Makunduchi Mji wa Makunduchi (Swahili) | |
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From top to bottom: Metepe fisherman at Makunduchi beach & rocks on beach in Makunduchi, Mtegani ward | |
Nickname: Kunduchi of the islands | |
Coordinates: 6°24′14.76″S39°33′5.04″E / 6.4041000°S 39.5514000°E | |
Country | Tanzania |
Region | Unguja South Region |
District | Kusini District |
Demonym | Makunduchian |
Ethnic groups | |
• Settler | Swahili |
• Ancestral | Hadimu |
Makunduchi (Mji wa Makunduchi in Swahili) is a historic town and district capital in the Kusini District of the Unguja South Region in Tanzania. It is located inside the Kajengwa ward, and Mtegani ward, occupying Kiongoni neighborhood, Nganani neighborhood and Kijini neighborhood. The town comprises two distinct settlements, about 2 km from each other, "Old Makunduchi" on the east and "New Makunduchi". Old Makunduchi is a small fishermen's village on the shore of the Indian Ocean with the Nganani mtaa (neighborhood), while New Makunduchi has some modern buildings, shops, as well as some blocks of flats that were built in the 1970s with the aid of East Germans in return for Tanzanian political support internationally. [1] The town is also the birthplace and resting place for the 4th president of Zanzibar Idris Abdul Wakil. Makunduchi is also the birthplace of Samia Suluhu Hassan, the president of Tanzania. [2] Other famous politicians for Makunduchi include Mohamed Gharib Bilal. Also famous novelist Muhammed Said Abdulla.
The Wahadimu are the Zanzibar Island's original inhabitants, and Makunduchi's native residents. Their old settlement Makunduchi can still be found in the southeast of the island's shore. According to the Native Census of 1924 done by the British, a total of 3,911 people lived there: 1,190 adult males, 1,531 adult females, 615 boys, and 575 girls. There are 1,579 cottages in total. The residents claim that the name Makunduchi is derived from the name of the place they claim to have come from, which was called Kunduchi and was located on the mainland across from the island's southernmost portion. [3]
Makunduchi was the only location in the Zanzibar Sultanate where camels were still used for transportation as of the 1920s. These are primarily owned by the Indians known as Makumbaro. Makunduchi is the only location having a settlement of these Indians, whose homes are in Cutch and Kathiawar, with the exception of a few in Zanzibar City. There are roughly thirty families of potters living there, and the word comes from the Sanskrit Kumbhakar. They coexist in harmony with the Wahadimu, and raise their children in the countryside. The kids can converse in Kihadimu as well as the locals. The fronds of the wild date palm are used by the ladies of Makunduchi and Jambiani to create colorful mats with a fringe. This fringe is not made on the mats of other villages and is known as Ndevu, meaning beard. [4] In 1919 the British colonial office builds the Ras Makunduchi Lighthouse next to the historic settlement.
In addition to the practices followed, the natives of Zanzibar and Pemba continue to use the ancient solar calendar that they acquired from the Persians. The other Wahadimu, Watumbatu, and Wapemba celebrate New Year's Day customs that include putting out fires, scattering ashes at intersections, dusting floury ash against the exteriors of homes, taking ceremonial baths in the sea, and holding feasts. [5]
The Makunduchi people also follow two other traditions; two persons are placed within a tiny banda made of dried coconut leaves. The cottage is then lit on fire, and stones are hurled into the fire. Although the two men are meant to stay inside, they sneak out the back of the shack. After that, the elderly men dance around the grave of a long-gone patriarch whose name has been lost. [6]
Makunduchi is mostly known for the Mwaka Kogwa [7] or Mwaka Koga [8] ("show of the year") celebrations, of Shirazi and Swahili heritage, that take place in July/August to celebrate the New Year. [9] [10] In Mwaka Kogwa, a ritual battle is fought, at the end of which a hut is burned. Then, predictions are made for the new year, based on the direction taken by the smoke. [11]
The original purpose of this festival was to invoke the assistance and protection of spirits in order to ensure the prosperity of the nation and its citizens. It was a component of a larger set of agrarian ceremonies. Only the Mwaka kogwa, or New Year's festivity, remains today. In recent years, this festival has increased in significance rather than decreased. [12] Tours are organised to visit the festival and to explain and point out the customs. [7]
Makunduchi is a historical protected area in Zanzibar. It has a significant part of Tanzanian history both modern and ancient. Like much of the island, holiday and event tourism is a growing and major industry in the town. The first international tourism hotel was built in Makunduchi beach in 2006. [13]
Zanzibar is an insular semi-autonomous region which united with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. It is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, 25–50 km (16–31 mi) off the coast of the African mainland, and consists of many small islands and two large ones: Unguja and Pemba Island. The capital is Zanzibar City, located on the island of Unguja. Its historic centre, Stone Town, is a World Heritage Site.
The Swahili people comprise mainly Bantu, Afro-Arab and Comorian ethnic groups inhabiting the Swahili coast, an area encompassing the Zanzibar archipelago and mainland Tanzania's seaboard, littoral Kenya, northern Mozambique, the Comoros Islands and Northwest Madagascar.
Pangani District Council is one of eleven administrative districts of Tanga Region in Tanzania. The District covers an area of 1,756 km2 (678 sq mi). It is bordered to the north by Muheza District, to the east by Zanzibar Channel, to the south by the Chalinze District of Pwani Region, and to the west by the Handeni District. The district is comparable in size to the land area of Guadeloupe. The district seat (capital) and largest settlement in Pangani district is the town of Pangani. The district is named after the historic Pangani River. As of the 2022 census, the population was Pangani district was 75,642, making it the least populous district in Tanga Region.
Unguja South Region, Zanzibar South Region or South Zanzibar Region is one of the 31 regions of Tanzania. The region covers an area of 854 km2 (330 sq mi). The region is comparable in size to the combined land area of the nation state of Kiribati. and the administrative region is located entirely on the island of Zanzibar. Unguja South Region is bordered on three sides to the south by Indian Ocean, northeast by Unguja North Region and northwest by Mjini Magharibi Region. The regional capital is the town of Koani. Besides being known for its Spinner dolphin populations, the region is also home to the oldest mosque in East Africa, the Kizimkazi Mosque and also historic Makunduchi town. The region has the fourth highest HDI in the country, making one of the most developed regions in the country. According to the 2022 census, the region has a total population of 195,873.
Swahili architecture is a term used to designate a whole range of diverse building traditions practiced or once practiced along the eastern and southeastern coasts of Africa. Rather than simple derivatives of Islamic architecture from the Arabic world, Swahili stone architecture is a distinct local product as a result of evolving social and religious traditions, environmental changes, and urban development.
The Kizimkazi Dimbani Mosque is a mosque Located in the town of Dimbani, Kusini District of Unguja South Region in Tanzania. It is situated on the southern tip of the island of Zanzibar in Tanzania and is one of the oldest Islamic buildings on the East African coast. Despite its name, it is located in Dimbani, not Kizimkazi, which is 3 miles away. According to a preserved kufic inscription, it was built in 1107. Although the inscription and certain coral-carved decorative elements date from the period of construction, the majority of the present structure was rebuilt in the 18th century.
The Swahili coast is a coastal area of East Africa, bordered by the Indian Ocean and inhabited by the Swahili people. It includes Sofala ; Mombasa, Gede, Pate Island, Lamu, and Malindi ; and Dar es Salaam and Kilwa. In addition, several coastal islands are included in the Swahili coast, such as Zanzibar and Comoros.
Chambani is a historic site and village located in Mkoani District of Pemba South Region. Its one of several National Historic sites on the island of Pemba. The site is located nine kilometres south of Chake-Chake, close to several sets of ruins, notably the Pujini Ruins, a 15th-century citadel, located close to the village of Pujini, two kilometres to the north.
The Shirazi also known as Mbwera, are a Bantu ethnic group inhabiting the Swahili coast and the nearby Indian ocean islands. They are particularly concentrated on the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba and Comoros.
The Hadimu are a Bantu ethnic and linguistic group native to the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba Island of Tanzania.
Samia Suluhu Hassan. is a Tanzanian politician who has served as president of Tanzania since 19 March 2021. She is the first Tanzanian woman and the second woman from the East-African region to serve in the position. She previously served as vice-president of Tanzania from 2015 to 2021, from which she ascended to the presidency following the death of her predecessor, John Magufuli.
Hussein Ali Mwinyi is the 8th president of Zanzibar. The son of former Tanzanian president Ali Hasan Mwinyi, he is a member of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) political party.
A Swahili door or Zanzibari door is a door that was developed in the Swahili coast during the Middle Ages and peaked in the 19th century. The door is usually the first and foremost key element of Swahili architecture and was the historically first item that was built before the rest of the home.
Pujini Ruins is a Medieval historic site next to the village of Pujini located in Chake Chake District of Pemba South Region. There used to be a fortified palace at the site, only ruins of the walls remain. The palace is believed to have been of Mkame Mdume. Its one of several National Historic Sites on the island of Pemba including Chambani and Ras Mkumbuu.
Shamiani is protected historic site located inside Mkoani District of Pemba South Region in Tanzania. The site is home to partially excavated abandoned medieval Swahili ruins with a brief occupation period from about 14th to 16th century.
Msuka Mjini Ruins is protected historic site located inside Micheweni District of Pemba North Region in Tanzania. Msuka Mjini has a Swahili mosque from the fifteenth century preserved in ruins on the Kigomasha peninsula on the island. The date 816AH is carved on the interior of the circular mirhab.
Mkia wa Ng'ombe Ruins is protected historic site located inside Micheweni District of Pemba North Region in Tanzania. The settlement was established around the 15th CE and abandoned in the 16th century. There are ruins of a mosque, tombs and some stone buildings. The site is critically endangered to further erosion.
Kunduchi is a Medieval Swahili National Historic Site located in Kunduchi ward, located in Kinondoni District of Dar es Salaam Region in Tanzania. There is an excavated 15th-century mosque on the site. An 18th-century cemetery with the biggest collection of pillared tombs in East Africa, situated in a baobab woodland, and embellished with Ming era's porcelain plates. The pottery discovered here demonstrates the medieval town's affluence and trading connections with imperial China.
Oman–Tanzania relations are the diplomatic relations between Oman and Tanzania. The Sultanate of Oman has one of the oldest historical relationship with communities in Tanzania, namely in Zanzibar. Oman is the only country outside Africa where Swahili is spoken as a first language, and its people have blood relations with the people of Tanzania.
The Mafia Archipelago or The Mafia Islands is an group of islands across the Mafia Channel in the Mafia District of Pwani Region's coast on the Sea of Zanj in Tanzania's Indian Ocean coast. The archipelago is composed of 9 islands and around 12 coral reefs. In total, the Mafia archipelago covers 972 km2 (375 sq mi) in total, of which 8.5 km2 (3.3 sq mi) 407 km2 are land and 565 km2 are water. and has an average elevation of 53 m (174 ft). Of the 12 reefs in the archipelago the most famous one is the Tutia Reef. The nine Islands in the archipelago are. The largest island in the archipelago is Mafia Island also known as Chole Shamba locally. The other eight islands inside Mafia District in addition to Mafia Island are; Juani Island, Chole Island, Jibondo Island (Kibondo), Bwejuu Island, Shungumbili Island (Thanda), Barakuni Island, Miewi Island, and Niororo Island (Nyororo).