'Not An Afrikaner:' Elon Musk Sets Record Straight On South African Heritage, With An Interesting Link To 'LOTR' Author JRR Tolkien

Tech billionaire Elon Musk recently took to social media to provide clarity on his South African heritage. Late on Tuesday, the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla tweeted about his ancestry, dispelling the commonly held belief of his Afrikaner heritage.

What Happened: Musk asserted his roots are of British/English descent. He drew a parallel with renowned “Lord Of The Rings” author J.R.R. Tolkien, who was also born in South Africa.

Small correction: I am from a British/English background, not an Afrikaner background (similar to JRR Tolkien, who was also born in South Africa)

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 3, 2024

“Small correction: I am from a British/English background, not an Afrikaner background (similar to JRR Tolkien, who was also born in South Africa),” he posted.

The world’s wealthiest man is also an avowed Tolkien enthusiast, often citing the author’s works on social media. It was also revealed that Tolkien’s literature played a role in Musk’s courtship of former partner Grimes.

Why It Matters: Musk’s background has often been a topic of interest and speculation. The tweet was prompted by a snippet shared on social media from the blog of a fan named Casey Handmer. Handmer emphasized how misinterpretations of Musk’s past can lead to a lack of context in understanding his work.

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Handmer’s blog post initially described Musk as having grown up “in an Afrikaner family in apartheid South Africa, which is so culturally foreign to most of the rest of us it makes the Mormons and their traditional work ethic and focus on irrigation/terraforming look quaint.” 

Cultural Differences: “Afrikaner” denotes descendants of 17th-century Dutch, German, and French settlers, primarily speaking Afrikaans. They have a distinct cultural identity shaped by a history intertwined with the colonial and apartheid periods. In contrast, English South Africans trace their ancestry to 19th-century British settlers, primarily speaking English, and maintain cultural ties to Britain. 

Tolkien, the renowned author, was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa, in 1892. His parents were English, and he spent his early years in the country before moving to England at a young age. 

Musk was born in Pretoria, South Africa’s administrative capital, on June 28, 1971. His biographer has gone into detail about a challenging upbringing in South Africa, including his participation in a harsh wilderness survival camp at the age of 12, which Musk described as a “paramilitary ‘Lord of the Flies.'”

And then, there are rumors about Musk’s father, Errol Musk, and his alleged involvement in a South African emerald mine — which the tech billionaire has repeatedly dismissed, expressing annoyance about the “fake emerald mine thing” and questioning its existence.

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