Tanzania
Travels in Tanzania:
Kilimanjaro - Machame Mweka (7 days)
Tented tour to Africa's highest peak
Nairobi Overland Safari (30 days)
From Johannesburg to Nairobi
East Africa Overland Safari (12 days)
Game Parks of Kenya and Tanzania
Zanzibar Cultural Tour (6 days)
Discover the charms and mystery of the Spice Island
Tanzania - Northern Circuit Safari (8 days)
Tarangire, Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Lake Manyara
Selous - Ruaha - Mikumi (9 days)
Road safari through Southern Tanzania
Kilimanjaro - Marangu (7 days)
Mountain trekking near the Equator
Mount Meru Climbing Adventure (4 days)
Visit the Kilimanjaro's neighbour mountain
Quick Facts:
Official Name: |
United Republic of Tanzania; Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania (Swahili) |
Capital: |
Dodoma |
Government: |
Many government offices still in Dar es Salaam |
Area: |
945,087 sq km |
Languages: |
English, Swahili |
Currency: |
Tanzanian shilling (tzs) |
Population figure: |
34,443,603 (Tanzania 2002 Census) |
Ethnology: |
Indigenous African 1 million; European 10,000; Asian 54,000; Arabian 70,000 |
National holiday: |
April 26, Union Day (commemorating the unification of Tanganyika and Zanzibar in 1964) |
Government type: |
Republic |
Climate
The climate of Tanzania ranges from hot and humid on the coast, to a more temperate climate in the elevated centre of the country. Tanzania has two rainy seasons; a long heavy one from March to May, and a shorter, lighter one from November to January.
History
Trading contacts between Arabia and the East African coast existed by the 1st century AD, and there are indications of connections with India. The coastal trading centres were mainly Arab settlements. After the arrival of the Portuguese in the late 15th century, the position of the Arabs was gradually undermined, but the Portuguese made little attempt to penetrate into the interior. In 1841, Sultan Sayyid Said moved his capital from Muscat to Zanzibar. In 1856, the Sultanate of Zanzibar was separated from the Sultanate of Oman. At the conference table in Berlin, the European powers in 1886 partitioned continental East Africa amongst themselves; the Sultanate of Zanzibar, now reduced to the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba, remained independent. In 1916, the colony was occupied by British forces; German troops continued to resist until the end of the war. In 1920, the League of Nations granted the mandate to administrate the former German colony, except Rwanda and Burundi, to Britain. The British Administration took measures to revive African institutions by encouraging limited local rule. In 1945 the first Africans were effectively appointed to the Governor's Legislative Council. Tanganyika first achieved autonomy and (some months later) full independence from Britain in 1961. In 1963, Zanzibar achieved independence from Britain in the form of a constitutional monarchy under the sultan, but a popular revolt in 1964 against the sultan soon led to the unification of Zanzibar with Tanganyika to form the United Republic of Tanzania. The name Tanzania was derived as a portmanteau of Tanganyika and Zanzibar and previously had no significance.
Nature
Tanzania is mountainous in the north-east, where Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak, is situated. To the north and west are the Great Lakes of Lake Victoria (Africa's largest lake) and Lake Tanganyika. Central Tanzania comprises a large plateau, with plains and arable land. The eastern shore is hot and humid, with the island of Zanzibar lying just offshore. Tanzania has about 33.5 million hectares of forests and woodlands. It has a rich and diverse spectrum of fauna and flora including a wide variety of endemic species and sub-species. Furthermore various grasslands and open woodlands of the Serengeti and Maasai Steppe in the north-west and north-east support some of the greatest concentration of large mammals in the world. Tanzania has 19% of its surface area devoted to wildlife in protected areas where no human settlement is allowed (12 National Parks, including the famous Serengeti NP in the north, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, 13 Game Reserves) and 9% where wildlife co-exists with humans.
This article is partly based on a free article of the encyclopaedia Wikipedia and is subject to GNU-licence for free documentation. A list of authors is available on Wikipedia