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Information on Tanzania
Zanzibar
History
Zanzibar, a constituent part of Tanzania, is an island in the Indian Ocean about 35 km (20 mi) east of mainland Tanzania. Its area is 1,660 Km2 (640 mi2), and its population (including the neighboring island of Pemba) is 758,000 (1994 est.). The city of Zanzibar is the capital. Zanzibar once supplied 80% of the world's cloves, but the clove trade has collapsed. Coconuts, cassava, plantains, and rice are grown, and fishing and tourism are important. Africans constitute 80% of the population, with Arabs constituting 10% and Indians 7%. Most Zanzibaris are Sunni Muslims.
Settled about AD 1000 by African mainlanders, who subsequently mixed with Arab, Iranian, and Indian traders from the Persian Gulf area, Zanzibar fell under Portuguese domination shortly after Vasco da Gama visited (1499) the island. Under the control of the sultans of Oman from 1698 to the late 19th century, Zanzibar served as the principal base of the East African trade in slaves and ivory. The British exercised a protectorate over the island from 1890 until 1963, when the island gained independence. Soon after independence the sultanate was overthrown, and the island joined with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. The island has its own constitution and legislature with control over local affairs, but tension between the nationalistic Zanzibaris and the central government continues. The island unilaterally joined the Organization of the Islamic Conference in 1992 but withdrew in 1993 when the move threatened the unity of Tanzania.
Zanzibar is the largest coral island off the coast of Africa.
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