Alexander Merensky (8 June 1837 in Panten near Liegnitz – 22 May 1918 in Berlin)[1] was a German missionary, working in South Africa (Transvaal) from 1859 to 1892.

[2] Alexander's mother, Pauline von Kessel, died during his birth, and his father, Conrad Albert Friedrich, seven years later, in 1844.

In January 1865 Merensky bought a farm in the district of Middelburg in the South African Republic (ZAR), where he and Grützner established the important mission station of Botshabelo, the Northern Sotho (Sepedi) word for "place of refuge".

During 1869 a blacksmith's shop, a workshop to build and repair wagons and a mill were built, allowing nearby villagers and members of the congregation to learn these skills.

Within a few years he would become the head of the national helpers' (Nationalhelferen) seminary at Botshabelo, and later played an important role in the establishment of the Lutheran Bapedi Church when it seceded from the BMS.

[3] After the end of the war, Merensky was mistrusted by both the British and Boer authorities and decided to move back to Germany with his family in 1882.