Tanzania

Where the name comes from

Tanganyika is named after a lake of uncertain name origin, while Zanzibar comes from a Persian phrase for “Black coast”.

First people

Olduvai Gorge holds some of the oldest evidence of human ancestors, and Bantu-speaking inland societies and Swahili coastal communities followed.^1,2

Known for

Tanzania is known for Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain, and for the Serengeti’s great migration.³

Outside contact

Germany took the mainland under protection in 1885 and Britain took Zanzibar in 1890; Britain ran Tanganyika under a mandate from 1922.²

The modern country

Tanganyika, independent since 1961, and Zanzibar, independent since 1963, united on 26 April 1964 to form the country later named Tanzania.^4,5