Tanzania is an East African country that shares borders with eight other countries: Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. Tanzania is the largest country in East Africa ( the thirteenth largest in Africa, and the 32nd largest in the world). It includes the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba, and Mafia.
On April 26, 1964, the two countries (Tanganyika, the the mainland, and Zanzibar islands) merged to establish the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar, with Julius Nyerere serving as president and Karume as first vice president. In October 1964, the newly formed country was renamed the United Republic of Tanzania.
Mainland Tanganyika covers more than 99 percent of the combined territories’ total area. Mafia Island is administered from the mainland, while Zanzibar and Pemba islands have a separate government administration. Dar es Salaam, on Tanzania’s east coast, served as the country’s capital until 1974, while Dodoma, located on the mainland since 1974 became the designated official capital of Tanzania. Dar es Salaam remains the country’s largest and wealthiest city, with numerous government offices remaining there.
About 90 percent of Tanzanians live in rural areas and live off what they can grow on the land. Tanzania’s early people were hunters and gatherers. Traders moved to the country in about 800 A.D. The Anglo-Zanzibar war of 1896 was the shortest known conflict in history, lasting 38 to 45 minutes. It began with the suspicious death of pro-British Sultan Hamad bin Thuwaini and the ascension of a less pro-British Sultan, Khalid ibn Barghash. The British fleet went up against 3,000 Zanzibari civilians. It ended soon.
Tanganyika was colonized first by the Germans (1880s-1919), then by the British (1919-1961). During World War II, it operated as a military outpost, providing both financial support and ammunition.
Zanzibar was a prominent hub for the Arab slave trade. The world’s last operational slave market was located in Stone Town, Zanzibar, and is now a notable historical monument. Every year, 40,000 to 50,000 slaves were transferred to Zanzibar, primarily to labor on plantations under Omani authority. The market closed in 1873.
The native people of Tanzania married the newcomers from India, Arabia, and the Shirazis from Persia. Their language, Kiswahili, spread to other East African areas.
Today, Tanzania’s population includes over 120 different African tribal groups. The Sukuma are the largest group, living in the northwestern region of the country, south of Lake Victoria.
Tanzania is positioned along the East African Rift (or Great Rift Valley), where two tectonic plates are separating, effectively dividing Africa in two. The rift has been forming for 30 million years, resulting in considerable volcanism and massive lakes in the region.
Tanzania has some of the best national parks in the world. The Serengeti National Park is one of the world’s most famous and well-loved parks, home to over a million species of big mammals. It is also a World Heritage Site and has been designated a Seventh World Wonder. The Serengeti is the site of the Great Migration, in which wildebeest and zebras travel across the plains in search of new meadows. It also supports large buffalo herds, elephants, giraffes, leopards, impalas, and gazelles, as well as the endangered Eastern Black Rhinoceros. Tanzania also has the highest elephant population, which may be found in the Selous Game Reserve.
Lake Tanganyika is the world’s longest freshwater lake, at 660 kilometers (410 miles), and the second deepest, at 1,436 metres (4,710 feet), after Lake Baikal in Russia. Tanzania shares Lake Tanganyika with DR Congo, Burundi, and Zambia.
Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania is Africa’s tallest peak and the world’s highest freestanding mountain, rising 5,895 meters above sea level. It also supports nearly every type of natural system, including farmed land, rainforest, alpine desert, and arctic peak.
Tanzania contains seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites. South Africa has the most (10), followed by Ethiopia (9), Morocco (9), and Tunisia (8). The Ngorongoro Crater, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is famous for its unique environment and abundance of lions.
The Olduvai Gorge is a steep-sided gorge in the Great Rift Valley that is approximately 30 miles long and located in the eastern Serengeti Plains within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. This archaeological site in northern Tanzania is important for understanding early human evolution. Mary and Louis Leakey, a British-Kenyan duo, did extensive excavations and study here in the 1950s and 1960s.
Ancient human bones, stone tools, and animal remains were discovered. Gathering tools and animal remains in one location demonstrates increased social connections, cohesion, and communal activities. These clues indicate that early humans were advancing.
Tanzania has a president, who is in charge of the country. Presidents are elected in a General Election, which takes place every five years. Zanzibar has its own President, Assembly, and Laws.
The Tanzanian flag consists of green and blue triangles separated by a black diagonal band with yellow edges. Black depicts people, green crops and land, yellow the country’s mineral richness, and blue the Indian Ocean.
While the country’s offshore gas reserves have remained underdeveloped for many years, new political leadership since 2021 has boosted optimism that it would be able to export liquid natural gas (LNG) by 2030.
