FACTS:

OFFICIAL NAME: United Republic of Tanzania

FORM OF GOVERNMENT: Republic

CAPITAL: Dar es Salaam

AREA: 365,755 square miles (947,300 square kilometers)

POPULATION: 49,639,138

OFFICIAL LANGUAGE: Kiswahili or Swahili, English

MONEY: Tanzanian shilling

HISTORY

Tanzania’s early people were hunters and gatherers. Traders moved to the country in about
800 A.D. . The native people married the newcomers from India, Arabia, and the Shirazis from
Persia. Their language, Kiswahili, spread to other East African areas.

After Tanganyika and Zanzibar became independent countries, they merged in 1964 to form
the nation of Tanzania.

GEOGRAPHY

Tanzania is the largest country in East Africa and includes the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba, and
Mafia. This African country is bordered by the Indian Ocean and eight countries: Kenya,
Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique.

Mount Kilimanjaro, once an active volcano, is the highest point in Africa and is bordered by
three of the largest lakes on the continent: Lake Victoria (the world's second-largest
freshwater lake) in the north, Lake Tanganyika in the west, and Lake Nyasa in the southwest.
Wildlife parks and reserves are spread all over Tanzania; – the Serengeti, Selous, Kitulo and
Gombe Stream national parks. You can also discover more about other amazing natural
features such as Mount Kilimanjaro, Ngorongoro Crater and the two great lakes of Victoria and
Tanganyika, as well as important cultural and social centres like Zanzibar, Dodoma and Dar es
Salaam.

PEOPLE & CULTURE

About 90 percent of Tanzanians live in rural areas and live off what they can grow on the land.

There are about 120 African tribal groups in Tanzania.

Arranged marriage is still customary for many Tanzanian families and parents start planning for
their daughter’s future when she is young.

- The arts and sport

With a national pride in Swahili, novels and poetry in the language are popular and there is a
strong background of literature.

The graphic arts are also important. The colourful and distinctive tinga tinga paintings (mainly
of animals and birds) and the ebony carvings of the Makonde people are particularly prized.
Sculptures and carvings are also made for the important tourist industry.

Tanzania has a wide range of sports. But as in many countries, football is the national
obsession.

Olduvai Gorge in northern Tanzania is the location of the oldest human settlements found by
Louis and Mary Leakey. This area is often called “The Cradle of Civilization.”

Opinion about Tanzania:

It gave me a sense of how locals live from day to day and how life differs from what I’m used
to. I liked having that complete cultural immersion.