The Most Famous
MODELS from South Africa
This page contains a list of the greatest South African Models. The pantheon dataset contains 249 Models, 3 of which were born in South Africa. This makes South Africa the birth place of the 18th most number of Models behind Denmark and Israel.
Top 3
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary South African Models of all time. This list of famous South African Models is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Belle Delphine (1999 - )
With an HPI of 42.94, Belle Delphine is the most famous South African Model. Her biography has been translated into 31 different languages on wikipedia.
Mary-Belle Kirschner (born 23 October 1999), better known as Belle Delphine, is a South African-born British media personality, pornographic actress, model, and YouTuber. Her social media accounts feature erotic and cosplay modelling, sometimes blending the two together. Her online persona began in 2018 through her cosplay modeling on Instagram. Her posts on the platform were often influenced by popular memes and trends. In mid-2019, Delphine gained notoriety through creating a satirical Pornhub account and selling her "GamerGirl Bath Water" product through her online store. Shortly after, her Instagram account was deleted due to community guideline violations and she went on hiatus. Upon returning to online content creation, she launched an OnlyFans account on which she posts adult content and began uploading YouTube music videos that were markedly explicit. Media outlets have described Delphine as an "e-girl" and a cross between an Internet troll and a performance artist. Delphine has also been cited as an influence on the e-girl style commonly adopted by TikTok users.
2. Candice Swanepoel (1988 - )
With an HPI of 41.90, Candice Swanepoel is the 2nd most famous South African Model. Her biography has been translated into 43 different languages.
Candice Susan Swanepoel (; Afrikaans: [svanɛˈpul]; born 20 October 1988) is a South African model. She is known for her work with Victoria's Secret. She became a Victoria's Secret Angel in 2010. In 2016, she was listed 8th on the Forbes top-earning models list.
3. Reeva Steenkamp (1983 - 2013)
With an HPI of 38.41, Reeva Steenkamp is the 3rd most famous South African Model. Her biography has been translated into 25 different languages.
Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp (Afrikaans: [ˈstiəŋkamp]; 19 August 1983 – 14 February 2013) was a South African model and paralegal. She modelled for FHM magazine and was the first face of Avon cosmetics in South Africa. Steenkamp once worked as the live roaming presenter for FashionTV in South Africa and starred in television advertisements for Toyota Land Cruiser, Clover Industries, Redds and Aldor Pin Pop. She was a celebrity contestant on the BBC Lifestyle show Baking Made Easy in 2012 and on Tropika Island of Treasure season 5 which aired on SABC 3 in February 2013. On Valentine's Day 2013, Steenkamp was shot dead by her boyfriend, Oscar Pistorius, at his home in Pretoria. He stated that he thought Steenkamp was an intruder hiding in the bathroom. Pistorius was found guilty of culpable homicide at a first trial, and was sentenced to five years in prison. On 3 December 2015, the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa overturned this conviction and instead convicted Pistorius of murder. He was sentenced to six years in prison, which was later increased to 13 years and 5 months by the Court of Appeal.
Pantheon has 3 people classified as models born between 1983 and 1999. Of these 3, 2 (66.67%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living models include Belle Delphine and Candice Swanepoel. The most famous deceased models include Reeva Steenkamp. As of April 2022, 1 new models have been added to Pantheon including Belle Delphine.
