Portal:Tanzania

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Tanzania Portal
Tanzania Portal

The Tanzania Portal

Flag of Tanzania
Flag of Tanzania
Coat of Arms of Tanzania
Coat of Arms of Tanzania
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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.

Kilwa Kisiwani ('Kilwa Island') is an island, national historic site, and hamlet community located in the township of Kilwa Masoko, the district seat of Kilwa District in the Tanzanian region of Lindi in southern Tanzania. Kilwa Kisiwani is the largest of the nine hamlets in the town of Kilwa Masoko and is also the least populated hamlet in the township with fewer than 1,000 residents.

At its peak in the Middle Ages, Kilwa had over 10,000 inhabitants. Since 1981, the entire island of Kilwa Kisiwani has been designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site along with the nearby ruins of Songo Mnara. Despite its significant historic reputation, Kilwa Kisiwani is still home to a small and resilient community of natives who have inhabited the island for centuries. Kilwa Kisiwani is one of the seven World Heritage Sites in Tanzania. Additionally, the site is a registered National Historic Site of Tanzania. (Full article...)
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The following are images from various Tanzania-related articles on Wikipedia.

This month in Tanzanian history

  • 11 May 1848: German missionary Johannes Rebmann became the first European to report seeing Mount Kilimanjaro.
  • 11 May 2006: Scientists announced that the Kipunji monkey found in 2003 belongs to a new genus of African monkey—the first to be discovered since 1923.
  • 28 May 1992: The Civic United Front liberal party was formed.

Wildlife of Tanzania - show another

Black Rhinoceros
Black Rhinoceros

The Black Rhinoceros or Hook-lipped Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), is a species of rhinoceros, native to the eastern and central areas of Africa including Kenya, Tanzania, Cameroon, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Angola. Although the Rhino is referred to as black, it is actually more of a grey/brown/white color in appearance. The name of the species was chosen to distinguish it from the White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum).

Did you know ...


Did you know?


  • ... that before Tanzanian soldiers could attack Lira in 1979, their commander gifted food and cooking oil to a ferry pilot so that he would ship them across a lake?

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Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam
Credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim
Skyline of the Dar es Salaam city center.

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 Jinja was a battle of the Uganda–Tanzania War that took place on 22 April 1979 near and in the city of Jinja, Uganda between Tanzanian and allied Uganda National Liberation Front forces on the one hand, and Ugandan troops loyal to Idi Amin on the other. The Tanzanians and the UNLF men met slight resistance and captured Owen Falls Dam and the town of Jinja.

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 the Tanzanians launched a counter-attack into Ugandan territory. After a number of battles, Amin's regime and military largely collapsed, and Kampala, the capital, was seized by the Tanzanians and the UNLF. Ugandan troops fled to the eastern city of Jinja, whose capture was entrusted to a force consisting of the Tanzanian 208th Brigade and members of the UNLF. (Full article...)

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Mount Kilimanjaro, an inactive stratovolcano in north-eastern Tanzania. At 5,895 metres (19,341 feet), Kilimanjaro is Africa's highest mountain and the tallest freestanding mountain in the world. It has three volcanic cones—Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira.

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