Pandeni was one of hundreds of People’s Liberation Army of Namibia (Plan) SWAPO fighters who were captured and imprisoned on Robben Island. After…

B-0068298

1925-2000

Alfred Baphetuxolo Nzo

Alfred Nzo was born on 19 June 1925 at Benoni, Transvaal, into a family of five children. His father was a clerk at Modder B mine, which was later changed into…

B-0068295

1958

Mkhuseli Khusta Jack

Mkhuseli Jack was born on the farm Mosskraal in Humansdorp on 31 May 1958.  Jack was the second youngest of eight children of Fikile and Alice Jack, a domestic…

B-0067959

Dilizantaba Mji

Born at Buntingville, Umtata, in the Transkei, he completed B.S. and M.S. degrees, then studied medicine at the University of the Witwatersrand, where he…

B-0067953

1911-1986

Esther Susanna Mentz

Mentz studied at the Conservatoire of Music at the University of Stellenbosch from 1929-1931. After this she spent some time making Afrikaans records and…

B-0067946

1949

Cynthia Shange

Cynthia Shange was born in Lamontville, Durban, in Kwazulu Natal. She started modeling in 1970 and went on to win several titles. In 1972 she won the title…

B-0067940

Nombuso Mchunu

On her completion of Matric in 1972, Nombuso did casual work such as typing documents for the Garment Workers union, while she looked for permanent work. Her…

B-0067935

1942

Letta Mbulu

Letta Mbulu was born in Soweto and, during her teens, she toured South Africa and then England with the musical King Kong. She returned to South Africa at the…

B-0067933

1952-2008

Colonel Sibusiso (Sihle) R. Mbongwa

Sibusiso (Sihle) R. Mbongwa was born in 1952. After joining the African National Congress’ military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) in 1977, Mbongwa commanded a…

B-0067929

1870-1947

Horatio (Bud) Isaiah Mbelle

Horatio Isaiah Budlwana (Bud) Mbelle was born in Burgersdorp, Cape Colony on 24 June 1870. He grew up in the Herschel district in the Eastern Cape where Sotho…

B-0067925

1940-2006

Louis Problem Mkhize

Curnick Ndlovu, the first leader of the uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) Regional Command in Natal (now KwaZulu-Natal), recruited Louis ‘Problem’ Mkhize first into the…

B-0067867

1937-2002

Justice Gizenga Mpanza

Justice "Gizenga" Mpanza was born on 5 September 1937 at Groutville Mission Reserve. His father was one of Chief Luthuli's indunas (advisors). Mpanza went to…

B-0067866

1970

Leleti Khumalo

Leleti Khumalo was born on 30 March 1970 in Kwa Mashu Township, the North of Durban. Growing up a poverty-ridden township, she became a member a youth backyard…

B-0067755

1891-1922

Samuel Alfred (Taffy) Long

Samuel Alfred Long was born in 1891 in Monmouthshire, Wales, Britain. Little is known of Long's early life, other than that he ran away from home when he was…

B-0067743

1912-1964

Daniel R Koza

Daniel Koza was born 1912 near Pietersburg and in the mid-1930s came Johannesburg where his path somehow crossed  Gordon's.Drawn into trade union work and the…

B-0067728

1850-1916

Lord Kitchener

Best known for his famous recruitment posters bearing his heavily moustachioed face and pointing hand over the legend, "Your country needs you", as secretary…

B-0067726

1929-1968

Dr Martin Luther King jr

American Civil Rights leader, influential and inspirational in many African lives  For an excellent and richly linked biography, click here

B-0067725

1974

Basetsana Julia, aka “Bassie” Kumalo

Basetsana Makgalemele, former Miss Soweto and Miss Black South Africa, was crowned Miss SA in 1994. The event is memorable as it coincided with the first…

B-0067467

1847-1929

Millicent Fawcett

Fawcett was part of the Ladies’ Committee that was sent over from Britain during the Anglo Boer War in order to inspect the conditions in the concentration…

B-0067466

Unknown-1663

Doman

In about 1657 Doman, a Goring-haiqua Khoisan, was sent to Batavia to learn to become an interpreter. But having witnessed first hand the capacity of the Dutch…

B-0067462

1770

Chief Dingiswayo

Paramount Chief of the Mthethwa and leader of various northern Nguni groups who lived in the Zululand area before Shaka brought them under his rule.  Little…

B-0067421

1879-1935

Tielman Johannes de Villiers Roos

Tielman Roos was born in Cape Town on 8 May 1879. He was educated at the South African College qualified as an advocate when he was only 23 years old. He…

B-0067328

1749-1823

Jacob Abraham de Mist

De Mist was born on 20 April 1749 in Voorburg near The Hague in the Netherlands. He went to school at Kampen, after which he studied law in Leyden from 1766 to…

B-0067298

1941-1989

Maggie Mikula

Maggie Mikula was born in Durban on 19 August 1941. She attended St Mary’s School in Durban and matriculated in 1959.  She then went on to study for a Diploma…

B-0067163