(Friedrich WilhelmHeinrich) August Wulfhorst, a Rhenish missionary, was the son of Friedrich Wilhelm Wulfhorst and Catharine Friederike Westheide. He was ordained in 1890. He came to German South West Africa (now Namibia) with F. Meisenholl that same year and erected a mission station among the Uukuanjama tribe at Ondjiva, then considered to be in Ovamboland and hence in German South West Africa, but actually in present day Angola. (The border between the two territories was under dispute at the time). The next year Wulfhorst established another station at Omupanda, also in present day Angola, where he worked until his return to Germany in 1917. His departure was precipitated by hostilities resulting from World War I (1914-1918). Wulfhorst was the pioneer Rhenish missionary in the territory. He participated in the translation of the Bible into Oshikuanjama and, with Meisenholl, prepared a translation of the four Gospels in 1896. Among others he published a booklet (in German) describing the early Rhenish missionary work among the Uukuanjama (1904), and in 1917 completed a manuscript (which was not published) describing the 25 years of Rhenish missionary work. Articles on his work appeared regularly in the Berichte der Rheinische Missionsgesellschaft between 1891 and 1917. In 1892 he married Thusnelda Härlin and during 1900-1902 was on leave in Germany for two and a half years. He later returned to Namibia and was stationed at Karibib from 1919 to 1927.

During his stay in Ovamboland Wulfhorst accumulated a large collection of ethnological material. Mainly during the late eighteen-nineties he collected plants and sent specimens to the botanist Dr Hans Schinz* at Zurich, Switzerland. The genus Wulfhorstia and the species Baissea wulfhorstii were named after him, the latter by Schinz.

List of sources:

Dictionary of South African biography, Vol. 2, 1972.

FamilySearch: Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich August Wulfhorst. https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/details/M5DR-H7L

Figueiredo, E., Smith, G.F. and Nyffeler, R. August Wulfhorst (1861-1936) and his overlooked contributions on the flora of Angola. Candollea, 2013, Vol. 68, pp. 123-131. Retrieved on 25 June 2021 from https://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/59998/Figueiredo_August_2013.pdf;jsessionid=2AC4DCFE510FDC16D726A060B53D9A42?sequence=3

General directory of South Africa, 1903, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911: Ecclassiastical directory.

Gunn, M. & Codd, L.E. Botanical exploration of southern Africa. Cape Town: Balkema, 1981.

South African bibliography to the year 1925, Vol. 5. Cape Town: South African Library, 1991.

Compiled by: C. Plug

Last updated: 2026-03-24 12:05:33