30 Facts About Mozambique

Mozambique is a southeast African country bordered by Malawi, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

For at least 10,000 years, people have lived in Mozambique. Initially by dispersed nomad clans, and later by Bantu-speaking people from the Niger Delta.

The Shona empire arose between the Limpopo and Zambezi rivers around the 11th century.

Mozambique gets its name from the same-named offshore island, which was apparently named after Mussa al-Bik, an influential Arab slave trader who established himself as sultan on the island in the 15th century.

Mozambique's only UNESCO World Heritage Site is the island of Mozambique. The site is known for its 16th century architectural and historical significance and is only 4 kilometres from the mainland.

The Chapel of Nossa Senhora de Baluarte is located on the island. It is thought to be the oldest European building in the southern hemisphere, having been built in 1522.

If Scrabble allowed place names (proper nouns are not permitted), Mozambique would be worth 34 points - the highest score of any other one-word country. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan are tied for second place with 30 points.

Mozambique is also the only country with a name that contains all five vowels.

Mozambique’s flag has green, black, yellow and narrow white stripes, and a red triangle featuring a yellow star, an open book and a crossed hoe and rifle. Green represents the land, white represents peace, black represents the African continent, yellow represents the country's minerals, and red represents the struggle for independence. The rifle represents defence and vigilance, while the hoe represents agriculture, the book education, and the star Marxism.

The flag is one of only two national flags with a firearm, the other being Guatemala's.

Mozambique is a poor country and one of the world’s least developed. It was ranked ninth-lowest in the Human Development Index in 2020. (HDI).

Off the coast of Mozambique, gas fields were discovered in 2011. The discovery was expected to transform the country's economy, but despite recent growth, more than half of Mozambique's population remains impoverished.

Mozambique is also one of the world's poorest nations. Mozambique was named the fifth-hungriest country in the world in 2020, with "serious" hunger levels.

Vasco da Gama, the famous Portuguese explorer, was the first European to visit Mozambique in 1498.

Portugal began colonising the region in the 16th century and turned it into a major slave trading centre in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Mozambique gained independence in 1975, after more than ten years of guerilla warfare and a 1974 military coup in Portugal.

Mozambique's first president was resistance leader Samora Machel. He died in a plane crash in South Africa in 1986. The South African government was widely suspected of being involved in his death, despite emphatically denying any involvement.

Mozambique was embroiled in a civil war that killed over a million people and resulted in numerous human rights violations from 1977 to 1992.

Mozambique is home to over 200 mammal species, nearly 600 bird species, and nearly 6,000 plant species, 250 of which are thought to be endemic.

Gorongosa National Park was once considered one of the best wildlife parks in Southern Africa, home to 2,200 elephants, 200 lions, and 14,000 African buffalo, among other large mammals. However, wildlife was decimated during the civil war. Today, the Gorongosa National Park is being rebuilt, and it now has over 650 elephants.

Poachers killed the last rhinos in Mozambique in 2013, making the species extinct in the country. Poachers have long preyed on wildlife in Mozambique, with low-paid rangers prone to corruption. Furthermore, Mozambican poachers frequently cross into South Africa's Kruger National Park to kill rhinos.

Mozambique is one of only two Commonwealth countries that has no historical ties to the United Kingdom. The other is Rwanda.

Mozambique has a history of severe flooding, which has killed hundreds of people and displaced thousands.

Mozambique was most recently hit by cyclones Idai and Kenneth in 2019. It was the worst natural disaster to strike southern Africa in at least two decades, killing 603 people and affecting an additional two million.

Lake Malawi is home to hundreds of endemic fish species. Its importance for the study of evolution has been compared to that of the Galapagos Islands.

25% of Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa, lies within Mozambique. Lake Malawi is the world's fourth-largest freshwater lake by volume, the ninth-largest lake by area, and the third-largest and second-deepest lake in Africa.

Lake Malawi is sometimes referred to as "the calendar lake" because of its 365-mile length and 52-mile width.

The Bazaruto Archipelago is home to the five islands of the Bazaruto National Park, which protects dolphins and over 2000 different types of fish. There are also loggerhead, leatherback, green, and even dugong turtles.

The Quirimbas Archipelago's 31 islands are home to coral reefs and white sand beaches and are a popular honeymoon destination. Lonely Planet named them one of the "top 10 honeymoon islands" in 2017.

Several scenes from Leonardo DiCaprio's Oscar-nominated 2006 film Blood Diamond were shot in Mozambique.