151-801: Tanzania , officially the United Republic of Tanzania , is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to the south; Zambia to the southwest; and Rwanda , Burundi , and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Mount Kilimanjaro , Africa's highest mountain,
302-548: A de jure official language, although the national language is Swahili . English is used in foreign trade, in diplomacy, in higher courts, and as a medium of instruction in secondary and higher education, while Arabic is spoken in Zanzibar . Tanzania is mountainous and densely forested in the north-east, where Mount Kilimanjaro , the highest mountain in Africa and the highest single free-standing mountain above sea level in
453-648: A creation of new societal groups involving inter-marriage among communities and small groups moving to communities and small groups moving to new areas. After their movements from their original homeland in West Africa , Bantus also encountered in central east Africa peoples of Cushitic origin. As cattle terminology in use amongst the few modern Bantu pastoralist groups suggests, the Bantu migrants would acquire cattle from their new Cushitic neighbors. Linguistic evidence also indicates that Bantus most likely borrowed
604-544: A distinct geopolitical entity within East Africa. The East African Community , an economic and political bloc, currently includes the Democratic Republic of the Congo , Somalia, Burundi , Kenya, Rwanda , South Sudan , Uganda and Tanzania. Notably, the African Great Lakes region overlaps significantly with these countries. Inside of Somalia there are two unrecognised states; Somaliland and Puntland, although Puntland still wants to join back with Somalia, for now it
755-417: A few hundred metres long. 1. Diplotaxodon , one of the very few cichlid genera that occurs offshore in relatively deep water. 2. Nimbochromis livingstonii is a piscivorous hap that is famous for playing dead to lure prey close. 3. As typical of utaka , Copadichromis azureus has bright blue males (shown) and duller females that are silvery with dark spots. 4. Aulonocara stuartgranti
906-585: A few hundred years ago. The Malawi haplochromines are mouthbrooders , but otherwise vary extensively in general behaviour and ecology. Within the Malawi haplochromines there are two main groups, the haps and the mbuna . The haps (they were formerly included in Haplochromis ) can be further subdivided into three subgroups: The relatively large, often more than 20 cm (8 in) long, and aggressive piscivores that roam various habitats in pursuit of prey,
1057-719: A first or second language, is an important trade language in the Great Lakes area. It has official status in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. Lake Malawi Lake Malawi , also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique , ( Swahili : Ziwa Nyasa ) is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi , Mozambique and Tanzania. It
1208-527: A head in 1967 when Tanzania officially protested to Malawi; however nothing was settled. Occasional flare-ups of conflict occurred during the 1990s and in the 21st century. In 2012, Malawi's oil exploration initiative brought the issue to the fore, with Tanzania demanding that exploration cease until the dispute was settled. In 1954, an agreement was signed between the British and the Portuguese making
1359-452: A larger area of Africa than previously thought. East Africa is one of the earliest regions where Homo sapiens are believed to have lived. Evidence was found in 2018, dating to about 320,000 years ago, at the Kenyan site of Olorgesailie , of the early emergence of modern behaviors associated with Homo sapiens , including: long-distance trade networks (involving goods such as obsidian),
1510-529: A major producer of gold around this same period. Economic, social, and religious power was increasingly vested in Kilwa , Tanzania's major medieval city-state. Kilwa controlled a number of smaller ports stretching down to modern-day Mozambique. Sofala became the major gold emporium and Kilwa grew rich off the trade, lying at the southern end of the Indian Ocean Monsoons. Kilwa's major rivals lay to
1661-654: A manner comparable to the egg-spots on the anal fin of haplochromines. The vast majority of the fish species in the lake are cichlids. Among the non-cichlid native fish are several species of cyprinids (in genera Barbus , Labeo and Opsaridium , and the Lake Malawi sardine Engraulicypris sardella ), airbreathing catfish ( Bathyclarias and Clarias , and the kampango Bagrus meridionalis ), mochokid catfish ( Chiloglanis and Malawi squeaker Synodontis njassae ), Mastacembelus spiny eel, mormyrids ( Marcusenius , Mormyrops and Petrocephalus ),
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#17327806737591812-528: A millennia-long series of migrations eastward from their homeland around southern Cameroon. This Bantu expansion introduced agriculture into much of the African Great Lakes region. During the following fifteen centuries, the Bantu slowly intensified farming and grazing over all suitable regions of East Africa, in the process making contact with Austronesian - and Arabic -speaking settlers on southern coastal areas. The latter also spread Islam to
1963-548: A portion of the lake is included in Lake Malawi National Park . Lake Malawi is a meromictic lake , meaning that its water layers do not mix. The permanent stratification of Lake Malawi's water and the oxic- anoxic boundary are maintained by moderately small chemical and thermal gradients . Lake Malawi is between 560 kilometres (350 mi) and 580 kilometres (360 mi) long, and about 75 kilometres (47 mi) wide at its widest point. The lake has
2114-462: A settled agricultural and fishing community from the 6th century CE at the latest. The considerable amount of daub found indicates timber buildings, and shell beads, bead grinders, and iron slag have been found at the site. There is evidence for limited engagement in long-distance trade: a small amount of imported pottery has been found, less than 1% of total pottery finds, mostly from the Gulf and dated to
2265-529: A target for European exploration , exploitation and colonialization in the nineteenth century. Today, tourism is an important part of the economies of Kenya, Tanzania, Seychelles, and Uganda. The easternmost point of the continent, that is Ras Hafun in Somalia, is of archaeological , historical and economical importance. According to the CIA, as of 2017, the countries in the eastern Africa region have
2416-447: A total surface area of about 29,600 square kilometres (11,400 sq mi). The lake is 706 m (2,316 ft) at its deepest point , located in a major depression in the north-central part. Another smaller depression in the far north reaches a depth of 528 m (1,732 ft). The southern half of the lake is shallower; less than 400 m (1,300 ft) in the south-central part and less than 200 m (660 ft) in
2567-448: A total population of around 537.9 million inhabitants. Eastern Africa had an estimated population of 260 million in 2000. This was projected to reach 890 million by 2050, with an average growth rate of 2.5% per annum. The 2000 population is expected to quintuple over the course of the 21st century, to 1.6 billion as of 2100 (UN estimates as of 2017). In Ethiopia , there is an estimated population of 102 million as of 2016. In
2718-483: A wide variety of animal habitats. On Tanzania's Serengeti plain, white-bearded wildebeest ( Connochaetes taurinus mearnsi ), other bovids and zebra participate in a large-scale annual migration. Tanzania is home to about 130 amphibian and over 275 reptile species, many of them strictly endemic and included in the International Union for Conservation of Nature 's Red Lists of countries. Tanzania has
2869-517: A year, TANU had become the leading political organisation in the country. Nyerere became Minister of British-administered Tanganyika in 1960 and continued as prime minister when Tanganyika became independent in 1961. British rule came to an end on 9 December 1961. Elizabeth II , who had acceded to the British throne in 1952, continued to reign through the first year of Tanganyika's independence, but now distinctly as Queen of Tanganyika , represented by
3020-565: Is Freeman Mbowe . In Zanzibar, the country's semi-autonomous state, The Alliance for Change and Transparency-Wazalendo is (ACT-Wazalendo) is considered the main opposition political party. The constitution of Zanzibar requires the party that comes in second in the polls to join a coalition with the winning party. ACT-Wazalendo joined a coalition government with the islands' ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi in December 2020 after Zanzibar disputed elections . In November 2020, Magufuli once again
3171-605: Is a region at the eastern edge of the African continent , distinguished by its geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the region is recognized in the United Nations Statistics Division scheme as encompassing 18 sovereign states and 4 territories. East Africa is acknowledged as the cradle of early modern humans , who first emerged around 200,000 to 300,000 years ago before spreading globally though Madagascar
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#17327806737593322-507: Is at a depth of approximately 250 m (820 ft), effectively restricting fish and other aerobic organisms to the upper part. The water is very clear for a lake and the visibility can be up to 20 m (66 ft), but slightly less than half this figure is more common and it is below 3 m (10 ft) in muddy bays. However, during the rainy season months of January to March, the waters are more muddy due to muddy river inflows. The Portuguese trader Candido José da Costa Cardoso
3473-495: Is being split into two pieces. This is called a divergent plate tectonics boundary. Malawi has typically been estimated to be 1–2 million years old (mya), but more recent evidence points to a considerably older lake with a basin that started to form about 8.6 mya and deep-water condition first appeared 4.5 mya. The water levels have varied dramatically over time, ranging from almost 600 m (2,000 ft) below current level to 10–20 m (33–66 ft) above. During periods
3624-567: Is in northeastern Tanzania. According to the 2022 national census, Tanzania has a population of around 62 million, making it the most populous country located entirely south of the equator. Many important hominid fossils have been found in Tanzania. In the Stone and Bronze Age, prehistoric migrations into Tanzania included Southern Cushitic speakers who moved south from present-day Ethiopia; Eastern Cushitic people who moved into Tanzania from north of Lake Turkana about 2,000 and 4,000 years ago; and
3775-542: Is independent. Adjacent to these mainland territories are island nations and territories such as Socotra , Comoros , Mauritius , Seychelles , Réunion , Mayotte , and the Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean . Regions including portions of Mozambique and Madagascar , often aligned with Southern Africa , share significant historical and cultural connections with East Africa, particularly through
3926-583: Is not found in the lake. Pelagic zooplanktonic species include two cladocerans ( Diaphanosoma excisum and Bosmina longirostris ), three copepods ( Tropodiaptomus cunningtoni , Thermocyclops neglectus and Mesocyclops aequatorialis ), and several ostracods (including both described and undescribed species ). Lake Malawi is famous for the huge swarms of tiny, harmless lake flies, Chaoborus edulis . These swarms, typically appearing far out over water, can be mistaken for plumes of smoke and were also noticed by David Livingstone when he visited
4077-560: Is now southern Tanzania . In March 1505, having received from Manuel I of Portugal the appointment of viceroy of the newly conquered territory in India , he set sail from Lisbon in command of a large and powerful fleet, and arrived in July at Quiloa ( Kilwa ), which yielded to him almost without a struggle. A much more vigorous resistance was offered by the Moors of Mombasa. However, the town
4228-570: Is part of a group of relatively peaceful species popularly known as peacock cichlids . 5. Fossorochromis rostratus is an "aberrant" hap that often sifts mouthfuls of sand to extract small food organisms. 6. Like many mbuna , Pseudotropheus saulosi is a small cichlid where both male (blue and black) and female (yellow) are colorful. Lake Malawi is noted for being the site of evolutionary radiations among several groups of animals, most notably cichlid fish. There are at least 700 cichlid species in Lake Malawi, with some estimating that
4379-405: Is seen as one of the safest and most politically stable on the continent. Tanzania's population comprises about 120 ethnic , linguistic , and religious groups. Christianity is the largest religion in Tanzania , with substantial Muslim and Animist minorities. Over 100 languages are spoken in Tanzania , making it the most linguistically diverse country in East Africa; the country does not have
4530-489: Is the fourth largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, the ninth largest lake in the world by area and the third largest and second deepest lake in Africa. Lake Malawi is home to more species of fish than any other lake in the world, including at least 700 species of cichlids . The Mozambique portion of the lake was officially declared a reserve by the Government of Mozambique on June 10, 2011, while in Malawi
4681-606: Is the 13th largest country in Africa and the 31st largest in the world, ranked between the larger Egypt and smaller Nigeria. It borders Kenya and Uganda to the north; Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west; and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. Tanzania is located on the eastern coast of Africa and has an Indian Ocean coastline approximately 1,424 kilometres (885 mi) long. It also incorporates several offshore islands, including Unguja (Zanzibar), Pemba , and Mafia . The country
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4832-470: Is the site of Africa's highest and lowest points: Mount Kilimanjaro , at 5,895 metres (19,341 ft) above sea level, and the floor of Lake Tanganyika , at 1,471 metres (4,826 ft) below sea level, respectively. Tanzania is mountainous and densely forested in the northeast, where Mount Kilimanjaro is located. Three of Africa's Great Lakes are partly within Tanzania. To the north and west lie Lake Victoria , Africa's largest lake, and Lake Tanganyika ,
4983-483: The Abyei Area , and Abyei and South Kordofan's Nuba Hills both remained sources of tension between Juba and Khartoum as of 2011 . Some parts of East Africa have been renowned for their concentrations of wild animals, such as the " big five ": the elephant , buffalo , lion , black rhinoceros , and leopard , though populations have been declining under increased stress in recent times, particularly those of
5134-451: The African tetra Brycinus imberi , the poeciliid Aplocheilichthys johnstoni , the spotted killifish ( Nothobranchius orthonotus ), and the mottled eel ( Anguilla nebulosa ). At a genus level, most of these are widespread in Africa, but Bathyclarias is entirely restricted to the lake. Lake Malawi is home to 28 species of freshwater snails (including 16 endemics) and 9 bivalves (2 endemics, Aspatharia subreniformis and
5285-1070: The Allied forces and were among the 375,000 Africans who fought with those forces. Tanganyikans fought in units of the King's African Rifles during the East African Campaign in Somalia and Abyssinia against the Italians, in Madagascar against the Vichy French during the Madagascar Campaign , and in Burma against the Japanese during the Burma Campaign . Tanganyika was an important source of food during this war, and its export income increased greatly compared to
5436-637: The Horn of Africa and Nile Valley , Afroasiatic languages predominate, including languages of the family's Cushitic (such as Beja , Oromo and Somali ), Semitic (such as Amharic , Arabic and Tigrinya ), and Omotic (such as Wolaytta ) branches. In the African Great Lakes region, Niger-Congo languages of the Bantu branch are most widely spoken. Among these languages are Kikuyu , Luhya , Kinyarwanda , Kirundi , Kisukuma , Luganda and many others. Swahili , with at least 80 million speakers as
5587-534: The Kalambo River at the Zambian border, is the second-highest uninterrupted waterfall in Africa. Tanzania is one of the most visited tourist destinations for safaris . The name Tanzania was created as a clipped compound of the names of the two states that unified to create the country: Tanganyika and Zanzibar . It consists of the first three letters of the names of the two states ("Tan" and "Zan") and
5738-463: The Kingdom of Madagascar , which it initiated after persuading Britain to relinquish its interests in the island in exchange for control of Zanzibar off the coast of Tanganyika , an important island hub of the spices trade. The British also held a number of island colonies in the region, including the extended archipelago of Seychelles and the rich farming island of Mauritius , previously under
5889-586: The Orthodox Empire of Ethiopia . By 1896, the war had become a total disaster for the Italians and Ethiopia was able to retain its independence. Ethiopia remained independent until 1936 when, after the Second Italo-Abyssinian War , it became part of Italian East Africa . The Italian occupation of Ethiopia ended in 1941 during World War II as part of the East African Campaign . The French also staked out an East African outpost on
6040-467: The Ottoman Turks , Portugal hoped to use the sea route pioneered by da Gama to break the once Venetian trading monopoly. Portuguese rule in the African Great Lakes region focused mainly on a coastal strip centered around Mombasa. The Portuguese presence in the area officially began after 1505, when flagships under the command of Don Francisco de Almeida conquered Kilwa , an island located in what
6191-580: The Persian Gulf and India have visited the east African coast since early in the first millennium AD. Islam was practiced by some on the Swahili Coast as early as the eighth or ninth century AD. Bantu-speakers built farming and trade villages along the Tanzanian coast from the outset of the first millennium. Archaeological finds at Fukuchani , on the north-west coast of Zanzibar, indicate
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6342-599: The Puntland and Somaliland regions of Somalia, have seen relative stability. South Sudan peacefully seceded from Sudan in 2011, six and a half years after a peace agreement ended the Second Sudanese Civil War . South Sudanese independence was nearly derailed by the South Kordofan conflict , particularly, South Sudanese independence was nearly derailed by a dispute over the status of
6493-655: The Southern Nilotes , including the Datoog , who originated from the present-day South Sudan–Ethiopia border region between 2,900 and 2,400 years ago. These movements took place at about the same time as the settlement of the Mashariki Bantu from West Africa in the Lake Victoria and Lake Tanganyika areas. In the late 19th century, the mainland came under German rule as German East Africa , and this
6644-726: The UNESCO World Heritage List . From the mid-1980s, the regime financed itself by borrowing from the International Monetary Fund and underwent some reforms. Since then, Tanzania's gross domestic product per capita has grown and poverty has been reduced, according to a report by the World Bank. In 1992, the Constitution of Tanzania was amended to allow multiple political parties. In Tanzania's first multi-party elections, held in 1995,
6795-462: The United Republic of Tanzania by creating a union between the mainland, and the island chain of Zanzibar. Zanzibar is now a semi-autonomous state in a union with the mainland which is collectively and commonly referred to as Tanzania . German East Africa, though very extensive, was not of such strategic importance as the British Crown's colonies to the north: the inhabitation of these lands
6946-485: The attempted coup d'état in 1982 and the 2007 election riots . Tanzania has known stable government since independence although there are significant political and religious tensions resulting from the political union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar in 1964. Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous state in the United Republic of Tanzania . Tanzania and Uganda fought the Uganda–Tanzania War in 1978–1979, which led to
7097-637: The governor general . Tanganyika also joined the British Commonwealth in 1961. On 9 December 1962, Tanganyika became a democratic republic under an executive president. After the Zanzibar Revolution overthrew the Arab dynasty in neighbouring Zanzibar , accompanied with the slaughter of thousands of Arab Zanzibaris, which had become independent in 1963, the archipelago merged with mainland Tanganyika on 26 April 1964. The new country
7248-760: The increasing human population near the lake, but some are exported from Malawi. The wild population of fish is increasingly threatened by overfishing and water pollution . A drop in the lake's water level represents another threat, and is believed to be driven by water extraction by the increasing human population, climate change and deforestation . The chambo and kampango have been particularly overfished (the kampango declined by about 90% from 2006 to 2016, O. karongae and O. squamipinnis by about 94%, and O. lidole might already be extinct ) and they are now seriously threatened . The IUCN recognises 117 species of Malawi cichlids as threatened; some of these have tiny ranges and may be restricted to rocky coastlines only
7399-542: The linguistically isolated Hadza and Sandawe hunter-gatherers of Tanzania. The first wave of migration was by Southern Cushitic speakers who moved south from Ethiopia and Somalia into Tanzania. They are ancestral to the Iraqw , Gorowa , and Burunge . Based on linguistic evidence, there may also have been two movements into Tanzania of Eastern Cushitic people at about 4,000 and 2,000 years ago, originating from north of Lake Turkana . Archaeological evidence supports
7550-515: The slave trade and relocation of the Omani capital to Zanzibar in 1839 by Seyyid Said had the effect of consolidating the Omani power in the region. Arab governance of all the major ports along the Swahili coast continued until British interests aimed particularly at ending the slave trade and creation of a wage-labour system began to put pressure on Omani rule. By the late nineteenth century,
7701-516: The tsetse fly , however, prevented the donkey and agriculture from spreading southwards. Only in quite recent times has agriculture spread to the more humid regions south of the equator, through the spread of cattle , sheep and crops such as millet . Language distributions suggest that this most likely occurred from Sudan into the African Great Lakes region, since the Nilotic languages spoken by these pre-Bantu farmers have their closest relatives in
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#17327806737597852-495: The unionid Nyassunio nyassaensis ). The endemic freshwater snails are all members of the genera Bellamya , Bulinus , Gabbiella , Lanistes and Melanoides . Lake Malawi is home to a total of four snail species in the genus Bulinus , which is a known intermediate host of bilharzia . A survey in Monkey Bay in 1964 found two endemic species of snails of the genus ( B. nyassanus and B. succinoides ) in
8003-635: The "Out of Africa" theory probably occurred in East Africa through the Bab-el-Mandeb . Today at the Bab-el-Mandeb straits, the Red Sea is about 12 miles (19 kilometres) wide, but 50,000 years ago it was much narrower and sea levels were 70 meters lower. Though the straits were never completely closed, there may have been islands in between which could be reached using simple rafts. Some of the earliest hominin skeletal remains have been found in
8154-639: The 1880s. Between the 19th and 20th century, East Africa became a theatre of competition between the major imperialistic European nations of the time. The three main colors of the African country were beige, red, and blue. The red stood for the English, blue stood for the French, and the beige stood for Germany during the period of colonialism. During the period of the Scramble for Africa , almost every country in
8305-575: The 1890s, slavery was abolished. In 1863, the Holy Ghost Mission established an early reception center and depot at Zanzibar. In 1877, responding to appeals of Henry Stanley following his trans-Africa expedition , and permission being given to Stanley by King Mutessa I of Buganda , the Church Missionary Society sent missionaries Edward Baxter and Henry Cole to establish inland missions. In 1885, Germany conquered
8456-536: The 1975 independence of Mozambique. Omani Arab colonization of the Kenyan and Tanzanian coasts brought the once independent city-states under closer foreign scrutiny and domination than was experienced during the Portuguese period. Like their predecessors, the Omani Arabs were primarily able only to control the coastal areas, not the interior. However, the creation of clove plantations , intensification of
8607-404: The 5th to 8th century. The similarity to contemporary sites such as Mkokotoni and Dar es Salaam indicate a unified group of communities that developed into the first centre of coastal maritime culture. The coastal towns appear to have been engaged in Indian Ocean and inland African trade at this early period. Trade rapidly increased in importance and quantity beginning in the mid-8th century and by
8758-743: The Anglo-Belgian agreement of 30 May 1919 where Britain ceded the north-western GEA provinces of Ruanda and Urundi to Belgium. The conference's Commission on Mandates ratified this agreement on 16 July 1919. The Supreme Council accepted the agreement on 7 August 1919. On 12 July 1919, the Commission on Mandates agreed that the small Kionga Triangle south of the Rovuma River would be given to Portuguese Mozambique , with it eventually becoming part of independent Mozambique. The commission reasoned that Germany had virtually forced Portugal to cede
8909-614: The British colony of Aden on the Arabian Peninsula . With these territories secured, Britain was able to serve as gatekeeper of the sea lane leading to British India . In 1890, beginning with the purchase of the small port town of Asseb from a local sultan in Eritrea , the Italians colonized all of Eritrea. In 1895, from bases in Somalia and Eritrea, the Italians launched the First Italo–Ethiopian War against
9060-562: The Constitution has a term limit: a president can serve a maximum of two terms. Each term is five years. Every president has represented the ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM). President Magufuli won a landslide victory and re-election in October 2020. According to the opposition, the election was full of fraud and irregularities. On 17 March 2021, President John Magufuli died in office. Magufuli's vice president, Samia Suluhu Hassan , became Tanzania's first female president. At 947,403 square kilometres (365,794 sq mi), Tanzania
9211-440: The French sovereignty . The German Empire gained control of a large area named German East Africa , comprising present-day Rwanda , Burundi and the mainland part of Tanzania named Tanganyika. In 1922, the British gained a League of Nations mandate over Tanganyika which it administered until Independence was granted to Tanganyika in 1961. Following the Zanzibar Revolution of 1965, the independent state of Tanganyika formed
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#17327806737599362-483: The Great Lakes region during the 17th century. The Omani Arabs posed the most direct challenge to Portuguese influence in the African Great Lakes region. By this time, the Portuguese Empire had already lost its interest on the spice trade sea route due to the decreasing profitability of that business. The Arabs reclaimed much of the Indian Ocean trade , forcing the Portuguese to retreat south where they remained in Portuguese East Africa (Mozambique) as sole rulers until
9513-476: The Indian Ocean's maritime networks. Sudan is also sometimes included due in part because it is a member of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) free trade area. According to the theory of the recent African origin of modern humans , the predominantly held belief among most archaeologists, East Africa in the area of the African Great Lakes is where anatomically modern humans first appeared. There are differing theories on whether there
9664-589: The Malawi system, which also includes nearby smaller Lake Malombe and the upper Shire River. Many of these have become popular among aquarium owners due to their bright colors. Recreating a Lake Malawi biotope to host cichlids became quite popular in the aquarium hobby. Most Malawi cichlids are found in relatively shallow coastal waters, but Diplotaxodon has been recorded down to depths of 200–220 m (660–720 ft) and several (especially Diplotaxodon , Rhamphochromis and Copadichromis quadrimaculatus ) are known from pelagic waters. The cichlids of
9815-405: The Portuguese built forts, and adopted measures to secure the Portuguese supremacy. Portugal's main goal on the Swahili coast was to take control of the spice trade from the Arabs . At this stage, the Portuguese presence in East Africa served the purposes of controlling trade within the Indian Ocean and securing the sea routes linking Europe to Asia. Portuguese naval vessels were very disruptive to
9966-399: The Shire River are vital for the economy as the water resources support hydropower, irrigation and downstream biodiversity. Concerns have been raised over the future climate change impacts of Lake Malawi due to the recent decline in lake levels and the overall drying trend. The climate in the lake region is already experiencing changes, with the temperatures predicted to increase throughout
10117-416: The actual figure is as high as 1,000 species. The actual number is labelled with some uncertainty because of the many undescribed species and the extreme variation among some species, making the task of delimiting them very complex. Except for four species ( Astatotilapia calliptera , Coptodon rendalli , Oreochromis shiranus and Serranochromis robustus ), all cichlids in the lake are endemic to
10268-406: The adults die. The larvae are an important food source for fish, and the adult flies are important both to birds and local people, who collect them to make kungu cakes/burgers, a local delicacy with a very high protein content. In January 2015, a sediment control tank collapsed at the Paladin Energy -owned uranium mine in Northern Malawi after a high intensity rain storm hit the area. It
10419-432: The bilharzia parasite. Unlike Lake Tanganyika with its many endemic freshwater crabs and shrimp, there are few such species in Lake Malawi. The Malawi blue crab, Potamonautes lirrangensis ( syn. P. orbitospinus ), is the only crab in the lake and it is not endemic. The atyid shrimp Caridina malawensis is endemic to the lake, but it is poorly known and has historically been confused with C. nilotica , which
10570-461: The border with Zambia. The Menai Bay Conservation Area is Zanzibar's largest marine protected area. Climate varies greatly within Tanzania. In the highlands, temperatures range between 10 and 20 °C (50 and 68 °F) during cold and hot seasons respectively. The rest of the country has temperatures rarely falling lower than 20 °C (68 °F). The hottest period extends between November and February (25–31 °C or 77.0–87.8 °F) while
10721-408: The border. The wrangle in this dispute occurred when the British colonial government, just after they had captured Tanganyika from Germany, placed all of the waters of the lake under a single jurisdiction, that of the territory of Nyasaland , without a separate administration for the Tanganyikan portion of the surface. Later in colonial times, two jurisdictions were established. The dispute came to
10872-509: The centuries-long Bantu expansion . The Bantu peoples brought with them the west African planting tradition and the primary staple of yams . They subsequently migrated out of these regions across the rest of Tanzania between 2,300 and 1,700 years ago. Eastern Nilotic peoples, including the Maasai , represent a more recent migration from present-day South Sudan within the past 500 to 1,500 years. The people of Tanzania have been associated with
11023-751: The close of the 10th century Zanzibar was one of the central Swahili trading towns. Growth in Egyptian and Persian shipping from the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf revitalised Indian Ocean trade , particularly after the Fatimid Caliphate relocated to Fustat (Cairo). Swahili agriculturalists built increasingly dense settlements to tap into trade, these forming the earliest Swahili city-states. The Venda-Shona Kingdoms of Mapungubwe and Zimbabwe in South Africa and Zimbabwe , respectively, became
11174-403: The coastal belt, but most Bantu remained African Traditional Religion adherents. Over a period of many centuries, most hunting-foraging peoples were displaced and absorbed by incoming Bantu communities, as well as by later Nilotic communities. The Bantu expansion was a long series of physical migrations, a diffusion of language and knowledge out into and in from neighboring populations, and
11325-404: The coldest period occurs between May and August (15–20 °C or 59–68 °F). Annual temperature is 20 °C (68.0 °F). The climate is cool in high mountainous regions. Tanzania has two major rainfall periods: one is uni-modal (October–April) and the other is bi-modal (October–December and March–May). The former is experienced in southern, central, and western parts of the country, and
11476-457: The commerce of Portugal's enemies within the western Indian Ocean and were able to demand high tariffs on items transported through the sea due to their strategic control of ports and shipping lanes. The construction of Fort Jesus in Mombasa in 1593 was meant to solidify Portuguese hegemony in the region, but their influence was clipped by the British , Dutch and Omani Arab incursions into
11627-404: The conclusion that Southern Nilotes , including the Datoog , moved south from the present-day South Sudan / Ethiopia border region into central northern Tanzania between 2,900 and 2,400 years ago. These movements took place at approximately the same time as the settlement of the iron-making Mashariki (Eastern) Bantu from West Africa in the Lake Victoria and Lake Tanganyika areas, as part of
11778-501: The continent's deepest lake, known for its unique species of fish. To the southwest lies Lake Nyasa . Central Tanzania is a large plateau, with plains and arable land. The eastern shore is hot and humid, with the Zanzibar Archipelago just offshore. Kalambo Falls in the southwestern region of Rukwa is the second highest uninterrupted waterfall in Africa, and is located near the southeastern shore of Lake Tanganyika on
11929-526: The country is a presidential constitutional republic with the federal capital located in Government City (Dodoma) ; the former capital, Dar es Salaam , retains most government offices and is the country's largest city, principal port, and leading commercial centre. Tanzania is a de facto one-party state with the democratic socialist Chama Cha Mapinduzi party in power. The country has not experienced major internal strife since independence and
12080-485: The country's president. The president of Tanzania and the members of the National Assembly are elected concurrently by direct popular vote for five-year terms. The vice-president is elected for a five-year term at the same time as the president and on the same ticket. Neither the president nor the vice-president may be a member of the National Assembly. The president appoints a prime minister from among
12231-478: The country. The lake is about 350 kilometres (220 mi) southeast of Lake Tanganyika , another of the great lakes of the East African Rift. The Lake Malawi National Park is located at the southern end of the lake. Malawi is one of the major Rift Valley lakes and an ancient lake . The lake lies in a valley formed by the opening of the East African Rift , where the African tectonic plate
12382-415: The cultivation of cash crops like coffee and tea , as well as for animal husbandry with products produced from cattle and goats, such as goat meat , beef and milk . Moreover, this area had the potential for a significant residential expansion, being suitable for the relocation of a large number of British nationals to the region. Prevailing climatic conditions and the regions' geomorphology allowed
12533-465: The custom of milking cattle directly from Cushitic peoples in the area. On the coastal section of the African Great Lakes region, another mixed Bantu community developed through contact with Muslim Arab and Persian traders, leading to the development of the mixed Arab, Persian and African Swahili City States . The Swahili culture that emerged from these exchanges evinces many Arab and Islamic influences not seen in traditional Bantu culture, as do
12684-464: The declaration, banks and many large industries were nationalised. Tanzania was also aligned with China, which from 1970 to 1975 financed and helped build the 1,860-kilometre-long (1,160 mi) TAZARA Railway from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to Kapiri-Mposhi, Zambia. Nonetheless, from the late 1970s, Tanzania's economy took a turn for the worse, in the context of an international economic crisis affecting both developed and developing economies. In 1978,
12835-622: The description of contemporary humans with the subspecies name Homo sapiens sapiens . Because of their early dating and unique physical characteristics idaltu and kibish represent the immediate ancestors of anatomically modern humans as suggested by the Out-of-Africa theory. In 2017 finds of modern human remains, dating to ca 300,000 years ago in Jebel Irhoud in Morocco, suggested that modern humans arose earlier and possibly in
12986-491: The emergence of Homo sapiens . In September 2019, scientists reported the computerized determination, based on 260 CT scans , of a virtual skull shape of the last common human ancestor to modern humans / H. sapiens , representative of the earliest Homo sapiens , and suggested that Homo sapiens arose between 350,000 and 260,000 years ago through a merging of populations in South and East Africa. The migration route of
13137-557: The establishment of flourishing European style settlements like Nairobi , Vila Pery , Vila Junqueiro , Porto Amélia , Lourenço Marques and Entebbe . The French settled the largest island of the Indian Ocean (and the fourth-largest globally), Madagascar , along with a group of smaller islands nearby, namely Réunion and the Comoros . Madagascar became part of the French colonial empire following two military campaigns against
13288-693: The far south. The lake has shorelines on western Mozambique , eastern Malawi , and southern Tanzania . The largest river flowing into it is the Ruhuhu River , and there is an outlet at its southern end, the Shire River , a tributary that flows into the Zambezi River in Mozambique. Evaporation accounts for more than 80% of the water loss from the lake, considerably more than the outflowing Shire River. The outflows from Lake Malawi into
13439-429: The growing concern of the negative impacts of climate change and climate variability on the country's social, economic and physical environment. Tanzania contains around 20% of the species of Africa's enormous warm-blooded animal populace, found over its 21 National parks, reserves, 1 conservation area, and 3 marine parks. Spread over a zone of in excess of 42,000 square kilometres (16,000 sq. mi) and shaping around 38% of
13590-499: The lake are divided into two groups and the vast majority of the species are haplochromines . The sister species to the Malawi haplochromines is Astatotilapia sp. Ruaha (a currently undescribed species from Great Ruaha River ), and these two separated between 2.13 and 6.76 million years ago (mya). The earliest divergence within the Malawi haplochromines occurred between 1.20 and 4.06 mya, but most radiations in this group are far younger; in extreme cases species may have diverged only
13741-493: The lake dried out almost completely, leaving only one or two relatively small, highly alkaline and saline lakes in what currently are Malawi's deepest parts. A water chemistry resembling the current conditions only appeared about 60,000 years ago. Major low-water periods are estimated to have occurred about 1.6 to 1.0–0.57 million years ago (where it might have dried out completely), 420,000 to 250,000–110,000 years ago, about 25,000 years ago and 18,000–10,700 years ago. During
13892-477: The lake's surface area between Malawi and Tanzania is under dispute. Tanzania claims that the international border runs through the middle of the lake. On the other hand, Malawi claims the whole of the surface of this lake that is not in Mozambique, including the waters that are next to the shoreline of Tanzania. Both sides cite the Heligoland Treaty of 1890 between Great Britain and Germany concerning
14043-498: The lake, and two non-endemic species ( B. globosus and B. forskalli ) in lagoons separated from it. The latter species are known intermediate hosts of bilharzia, and larvae of the parasite were detected in water containing these, but in experiments C. Wright of the British Museum of Natural History was unable to infect the two species endemic to the lake with the parasites. The field workers, who spent many hours on and in
14194-401: The lake, did not find either B. globosus or B. forskalli in the lake itself. More recently, the disease has become a problem in the lake itself as the endemic B. nyassanus has become an intermediate host. This change, first noticed in the mid-1980s, is possibly related to a decline in snail-eating cichlids (for example, Trematocranus placodon ) due to overfishing and/or a new strain of
14345-850: The lake, the Hermann von Wissmann , commanded by Captain Berndt. Rhoades's crew found the Hermann von Wissmann in a bay near Sphinxhaven , in German East African territorial waters. Gwendolen disabled the German boat with a single cannon shot from a range of about 1,800 metres (2,000 yd). This brief conflict was hailed by The Times in England as the British Empire's first naval victory of World War I. The partition of
14496-411: The lake. The aquatic larvae feed on zooplankton, spending the day at the bottom and the night in the upper water levels. When they pupate they float to the surface and transform into adult flies. The adults are very short-lived and the swarms, which can be several hundred metres tall and often have a spiraling shape, are part of their mating behaviour. They lay their eggs at the water's surface and
14647-400: The larger region to varying degrees became part of a European colonial empire. Portugal had first established a strong presence in southern Mozambique and the Indian Ocean since the 15th century, while during this period their possessions increasingly grew including parts from the present northern Mozambique country, up to Mombasa in present-day Kenya. At Lake Malawi , they finally met
14798-472: The largest lion population in the world. Tanzania had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 7.13/10, ranking it 54th globally out of 172 countries. Tanzania is a one-party dominant state with the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party in power. From its formation until 1992, it was the only legally permitted party in the country. This changed on 1 July 1992, when the constitution
14949-489: The latter is found in the north from Lake Victoria extending east to the coast. The bi-modal rainfall is caused by the seasonal migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone . Climate change in Tanzania is resulting in rising temperatures with a higher likelihood of intense rainfall events (resulting in flooding) and of dry spells (resulting in droughts). Climate change is already impacting
15100-531: The many Afro-Arab members of the Bantu Swahili people . With its original speech community centered on the coastal parts of Tanzania (particularly Zanzibar ) and Kenya —a seaboard referred to as the Swahili Coast —the Bantu Swahili language contains many Arabic loan-words as a consequence of these interactions. Its important to note that Kiswahili grammar and structure are purely African and Bantu even if its vocabulary has non African influence in
15251-520: The mbuna, a name used both locally and popularly, which means "rockfish" in Tonga . They are found at rocky outcrops, territorially aggressive (although commonly found in high densities) and often specialised aufwuchs feeders. The mbuna species tend to be relatively small, mostly less than 13 cm (5 in) long, and often both sexes are brightly colored with males having egg-shaped yellow spots on their anal fin (a feature particularly prevalent in
15402-468: The mbuna, but not exclusive to this group). The second group, the tilapia , comprises only six species in two genera in Lake Malawi: The redbreast tilapia ( Coptodon rendalli ), a widespread African species, is the only substrate-spawning cichlid in the lake. This large cichlid mainly feeds on macrophytes . The remaining are five mouthbrooding species of Oreochromis ; four chambo in
15553-532: The members of the National Assembly, subject to confirmation by the assembly, to serve as the government's leader in the assembly. The president selects her cabinet from assembly members. Law enforcement in Tanzania is under the executive branch of government and is administered by the Tanzania Police Force. East Africa East Africa , also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa ,
15704-559: The middle Nile basin. Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, and the Red Sea coast of Sudan are considered the most likely location of the land known to the Ancient Egyptians as Punt . The old kingdom's first mention dates to the 25th century BCE. The ancient Puntites were a nation of people that had close relations with Pharaonic Egypt during the times of Pharaoh Sahure and Queen Hatshepsut . The Kingdom of Aksum
15855-572: The middle of the lake their boundary with the exception of Chizumulu Island and Likoma Island , which were kept by the British and are now part of Malawi. MV Chauncy Maples began service on the lake in 1901 as the SS Chauncy Maples : a floating clinic and church for the Universities' Mission to Central Africa . She later served as a ferry and is currently being renovated into a mobile clinic at Monkey Bay . The renovation
16006-503: The most popular are the four species of chambo, consisting of any one of four species in the subgenus Nyasalapia ( Oreochromis karongae , O. lidole , O. saka and O. squamipinnis ), as well as the closely related O. shiranus . Other species that support important fisheries include the Lake Malawi sardine ( Engraulicypris sardella ) and the large kampango catfish ( Bagrus meridionalis ). Most fishing provides food for
16157-557: The name for Tanzania . These early writings perhaps document the first wave of Bantu settlers to reach central east Africa during their migration. Between the 14th and 15th centuries, large African Great Lakes kingdoms and states emerged, such as the Buganda and Karagwe kingdoms of Uganda and Tanzania. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to explore the region of current-day Kenya , Tanzania , and Mozambique by sea. Vasco da Gama visited Mombasa in 1498. Da Gama's voyage
16308-490: The nation's area. Tanzania has 21 national parks, plus a variety of game and forest reserves, including the Ngorongoro Conservation Area , however the local human population still has an impact on the environment. In western Tanzania, Gombe Stream National Park is the site of Jane Goodall 's ongoing study of chimpanzee behaviour, which started in 1960. Tanzania is highly biodiverse and contains
16459-451: The neighbouring Uganda, under the leadership of Idi Amin, invaded Tanzania . This disastrous invasion would culminate in Tanzania invading Uganda with the aid of Ugandan rebels and deposing Idi Amin as a result. However, the war severely damaged Tanzania's economy. Through the 1980s, conservation oriented national parks such as Serengeti and Kilimanjaro , with Mount Kilimanjaro as the tallest freestanding summit on Earth, were included on
16610-538: The north, in modern-day Kenya, namely Mombasa and Malindi. Kilwa remained the major power in East Africa until the arrival of the Portuguese at the end of the 15th century. Claiming the coastal strip, Omani Sultan Said bin Sultan moved his capital to Zanzibar City in 1840. During this time, Zanzibar became the centre for the east African slave trade . Between 65 and 90 per cent of the Swahili population of Zanzibar
16761-460: The oldest continuously inhabited areas on Earth. Traces of fossil remains of humans and hominids date back to the Quaternary era. The Olduvai Gorge , in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area , a UNESCO World Heritage Site , features a collection with remnants of tools that document the development and use of transitional technology . The indigenous populations of eastern Africa are thought to be
16912-509: The open-water (although often not far from sand or rocks) utaka that feed in schools on zooplankton and typically are of medium size, and finally a subgroup of "aberrant" species that essentially are defined by them not fitting clearly into the other subgroups. Adult male haps generally display bright colors, while juveniles of both sexes and adult females typically show a silvery or grey coloration with sometimes irregular black bars or other markings. The second main haplochromine group are
17063-434: The peak of the low-water period between 1390 and 1860 AD , it may have been 120–150 m (390–490 ft) below current water levels. The lake's water is alkaline ( pH 7.7–8.6) and warm with a typical surface temperature between 24 and 29 °C (75–84 °F), while deep sections typically are about 22 °C (72 °F). The thermocline is located at a depth of 40–100 m (130–330 ft). The oxygen limit
17214-476: The pre-war years of the Great Depression . Wartime demand, however, caused increased commodity prices and massive inflation within the colony. In 1954, Julius Nyerere transformed an organisation into the politically oriented Tanganyika African National Union (TANU). TANU's main objective was to achieve national sovereignty for Tanganyika. A campaign to register new members was launched, and within
17365-431: The production of iron and steel. The Pare people were the main producers of sought-after iron for peoples who occupied the mountain regions of north-eastern Tanzania. The Haya people on the western shores of Lake Victoria invented a type of high-heat blast furnace , which allowed them to forge carbon steel at temperatures exceeding 1,820 °C (3,310 °F) more than 1,500 years ago. Travelers and merchants from
17516-490: The recently created British Protectorate of Nyasaland (nowadays Malawi ), which surrounded the homonymous lake on three sides, leaving the Portuguese the control of lake's eastern coast. The British Empire set foot in the region's most exploitable and promising lands acquiring what is today Uganda , and Kenya . The Protectorate of Uganda and the Colony of Kenya were located in a rich farmland area mostly appropriate for
17667-413: The regions that are now Tanzania (minus Zanzibar) and incorporated them into German East Africa (GEA). The Supreme Council of the 1919 Paris Peace Conference awarded all of GEA to Britain on 7 May 1919, over the strenuous objections of Belgium. The British colonial secretary , Alfred Milner , and Belgium's minister plenipotentiary to the conference, Pierre Orts [ fr ] , then negotiated
17818-400: The removal of Uganda's despotic leader Idi Amin . Burundi , Rwanda , and Uganda have each faced instability and ethnic conflict since independence, most notably, they experienced the 1994 Rwandan genocide and the 1993 Burundi genocide and the subsequent Burundian Civil War . Rwanda and Uganda continue to be involved in related conflicts outside the region. Djibouti , as well as
17969-477: The rest of the continent, notably its immediate neighbour, Kenya. Furthermore, since its independence, Tanzania has displayed more political stability than most African countries, particularly due to Nyerere's ethnic repression methods. In 1967, Nyerere's first presidency took a turn to the left after the Arusha Declaration , which codified a commitment to socialism as well as Pan-Africanism . After
18120-478: The rhino and elephant. The geography of East Africa is often stunning and scenic. Shaped by global plate tectonic forces that have created the East African Rift , East Africa is the site of Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Kenya , the two tallest peaks in Africa. It also includes the world's second largest freshwater lake, Lake Victoria , and the world's second deepest lake, Lake Tanganyika . The unique geography and apparent suitability for farming made East Africa
18271-446: The route to French Indochina . Starting in the 1850s, the small protectorate of Djibouti became French Somaliland in 1897. Since the end of colonialism, several East African countries have been riven with military coups, ethnic violence and oppressive dictators. The region has endured the following post-colonial conflicts: Kenya has enjoyed relatively stable governance. However, its politics have been turbulent at times, including
18422-472: The ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi won 186 of the 232 elected seats in the National Assembly, and Benjamin Mkapa was elected as president. The presidents of Tanzania since Independence have been Julius Nyerere 1962–1985, Ali Hassan Mwinyi 1985–1995, Benjamin Mkapa 1995–2005, Jakaya Kikwete 2005–2015, John Magufuli 2015–2021, and Samia Hassan Suluhu since 2021. After the long tenure of president Nyerere,
18573-474: The same way English remains a Germanic language regardless of its vocabulary being heavily influenced by Latin and French among other languages. The earliest Bantu inhabitants of the east coast of Kenya and Tanzania encountered by these later Arab and Persian settlers have been variously identified with the trading settlements of Rhapta , Azania and Menouthias referenced in early Greek and Chinese writings from 50 CE to 500 CE, ultimately giving rise to
18724-501: The sectors in Tanzania of agriculture, water resources, health and energy. Sea level rise and changes in the quality of water are expected to impact fisheries and aquaculture. Tanzania produced a National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs) in 2007 as mandated by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change . In 2012, Tanzania produced a National Climate Change Strategy in response to
18875-560: The slave trade on the open seas had been completely outlawed by the British and the Omani Arabs had little ability to resist the British navy's ability to enforce the directive. The Omani presence continued in Zanzibar and Pemba until the Zanzibar Revolution in 1964. However, the official Omani Arab presence in Kenya was checked by German and British seizure of key ports and creation of crucial trade alliances with influential local leaders in
19026-484: The state of Tanzania, President Nyerere emphasised a need to construct a national identity for the citizens of the new country. To achieve this, Nyerere provided what is regarded as one of the most successful cases of ethnic repression and identity transformation in Africa. With more than 130 languages spoken within its territory, Tanzania is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in Africa. Despite this obstacle, ethnic divisions remained rare in Tanzania when compared to
19177-583: The subgenus Nyasalapia ( O. karongae , O. lidole , O. saka and O. squamipinnis ) that are endemic to the Lake Malawi system, as well as the closely related O. shiranus , which also is found in Lake Chilwa . The Malawi Oreochromis mainly feed on phytoplankton , reach lengths up to 26–42 cm (10–17 in) depending on the exact species, and are mostly black or silvery-gray with relatively indistinct dark bars. Male chambo have unique genital tassels when breeding, which aid in egg fertilisation in
19328-403: The suffix "-ia." The name Tanganyika is derived from the Swahili words tanga "sail" and nyika "uninhabited plain, wilderness", creating the phrase "sail in the wilderness". It is sometimes understood as a reference to Lake Tanganyika . The name of Zanzibar derives from Zanj , the name of a local people (said to mean "black"), and Arabic barr "coast" or "shore." Tanzania is one of
19479-535: The time ruled by Zoskales , who also governed the port of Adulis . The Aksumite rulers facilitated trade by minting their own Aksumite currency . The state also established its hegemony over the declining Kingdom of Kush and regularly entered the politics of the kingdoms on the Arabian Peninsula , eventually extending its rule over the region with the conquest of the Himyarite Kingdom . Between 2500 and 3000 years ago, Bantu -speaking peoples began
19630-481: The triangle in 1894. The Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919, although the treaty did not take effect until 10 January 1920. On that date, the GEA was transferred officially to Britain, Belgium, and Portugal. Also on that date, "Tanganyika" became the name of the British territory. In the mid-1920s, the British implemented a system of indirect rule in Tanzania. The Maji Maji Rebellion , between 1905 and 1907,
19781-579: The unpredictable and extremely violent gales that sweep through the area, he also referred to it as the Lake of Storms. On 16 August 1914, Lake Malawi was the scene of a brief naval battle during World War I . The British gunboat SS Gwendolen , commanded by a Captain Rhoades, received orders from the British Empire's high command to "sink, burn, or destroy" the German Empire's only gunboat on
19932-403: The use of pigments, and the possible making of projectile points. It is observed by the authors of three 2018 studies on the site, that the evidence of these behaviors is approximately contemporary to the earliest known Homo sapiens fossil remains from Africa (such as at Jebel Irhoud and Florisbad ), and they suggest that complex and modern behaviors had already begun in Africa around the time of
20083-622: The wider region, including fossils discovered in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia, as well as in the Koobi Fora in Kenya and Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania. The southern part of East Africa was occupied until recent times by Khoisan hunter-gatherers , whereas in the Ethiopian Highlands the donkey and such crop plants as teff allowed the beginning of agriculture around 7,000 BCE. Lowland barriers and diseases carried by
20234-539: The world, is located. Three of the African Great Lakes are partly within Tanzania. To the north and west lie Lake Victoria , Africa's largest lake, and Lake Tanganyika , the continent's deepest lake, known for its unique species of fish. To the south lies Lake Malawi . The eastern shore is hot and humid, with the Zanzibar Archipelago just offshore. The Menai Bay Conservation Area is Zanzibar's largest marine protected area. The Kalambo Falls , located on
20385-682: Was a single exodus or several; a multiple dispersal model involves the Southern Dispersal theory. Some researchers have suggested that North Africa was the region of Africa from which modern humans who first trekked out of the continent. According to both genetic and fossil evidence, it has been posited that archaic Homo sapiens evolved into anatomically modern humans in the Horn of Africa around 200,000 years ago and dispersed from there. The recognition of Homo sapiens idaltu and Omo Kibish as anatomically modern humans would justify
20536-518: Was a trading empire centered Eritrea and northern Ethiopia. It existed from approximately 100–940 CE, growing from the proto-Aksumite Iron Age period c. 4th century BCE to achieve prominence by the 1st century CE. The kingdom is mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea as an important market place for ivory , which was exported throughout the ancient world. Aksum was at
20687-482: Was amended. It has held power since independence in 1961, and is the longest-serving ruling party in Africa. John Magufuli won the October 2015 presidential election and secured a two-thirds majority in parliament. The main opposition party in Tanzania since multiparty politics in 1992 is called Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema) ( Swahili for "Party for Democracy and Progress"). The leader of Chadema party
20838-479: Was an uprising of several African tribes in German East Africa against the colonial authorities, in particular because of forced labour and deportation of certain tribes. It was the subject of a bloody repression, which combined with famine caused 300,000 deaths among the population, out of a Tanganyikan population of about four million. During World War II , about 100,000 people from Tanganyika joined
20989-693: Was carrying 100,000 passengers each year., but as of 2014 she was out of service. She normally serves the southern part of the lake but if Ilala was out of service she operated the route to Karonga. The Tanzanian ferry MV Songea was built in 1988. Her operator was the Tanzania Railway Corporation Marine Division until 1997, when it became the Marine Services Company Limited . Songea plies weekly between Liuli and Nkhata Bay via Itungi and Mbamba Bay . The worst Lake disaster
21140-425: Was declared the winner for his second term as president. Election fraud was suspected. The national electoral commission announced that Magufuli received 84%, or about 12.5 million votes and the top opposition candidate, Tundu Lissu received 13%, about 1.9 million votes. In March 2021, it was announced that Magufuli had died whilst serving in office, meaning that his vice president, Samia Suluhu Hassan , became
21291-411: Was difficult and thus limited, mainly due to climatic conditions and the local geomorphology. Italy gained control of various parts of Somalia in the 1880s. The southern three-fourths of Somalia became an Italian protectorate ( Italian Somaliland ). Meanwhile, in 1884, a narrow coastal strip of Somaliland came under British control ( British Somaliland ). This Somaliland protectorate was just opposite
21442-460: Was enslaved. One of the most infamous slave traders on the East African coast was Tippu Tip , who was the grandson of an enslaved African. The Nyamwezi slave traders operated under the leadership of Msiri and Mirambo . According to Timothy Insoll , "Figures record the exporting of 718,000 slaves from the Swahili coast during the 19th century, and the retention of 769,000 on the coast." In
21593-530: Was expected to be complete during the first half of 2014, but was halted in 2017. MV Mpasa entered service in 1935. The ferry MV Ilala entered service in 1951. In recent years she has often been out of service, but when operational she runs between Monkey Bay at the southern end of the lake to Karonga on the northern end, and occasionally to the Iringa Region of Tanzania. The ferry MV Mtendere entered service in 1980. By 1982 she
21744-618: Was followed by British rule after World War I when it was governed as Tanganyika , with the Zanzibar Archipelago remaining a separate colonial jurisdiction. Following their respective independence in 1961 and 1963, the two entities merged in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. Tanganyika joined the British Commonwealth and Tanzania remains a member of the Commonwealth as a unified republic. Today,
21895-671: Was only settled 3000 years ago. In a narrow sense, particularly in English-speaking contexts, East Africa refers to the area comprising Kenya , Tanzania , and Uganda , largely due to their shared history under the Omani Empire and as parts of the British East Africa Protectorate and German East Africa . Further extending East Africa's definition, the Horn of Africa —comprising Djibouti , Eritrea , Ethiopia , and Somalia —stands out as
22046-1278: Was revealed that approximately 50 litres of non radioactive material leaked into a local creek. Despite reports in local media of radioactive contamination the government conducted independent scientific tests on the local river system and found that there was no effect on the environment. The 25 km solo swim across Lake Malawi between Cape Ngomba and Senga Bay has been accomplished on 5 occasions by 16 swimmers 1992: Lewis Pugh 9hrs 52 minutes (UK/South Africa) and Otto Thanning (South Africa) 10hrs 5 minutes 2010: Abigail Brown (UK) 9hrs 45 minutes 2013: Milko van Gool (Netherlands) 8hrs 46 minutes and Kaitlin Harthoorn (US) 9hrs 17 minutes 2016: (current record) Jean Craven (South Africa), Robert Dunford (Kenya), Michiel Le Roux (South Africa), Samantha Whelpton (South Africa), Greig Bannatyne (South Africa), Haydn Von Maltitz (South Africa), Douglas Livingstone-Blevins (South Africa) 7hrs 53 mins 2019: Chris Stapley ( Eswatini ) and Jay Azran (South Africa) 8hrs 40 minutes, Andrew Stevens ( Australia ) 10hrs 50 minutes, and Ruth Azran (South Africa) 11hrs 8 minutes. That same year, Martin Hobbs (South Africa), became
22197-544: Was successful in reaching India , which permitted the Portuguese to trade with the Far East directly by sea. This in turn challenged the older trading networks of mixed land and sea routes, such as the spice trade routes which utilized the Persian Gulf , Red Sea , and camel caravans to reach the eastern Mediterranean. The Republic of Venice had gained control over much of the trade routes between Europe and Asia. After traditional land routes to India had been closed by
22348-472: Was taken and destroyed, and its large treasures went to strengthen the resources of Almeida. Attacks followed on Hoja (now known as Ungwana, located at the mouth of the Tana River ), Barawa , Angoche , Pate and other coastal towns until the western Indian Ocean was a safe haven for Portuguese commercial interests. At other places on his way, such as the island of Angediva , near Goa , and Cannanore ,
22499-410: Was the first European to visit the lake in 1846. David Livingstone reached the lake in 1859, and named it Lake Nyasa. He also referred to it by a pair of nicknames: Lake of Stars and Lake of Storms. The Lake of Stars nickname came after Livingstone observed lights from the lanterns of the fishermen in Malawi on their boats, that resemble, from a distance, stars in the sky. Later, after experiencing
22650-465: Was the sinking of the MV ; Vipya in 1946, which resulted in 145 deaths. Wildlife found in and around Lake Malawi or Nyasa includes Nile crocodiles , hippopotamus , monkeys , and a significant population of African fish eagles that feed off fish from the lake. Lake Malawi has for millennia provided a major food source to the residents of its shores since its waters are rich in fish. Among
22801-687: Was then named the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar . On 29 October of the same year, the country was renamed the United Republic of Tanzania ("Tan" comes from Tanganyika and "Zan" from Zanzibar). The union of the two hitherto separate regions was controversial among many Zanzibaris (even those sympathetic to the revolution) but was accepted by both the Nyerere government and the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar owing to shared political values and goals. Following Tanganyika's independence and unification with Zanzibar leading to
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