Portal:Tanzania

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The Tanzania Portal

Flag of Tanzania Coat of Arms of Tanzania

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, is in northeastern Tanzania. According to the 2022 national census, Tanzania has a population of nearly 62 million, making it the most populous country located entirely south of the equator.

Many important hominid fossils have been found in Tanzania, such as 6-million-year-old Pliocene hominid fossils. 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 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 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.

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 the world, 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, 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 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.

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Emblem of Tanzania People's Defence Force

The Tanzania People’s Defence Force (TPDF) (Swahili: Jeshi la Ulinzi la Wananchi wa Tanzania) is the military force of the United Republic of Tanzania. It was established in September 1964, following a mutiny by the former colonial military force, the Tanganyika Rifles. From its inception, it was ingrained in the troops of the new TPDF that they were a people's force under civilian control. Unlike some of its neighbouring countries, Tanzania has never suffered a coup d'état or civil war.

The TPDF's mission is to defend Tanzania and every Tanzanian, especially the people and their political ideology. Conscripts are obligated to serve 2 years as of 2004. (Full article...)

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General images - show another

The following are images from various Tanzania-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Lemon and ginger tea. (from Culture of Tanzania)
Image 2Tanzanian Ngoma group (from Tanzania)
Image 3Tea fields in Tukuyu (from Tanzania)
Image 4Scientific publications per million inhabitants in SADC countries in 2014. Source: UNESCO Science Report (2015), data from Thomson Reuters' Web of Science, Science Citation Index Expanded. (from Tanzania)
Image 5Domestic expenditure on research in Southern Africa as a percentage of GDP, 2012 or closest year. Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030 (2015), figure 20.3. (from Tanzania)
Image 6East African Legislative Assembly in Arusha (from Tanzania)
Image 7One of the main trunk roads (from Tanzania)
Image 8A Tingatinga painting (from Tanzania)
Image 9International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in Arusha (from Tanzania)
Image 10Nyerere Bridge in Kigamboni, Dar es Salaam (from Tanzania)
Image 11A 1572 depiction of the city of Kilwa, a UNESCO World Heritage Site (from Tanzania)
Image 12Tanzanian women harvesting tea leaves (from Tanzania)
Image 13St Joseph's Catholic cathedral, Zanzibar (from Tanzania)
Image 14Nkrumah Hall at the University of Dar es Salaam (from Tanzania)
Image 15Zanzibar harbour (from Tanzania)
Image 16Tanzanian Embassy in West End, Washington, D.C. (from Tanzania)
Image 17The Hadza live as hunter-gatherers. (from Tanzania)
Image 18National Stadium in Dar es Salaam. (from Culture of Tanzania)
Image 19Tanzania map of Köppen climate classification (from Tanzania)
Image 20Location of Zanzibar within Tanzania (from History of Tanzania)
Image 21Julius Nyerere demanding political independence for Tanganyika in 1961. (from History of Tanzania)
Image 22A 1.8-million-year-old stone chopping tool discovered at Olduvai Gorge and on display at the British Museum (from Tanzania)
Image 23A carved door with Arabic calligraphy in Zanzibar (from Tanzania)
Image 24The semi-autonomous Zanzibar Archipelago (from Tanzania)
Image 25Olduvai Gorge site also known as "The Cradle of Mankind" (from History of Tanzania)
Image 26Stamp of British East Africa with portrait of Queen Elizabeth II (from History of Tanzania)
Image 27The Arusha Declaration Monument (from Tanzania)
Image 28Traditional Tanzanian food consisting of pilau kuku (seasoned rice with chicken), mishkaki (grilled meat), ndizi (plantain), maharage (beans), mboga (vegetables), chapati (flatbread) and pili pili (hot sauce) (from Culture of Tanzania)
Image 29Farmers using a rice harvester in Igunga District, Tanzania (from Tanzania)
Image 30A Tingatinga painting (from Culture of Tanzania)
Image 31High Court Building in Kigoma (from Tanzania)
Image 32FIB Tanzanian special forces during training (from Tanzania)
Image 33Historical development of real GDP per capita in Tanzania, since 1950 (from Tanzania)
Image 34Regions of Tanzania (from Tanzania)
Image 35The Masai giraffe is Tanzania's national animal. (from Tanzania)
Image 36Tanzanian Ngoma group (from Culture of Tanzania)
Image 37Louis and Mary Leakey (from History of Tanzania)
Image 38Wildebeest migration in the Serengeti (from Tanzania)
Image 39Researchers (HC) in Southern Africa per million inhabitants, 2013 or closest year (from Tanzania)
Image 40A Ramadan dinner in Tanzania (from Culture of Tanzania)
Image 41Development of life expectancy (from Tanzania)
Image 42The snowcapped Uhuru Peak (from Tanzania)
Image 43Barbecued beef cubes and seafood in Forodhani Gardens, Zanzibar (from Culture of Tanzania)
Image 44Example of a World Food Programme parcel (from Tanzania)
Image 45Battle during the Maji Maji Rebellion against German colonial rule in 1905 (from Tanzania)
Image 46A Tanzanian woman cooks Pilau rice dish wearing traditional Kanga. (from Tanzania)
Image 47National Stadium in Dar es Salaam (from Tanzania)

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This month in Tanzanian history

1 July 1890: The Heligoland–Zanzibar Treaty made Zanzibar and Pemba a British protectorate.
5 July 2001: Ali Mohamed Shein became Vice President of Tanzania.
7 July 1954: Julius Nyerere formed the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) and became its first president. This day is celebrated as Saba Saba Day.
7 July 2000: The East African Community Treaty, signed the previous November between Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, came into force.
19 July 1898: Following years of resistance, Chief Mkwawa of the Hehe was cornered by German soldiers and committed suicide rather than be captured.

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Wildlife of Tanzania - show another

Credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim

The Blue Wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus), also called the Common Wildebeest and the Brindled Gnu, is a large antelope and one of two species of wildebeest. It grows to 1.7 m shoulder height and attains a body mass of up to 380 kg. They range the open plains, bushveld and dry woodlands of Southern and East Africa, realizing a life span in excess of twenty years.

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Did you know ...

...that while the first union was founded in 1927, Tanzania did not have a significant labor movement until the 1940s?

... that Operations Parthenon, Boris, Finery, Shed and Plan Giralda were all British plans for military intervention in Zanzibar following the 1964 revolution?

... that Ugandan military commander Isaac Maliyamungu reportedly wept after witnessing how much destruction his country's army had caused in Tanzania?

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WikiProjects

WikiProject Tanzania

WikiProject Africa

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Recognised content

Featured Articles: Anglo-Zanzibar War
Zanzibar Revolution

Featured Lists: List of Sultans of Zanzibar

Good Articles: 2008 invasion of Anjouan, Freddie Mercury, Lloyd Mathews

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Mikumi National Park, a national park in Mikumi, near Morogoro, Tanzania. The park was established in 1964, currently covers an area of 3230 km² and is the fourth largest in the country. The landscape of Mikumi is often compared to that of the Serengeti. The road that crosses the park divides it into two areas with partially distinct environments. The area north-west is characterized by the alluvial plain of the river basin Mkata. The vegetation of this area consists of savannah dotted with acacia, baobab, tamarinds, and some rare palm. In this area, at the furthest from the road, there are spectacular rock formations of the mountains Rubeho and Uluguru. The southeast part of the park is less rich in wildlife, and not very accessible.

Uganda–Tanzania War - show another

Articles here focus upon aspects of the Uganda–Tanzania War. These are all Good articles that meet a core set of high editorial standards.

The Battle of Entebbe was a battle of the Uganda–Tanzania War that took place on 7 April 1979 on the Entebbe peninsula in Uganda between Tanzanian units and Ugandan and Libyan units. The Tanzanians occupied the area, killed hundreds of Libyans, and ended the Libyan airlift in support of the Ugandan government.

Idi Amin had seized power in Uganda in 1971 and established a brutal dictatorship. Seven years later he attempted to invade neighbouring Tanzania to the south. The attack was repulsed, and Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere ordered a counter-attack into Ugandan territory. As Tanzanian forces advanced deeper into the country, Libya sent its own troops to support the Ugandans, flying them in to the airport at Entebbe. From their position in Mpigi the Tanzanians could see the Libyan air traffic, so they decided to attack the location to stop the airlift and eliminate a potential flank attack ahead of their assault on Kampala. (Full article...)

List of Uganda–Tanzania War articles
Battle of Bombo Battle of Jinja Battle of Lira Battle of Karuma Falls Battle of Lukaya Battle of Bondo Battle of Masaka Air campaign of the Uganda–Tanzania War Battle of Mutukula Battle of Tororo