26 Facts About Zambia

Zambia, officially known as the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Central, Southern, and East Africa.

Zambia is an African country that is landlocked. A landlocked country is one that is surrounded by land and has no access to the open sea.

The Broken Hill skull was discovered in Zambia in 1921. The skull, which dates back approximately 299,000 years, is one of the best-preserved fossils of an ancient human species known as Homo heidelbergensis.

It is thought that modern humans, Homo sapiens, have lived in the area since 20,000 BC.

The Shona people arrived in the area during the 12th century and established the Mwene Mutapa empire, which included southern Zambia.

People from Zaire's Luba and Lunda empires (modern-day DR Congo) established small kingdoms in Zambia during the 16th century.

Zambia has one of the fastest-growing populations in the world, with the UN projecting that its population will triple by 2050, from 13 million in 2011.

Britain took control of Zambia in 1889, naming it Northern Rhodesia after a man named Cecil Rhodes. During the nineteenth century, Rhodes and his British South Africa Company used a British mandate to lead the colonisation of Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Northern Rhodesia gained independence in 1964 and was renamed Zambia, bringing an end to 73 years of British rule.

President Kenneth Kaunda, who ruled Zambia for 27 years from 1964 to 1991, was the country's first post-independence leader.

Unlike many of its neighbours in the region, Zambia has avoided the post-colonial turmoil that has plagued many African countries. As a result, Zambia has a reputation for political stability.

The celebrated 'big five' game animals of lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and buffalo can be seen in Zambia.

Zambia has 20 national parks and reserves, 34 Game Management Areas, and over 30% of its land is protected.

Zambia is thought to have more than 70 languages, though many of them are dialects. All of Zambia's major languages, except English, are members of the Bantu family.

Zambia is Africa's second-largest copper producer after the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the world's seventh-largest.

Zambia's flag is green with an orange eagle and vertical red, black, and orange stripes at the fly end. Green represents agriculture, red represents the freedom struggle, black represents the African people, and orange represents copper. The eagle represents freedom and the Zambian people's ability to rise above national problems.

Zambia's national symbol is the African fish eagle depicted on the flag.

Zambia is home to the world's largest curtain of falling water, the UNESCO-listed Victoria Falls. The falls span the entire width of the Zambezi River and drop approximately 108 metres. Zambia and Zimbabwe share the falls.

Scottish explorer David Livingstone named the falls after British Queen Victoria in 1855. The Kalolo-Lozi people refer to them as Mosi-oa-Tunya, which translates as "the smoke that thunders."

Following the worst drought in the region in a century, the Victoria Falls were reduced to a trickle of water in 2019.

The Devil's Pool, a natural pool that can be safely swum in during the dry season, is located near the Victoria Falls. The pool appears to be extremely dangerous at first glance, but thanks to an underwater lip, it is actually quite safe.

Zambia also has Africa's second-highest waterfall, after South Africa's Tugela Falls. Kalambo Falls, at 221m, is twice the height of Victoria Falls.

Zambia is home to the world's largest artificial lake in terms of volume. Lake Kariba has a water capacity of 180 kilometres and is located on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

According to a recent study, Zambia is home to a near-blind species of Ansell's mole-rats that can sense magnetic fields with their eyes. Mole-rats also live in intricate underground tunnel systems that can be up to 2.8km (1.7mi) long.

Zambia gets its name from the Zambezi River, which flows through the country's western region and forms its southern border with Zimbabwe.

Zambia's planning minister announced plans in 2017 to relocate the country's capital city from Lusaka in the south to a village called Ngabwe. Ngabwe, in the country's centre, has no proper roads or infrastructure and frequently floods. Lusaka will remain the capital until 2020.