Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in Africa, situated between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. Once upon a time, the country was ruled over by Mutapa Empire, renowned for its gold trade routes with Arabs. However, it was destroyed by the Portuguese in the 17th century. In 1834, the Ndebele people arrived in Zimbabwe, making it a new empire, known as Matabeleland. In 1880s, British arrived here and the name Southern Rhodesia was adopted in 1898. Finally, on 18th April 1980, the country attained independence along with a new name, Zimbabwe, new flag, and government. To know some more interesting & fun information about Zimbabwe, read on.
Interesting & Fun Facts about Zimbabwe
- The official name of Zimbabwe is Republic of Zimbabwe.
- Zimbabwe became an independent state on 18 April 1980.
- Zimbabwe was formerly known as Southern Rhodesia, the Republic of Rhodesia and Zimbabwe Rhodesia
- Zimbabwe derived its from the stone structures of Great Zimbabwe or Dzimbahwe
- The capital city of Zimbabwe is Harare.
- The official language of Zimbabwe is English.
- The currency of Zimbabwe is Dollar.
- The name Zimbabwe was derived from the stone structures of Great Zimbabwe or Dzimbahwe, which were included in the World Heritage List in 1986.
- Mount Inyangani (2952m) is the highest point in Zimbabwe.
- Another World Heritage site in Zimbabwe is Khami, where artifacts from Europe and China have been found.
- Mapungubwe was the largest ancient kingdom in the sub-continent before it was abandoned in the fourteenth century. It was added to the World Heritage List in 2003.
- The Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe are locally known as Mosi-oa-Tunya, "the smoke that thunders". They were designated as a World Heritage site in 1986.
- Lake Kariba, constructed on River Zambezi, is one of the world's largest manmade lakes in the world.
- Zimbabwe has one of the highest rates of infections of HIV and AIDS in the whole world.
