Unguja (Zanzibar)

Location: Is located in the Indian Ocean about 35 km off the coast of mainland Tanzania at six degrees
south of the equator. Zanzibar is made up of two main islands (Unguja and Pemba) and about fifty-two
small islets. The Island Unguja (sometimes called Zanzibar) is the largest island of Zanzibar, whose
capital city is located. Zanzibar is one of the two countries forming United Republic of Tanzania due
to the unification between Tanganyika and Zanzibar concluded on 26 April 1964.

While Zanzibar’s history is complex, there is an agreement among historians that from 10 th century,
the archipelago had already been playing the role of a Gateway for East, Central, and some parts of Africa South of the Sahara Desert. The famous English proverb “when we play a flute in Zanzibar, they
Dance in Africa” provides a historical insight. The epoch was characterized by the arrival of people from
all world concerns, impressed by the Islands’ climatic condition, geographical location, and economic
prosperity. In 1832, Zanzibar became the Capital of Oman, where Seyyid Said bin Said, the first Sultan,
made the archipelago the official residence. Like many other islands, Zanzibar is cosmopolitan;
the Africans, Arabs, Shirazis, Indians, to mention only a few blended to constitute the current people of
Zanzibar. The Shirazis came to Zanzibar in 10th Century, followed by Portuguese in 15th Century. The
death of the Seyyid Said Bin Sultan in 1956 is what caused the separation of the Sultanate between Oman and Zanzibar in 1861.