The Chagga are a Bantu ethnic group from Kilimanjaro Region of Tanzania. They are the third-largest ethnic group in Tanzania. They historically lived in sovereign Chagga states on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro in both Kilimanjaro Region and eastern Arusha Region.
Kilimanjaro Region is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The regional capital and largest city is the municipality of Moshi. With an HDI of 0.613, Kilimanjaro is one among the most developed regions of Tanzania. According to the 2012 national census, the region had a population of 1,640,087, which was lower than the pre-census projection of 1,702,207. For 2002-2012, the region's 1.8 percent average annual population growth rate was the 24th highest in the country. It was also the eighth most densely populated region with 124 people per square kilometer. The most well-known tribes in the Kilimanjaro region are the chagga, rombos, and pare.
Arusha Region is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions and is located in the north of the country. The region's capital and largest city is the city of Arusha. The region is bordered by Kajiado County and Narok County in Kenya to the north, the Kilimanjaro Region to the east, the Manyara and Singida Regions to the south, and the Mara and Simiyu regions to the west. Arusha Region is home to Ngorongoro Conservation Area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The region is comparable in size to the combined land and water areas of the state of Maryland in the United States.
Rombo is one of the seven districts of the Kilimanjaro Region of Tanzania. The district covers an area of 1,471 km2 (568 sq mi). It is bordered to the north and east by Kenya, to the west by the Siha District and Hai District, and to the south by the Moshi Rural District. The Rombo District contains a large portion of Kilimanjaro National Park. According to the 2012 census, the population of the Rombo District was 260,963.
Hai is one of the seven districts of the Kilimanjaro Region of Tanzania.The district covers approximately 1,217 square kilometres (470 sq mi). It is bordered to the southwest by the Meru District of Arusha Region, to the west by the Siha District, and to the east by the Moshi Urban District and Moshi Rural District and the Rombo District to the far north. The western breach part of Mount Kilimanjaro is located in the Hai District. According to the 2012 census, the population of the Hai District was 210,533.
Nyumba ya Mungu Dam is a Tanzanian, hydroelectric dam located in and operated in Mwanga District, Kilimanjaro Region. It was built in the late 1960s and is Kilimanjaro region's largest artificial water body. Nyumba ya Mungu Reservoir. The reservoir is shared with Moshi District of Kilimanjaro Region and Simanjiro District of Manyara Region. Nyumba ya Mungu means 'House of God'. Its installed capacity is 8 megawatts (11,000 hp).
Meru District, offcially the Meru District Council is one of seven districts of the Arusha Region of Tanzania.The District is bordered to the north by Longido District, to the east by Siha and Hai Districts of Kilimanjaro Region, to the south by Simanjiro District of Manyara Region, and to the west by Arusha Rural District and Arusha Urban District. It covers an area of 1,266 km2 (489 sq mi). The district is comparable in size to the land area of Faroe Islands. Meru District has an max elevation of 3,800 m (12,500 ft) at Rhino Point on Mount Meru. The administrative capital of the district is Usa River. According to the 2012 Tanzania National Census, the population of Meru District council was 268,144.
Machame or Kingdom of Machame, was a historic sovereign Chagga state located in modern day Machame Kaskazini ward in Hai District of Kilimanjaro Region in Tanzania. Historically, the Machame kingdom was in 1889 referred by Hans Meyer as a great African giant, the kingdom was also the largest and most populous of all the Chagga sovereign states on Kilimanjaro, whose ruler as early as 1849 was reckoned as a giant African king with influence extending throughout all Chagga states except Rombo.
The Pangani River, is a major river of northeastern Tanzania. It has two main sources: the Ruvu, which rises as Lumi at Kilimanjaro, passes through Lake Jipe, and empties into the Nyumba ya Mungu Reservoir, and the Kikuletwa River, coming from the west and mainly fed by rivers of Mount Meru in Arusha Region, which also enters into the Nyumba ya Mungu Reservoir in Kilimanjaro Region. Just after leaving the reservoir the stream becomes the main Pangani, which empties into the Indian Ocean in Tanga Region at the Tangan port town of Pangani.
Siha is one of the seven administrative districts of Kilimanjaro Region in Tanzania. The district covers approximately 1,217 square kilometres (470 sq mi). It is bordered to the west by Meru District in Arusha Region and to the northeast by Rombo District and the southeast Hai District. The western part of Mount Kilimanjaro is located within the district's boundaries.
Songoro is an administrative ward in the Meru District of the Arusha Region of Tanzania. The ward covers an area of 114.0 km2 (44.0 sq mi), and has an average elevation of 1,285 m (4,216 ft). The ward is the source of the Kikuletwa River through the Tengeru River as a tributary which eventually leads to the Pangani River. According to the 2012 census, the ward has a total population of 11,139.
Sanya Juu is an administrative ward in Siha District of Kilimanjaro Region in Tanzania. The ward covers an area of 21 km2 (8.1 sq mi), and has an average elevation of 1,340 m (4,400 ft). According to the 2012 census, the ward has a total population of 11,283.
Ngalami or Ngalami Mmari, also known as, , was one of many kings of the Chagga. He was the king of one of the Chagga states, namely; the Siha Kingdom in what is now modern Siha District of Tanzania's Kilimanjaro Region from the 1880s to 1900. Mangi means king in Kichagga. Ngalami ruled from the Siha seat of Komboko (Kibong'oto) in the 1880s to 1900 when he was executed in Moshi by the Germans alongside 19 other Chagga, Meru and Arusha leaders. The execution of 19 noblemen and leaders in March 1900, included noblemen Thomas Kitimbo Kirenga, Sindato Kiutesha Kiwelu, King Meli of Moshi, King Lolbulu of Meru, King Rawaito of Arusha, King Marai of Arusha, and King Molelia of Kibosho.
Kikuletwa Hot Springs, also known as Maji Moto(Maji Moto ya Kikuletwa in Swahili) and also Chemka Hot Springs, is a natural geothermal oasis located in Masama Rundugai ward of Hai District in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania. Chemka means "boiling" in Swahili, referring to the appearance of how the water emerges from the ground. The hot springs are located approximately 40 kilometers from the town of Moshi, which is a gateway to Mount Kilimanjaro in a village called Chemka. The hot spring waters flow into the Kikuletwa River and eventually find its way to the Pangani River.
The Chagga States or Chagga Kingdoms also historically referred to as the Chaggaland were a pre-colonial series of a Bantu sovereign states of the Chagga people on Mount Kilimanjaro in modern-day northern Kilimanjaro Region of Tanzania. The Chagga kingdoms existed as far back as the 17th century according to oral tradition, a lot of recorded history of the Chagga states, was written with the arrival, and colonial occupation of Europeans in the mid to late 19th century. On the mountain, many minor dialects of one language are divided into three main groupings that are defined geographically from west to east: West Kilimanjaro, East Kilimanjaro, and Rombo. One word they all have in common is Mangi, meaning king in Kichagga. The British called them chiefs as they were deemed subjects to the British crown, thereby rendered unequal. After the conquest, substantial social disruption, domination, and reorganization by the German and British colonial administrations, the Chagga states were officially abolished in 1963 by the Nyerere administration during its third year as the newly independent nation of Tanganyika.
Siha or Kingdom of Siha also sometimes referred to as Kibongoto, was a historic sovereign Chagga state located in modern-day Machame Kaskazini ward in Hai District of Kilimanjaro Region in Tanzania. Siha was located west of the Ushira plateau on Mount Kilimanjaro. The word Mangi means king in Kichagga. The kingdom is known for Mangi Ngalami that was hanged together with 18 other Leaders of the Chagga states including Mangi Meli, by the German colonial regime in 1900.
Kikafu River(Mto Kikafu in Swahili) is located in the northern Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. It begins in Machame Mashariki ward in Moshi District and drains into the Pangani River. The river plays an important part of Chagga history in the Chagga kingdom of Machame.
Weru Weru River(Mto Weru Weru in Swahili) is found in northern Tanzania, in the Kilimanjaro Region. It rises in the Moshi District's Machame Mashariki ward and empties into the Pangani River. The Weru Weru River, like the Kikafu River, is significant to the history of the Chagga in the Machame kingdom.
Kikuletwa River is located in the northern Kilimanjaro Region, Manyara Region and eastern Arusha Region of Tanzania. It begins in Songoro ward in Meru District, Arusha and eventually drains into Pangani River at Nyumba ya Mungu Dam. The Kikuletwa hot springs also drain into the river.
Tanzania 