'''Botha''' (pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ʊər|t|ə}} in non-rhotic dialects of English, {{IPA|af|ˈbuəta}}) is a common Afrikaans surname, derived from the East Frisian Low Saxon ''Both''. It was brought to South Africa in 1678 by Frederich Botha.<ref name="Cape">{{cite web|url=http://www.e-family.co.za/ffy/g7/p7773.htm |title=First Fifty Years – a project collating Cape of Good Hope records – Frederich Both |website=E-family.co.za |date=2016-08-20 |accessdate=2016-09-25}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=April 2018}}
The progenitors of the extended clan were Maria Kickers, her first partner Ferdinandùs Appel, and her later husband Frederich Botha.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.geni.com/people/Maria-Kickers/4705796237050024653 |title=Maria Kickers, SM/PROG (1655–1723) – Genealogy |website=Geni.com |date= |accessdate=2016-09-25}}</ref>
==Descendants of Ferdinandùs Appel== Prior to her marriage to Frederich Botha, Maria Kickers had an out-of-wedlock child fathered by Ferdinandùs Appel, another Hollander from an Amsterdam family.<ref name="Cape"/> This child, a son named Theunis, was later adopted by the Bothas. His descendants include:<ref name="Appel"/>
* Louis Botha (1862–1919), Second Boer War general and first Prime Minister of South Africa, often referred to as "General Botha" * Pieter Willem "P.W." Botha (1916–2006), South African prime minister from 1978 to 1984 and state president from 1984 to 1989
==Descendants of Frederich Botha== Married in 1714, Kickers and Botha later farmed for a living between Stellenbosch and Somerset West.<ref name="Cape"/> By 2016, their legal descendants numbered around 76,125 people,<ref name="Appel">{{cite web |url=http://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/32007/Greeff_Appel%282013%29.pdf?sequence=1 |format=PDF |title= Appel Botha Cornelitz : the abc of a three hundred year old divorce case |author1= Jaco M. Greeff |author2= J. Christoff Erasmus |website= Repository.up.ca.za |accessdate= 2016-09-25}}</ref> and include:
===Artists, artisans and businesspeople ===
* Danila Botha (born 1982), South African-born Canadian novelist * Hannah Botha (1923–2007), South African actress * Johan Botha (tenor) (1965–2016), opera singer * Leon Botha (1985–2011), South African artist and progeria victim * Mike Botha (born 1947), South African-born master diamond cutter * Piet Botha (1955–2019), South African rock musician * Roelof Botha (born 1973), South African actuary, former PayPal chief financial officer * Willem Botha (born 1987), South African singer and actor
===Politicians, civil servants, and activists===
* Andries Botha (19th century), Khoikhoi leader in the Cape Colony * Annie Botha (1864–1937), wife of the Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa * Chris Botha (1864–1902), head of police and Boer War general, younger brother of Louis Botha * Cornelius Botha (1932–2014), South African politician * Philip Botha (1851–1901), Boer War general, older brother of Louis Botha * Roelof Frederik "Pik" Botha (1932–2018), South African politician and diplomat * Sandra Botha (born 1945), South African diplomat and ambassador * Stoffel Botha (1929–1998), South African politician * Theo Botha (born 1960), South African shareholder activist * Thozamile Botha (born 1948), South African politician
===Rugby players===
* Arno Botha (born 1991), South African rugby player * Bernado Botha (born 1988), South African rugby player * Brendon James Botha (born 1980), South African rugby player * Chrysander Botha (born 1988), Namibian rugby player * Daniel Botha (born 2001), Australian rugby union player * Dolph Botha (Philip Rudolph, born 1993), South African rugby player * Gary Botha (born 1981), South African rugby player * Hendrik Egnatius "Naas" Botha (born 1958), South African rugby player * John Philip "Bakkies" Botha (born 1979), South African rugby player * Mouritz Botha (born 1982), South African rugby player * Ruan Botha (born 1992), South African rugby player * Tom Botha (born 1990), South African rugby player
===Cricketers===
* Andre Botha (cricketer) (born 1975), South African-born Irish cricketer * Anthony Greyvensteyn Botha (born 1976), South African cricketer * Beverly Botha (born 1953), South African female cricketer * Dawid Botha (born 1988), Namibian cricketer * Dewald Botha (born 1991), South African cricketer * Johan Botha (cricketer) (born 1982), South African-born Australian cricketer
===Other sportspersons===
* Adriaan Botha (sprinter) (born 1977), South African sprinter * Andre Botha (bodyboarder) (born 1980), South African bodyboarder * Bryony Botha (born 1997), New Zealand cyclist * Francois Botha (born 1968), South African boxer * Heidi Botha (born 1968), South African fencer * Johan Botha (athlete) (born 1974), South African middle-distance runner * Lukas "Luki" Botha (1930–2006), South African Formula One driver * Riaan Botha (born 1970), South African pole vaulter * Tyler Botha (born 1980), South African skeleton racer * Wendy Botha (born 1965), South African-born Australian surfer
==Other uses== * Botha, village in the Lundazi district in Eastern Province, Zambia * 1354 Botha, asteroid * Anna Elizabeth Botha (née ''Rossouw'', 1922–1997), former South African first lady * Blackburn Botha, Royal Air Force reconnaissance aircraft * Botha, Alberta, Canadian settlement in Alberta * Botha Sigcau (died 1978), former President of Transkei * Botha's Hill, South African settlement in KwaZulu-Natal * Botha's lark (''Spizocorys fringillaris''), a South African lark * Gunther Botha, South African mercenary in Matthew Reilly's ''Area 7'' * Jaapie Botha, fictional South African Police officer in the film ''The Power of One'' * Karl Botha, fictional counterfeiter from Pepetela's novels * Louis Botha Avenue, Johannesburg street * Mutro Botha, assassin in the television series ''Batman Beyond'' * Regiment Botha, South African Army unit * SATS ''General Botha'', South African warship * Bothanomics, program of economic reform of the then South African state president Pieter Willem Botha * Bothasig, northern suburb of Cape Town * Bothaville, town in the north-west of the Free State
==References== {{reflist}}
{{surname}}
Category:Surnames Category:Afrikaans-language surnames Category:Surnames of Frisian origin Category:South African families