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Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (pronounced /zɪmˈbɑbweɪ/), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, and formerly Southern Rhodesia, the Republic of Rhodesia and Zimbabwe Rhodesia, is a landlocked country in the southern part of the continent of Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It borders South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia to the northwest, and Mozambique to the east. The official language of Zimbabwe is English, however the majority of the population speaks Shona, one of the native languages of Zimbabwe. From circa 1250-1629, the area that is known as Zimbabwe today was ruled under the Mutapa Empire, also known as Mwene Mutapa, Monomotapa or the Empire of Great Zimbabwe, which was renowned for its gold trade routes with Arabs. However, Portuguese settlers destroyed the trade and began a series of wars which left the empire near collapse in the early 17th century. In 1834, the Matabele people arrived while fleeing from the Zulu leader Shaka, making the area their new empire, Matabeleland. In the 1880s, the British arrived with Cecil Rhodes' British South Africa Company. In 1898, the name Southern Rhodesia was adopted. In 1965, then-Prime Minister of Rhodesia Ian Douglas Smith declared Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom, making Rhodesia a republic. In 1979, Ian Smith and Abel Muzorewa reached an agreement and formed Zimbabwe Rhodesia, but a few months later the Lancaster House Agreement overrode Muzorewa's compromise and Zimbabwe Rhodesia became Zimbabwe. On 18 April 1980, Zimbabwe won independence and along with it a new name, flag, and government led by Robert Mugabe of ZANU. Canaan Banana served as the first president with Mugabe as Prime Minister. In 1987, the government amended the Constitution to provide for an Executive President and abolished the office of Prime Minister. The constitutional changes went into effect on 1 January 1988, with Robert Mugabe as President. Under the leadership of current president, Mugabe, the economy of Zimbabwe declined from one of the strongest in Africa to one of the weakest. Political opponents and critics of Mugabe formed the Movement for Democratic Change in 1999, campaigned for an end to "Mugabe's Reign of Terror." Now, as Zimbabwe descends into anarchy, political tension has greatly increased. Today, 80% of Zimbabweans are unemployed and inflation has soared to well over 15,000%.[1]
EtymologyThe name Zimbabwe derives from "Dzimbadzemabwe" meaning "big house of stone" in the Shona language.[2] Its use as the country's name is a tribute to Great Zimbabwe, site of the capital of the Empire of Great Zimbabwe. In other languages, such as German, the initial Z is replaced with an S so as to produce the same sound in the phonics of the said language; for example Zimbabwe is spelt Simbabwe. [3] History
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Zimbabwe
