New film from oral history and heritage mapping research through the Future Pasts (futurepasts.net) and Etosha-Kunene Histories (etosha-kunene-histories.net) projects.
The film documents past dwelling and livelihood practices in north-west Namibia, and relocates graves of known ancestors. It works with three elders now living in Sesfontein:
* Franz ǁHoëb remembers living in areas that are now part of the Skeleton Coast National Park and harvesting !nara (Acanthosicyos horridus) in the Hoanib and !Uniab rivers;
* Ruben Sanib previously lived in the land area of Hurubes in the northern part of the Palmwag Tourism Concession;
* and Julia Tauros grew-up in the Puros area on the Hoarusib River.
The first language of these three elders is Khoekhoegowab. The histories and present experiences of ǁUbun and Damara / ǂNūkhoe Indigenous residents of north-west Namibia tend to be somewhat overlooked for north-west Namibia. "Lands That History Forgot" seeks to redress this situation.
Our title "Lands That History Forgot" evokes a book influential in this research about peoples' past mobilities and lifeworlds in west Namibia: namely, archaeologist John Kinahan's "Pastoral Nomads of The Central Namib Desert: The People History Forgot" (books.google.co.uk/books/about/Pastoral_Nomads_of_the_Namib_Desert.html).