The Wild Horses found in Namibia are not indigenous to the area so technically they are not wild, but feral. Horses were first imported to southern Africa in the 17th century from Europe and like the mustangs of North America eventually made their way into the wild.
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The Wielkopolski, Poznan or Great Poland Horse is a light riding & driving horse that was created in the 19th century in Poland. In the beginning they were called the Poznan Horse, named for Great Poznan Country from which it comes.
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Also called the Darfur Pony, Gharkawi & Kordofani Western Sudan Pony comes from southern Darfur & southwestern Kordofan in Sudan. I could find no other information about them.
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The Virginia Highlander Horse is a relatively new breed, developed in Sugar Grove Virginia by a man named William Pugh whose intentions were to create a superior riding horse.
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The Ventasso Horse comes from the Ventasso Mountain in the province of Reggio Emilia in Italy. Known for their sturdy build and great heart the Italian army has long used them as mounts. The Ventasso’s of today possess English, Maremmanos & Lipizzan blood. These animals are incredibly rare.
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Also called the Turk, Turkmene, Turkmen & Turkmenian, the ancient Turkoman breed is thought to be extinct in its pure form. Horses bred in Turkmenistan are still called by the same name, however the purest descendants of this ancient breed are the Barb, Akhal-Teke & Iomud. Of the three the Akhal-Teke (pictured above) breeding has been kept the purest and probably the closest to actual Turkoman blood.
However, sources tell me that relatively pure Turkoman horses do still exist in small pockets in Iran. Although, the Akhal-Teke in Pakistan comes from the Turkoman they developed as lighter animals used by archers on the battlefield. The Turkoman breed was a more robust animal built for carrying heavily armed soldiers into battle – this build remains in the breed of today.
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The official name of the Trakehner is East Prussian Warmblood Horse of Trakehner Origin, and while today they are known as a German breed they actually originated in East Prussia in what is now known as Lithuania.
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Also called the Tory, Toric & the Toriiskaya, the Tori was developed at the at the Tori Stud in Estonia early in the 20th century as a utility horse using Klepper & European halfbred animals. Although breeding was controlled, by the 1930’s they required an infusion of Breton blood to eliminate signs of inbreeding. Additionally as a need for sport horses grew, Hanovarian & Trakehner blood was added, creating the Tori Sport horse. Today the two recognized types within the breed are the sporthorse type and the universal type.
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The Tolfetano Horse comes from the mountainous town in Tolfa in the north of the Rome province. Although it is known that their bloodlines are ancient their exact origins are a mystery, however they are thought to possess Berber blood. Over the years a hostile climate and lack of resources (not to mention hard work for the local people) have shaped this into an incredibly hardy horse.
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Also called the Tersky & Terskaya the Tersk is a relatively new breed developed in Russia in the early 20th century.
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