According to Countryaah website, Zimbabwe has an estimated population of around 16.5 million. While the country was once able to look back on strong population growth, this has been approaching zero and, in some cases, even the minus point for about a decade. The reasons for this are the harsh economic difficulties in the country, the emigration and flight of many people and the appalling AIDS rate (approx. 24 to 35%) in this country, which is one of the poorest countries in the world. The life expectancy of Zimbabweans has dropped from 55 to 44 years in a short time and is now one of the lowest in the world. Especially the 20 to 40 year olds are affected, so that the age distribution in Zimbabwe has become unbalanced. According to the Human Development Index 2010, Zimbabwe ranks last of all 169 countries compared.
Religions
Of the approximately 95% of Christians in Zimbabwe, approximately 6% attend church regularly, with the largest Christian congregations being made up of the Anglicans, Catholics and Methodists. However, the Christian faith is permeated by African traditions, beliefs and customs of the time before Christianization, so that in addition to the Trinity and Sacrament, animistic ideas of other expectations of salvation, ancestral and possession cults (e.g. Mashawe) have remained alive. Mwari is worshiped as the highest principle or highest god of the Shona. In addition to the Christians, there is a diminishing minority of around 1% Muslims.
Ethnic groups
70% of the population of Zimbabwe is Shona. Apart from these, the approximately 13% Ndebele still play an important role in the country. 6% of the people belong to the Chewa. There are only about 20,000 Europeans left in Zimbabwe. Mugabe’s racist policies have greatly reduced their number. In addition to the groups mentioned, there are still some Indians and people in the country who have emerged from connections between black Africans and Europeans (= mulattos).
Languages
Although English is the official language, less than 2.5% of Zimbabweans consider it their mother tongue. English is spoken predominantly in the cities and by whites and mulattos. The most important languages in Zimbabwe, however, are the Bantu languages Shona (approx. 75%) and Ndebele (approx. 20%). The rest of the population speaks minority languages such as Kalanga, Nambya, Ndau, Shangaan, Sotho, Tonga and Venda.
Capital and other cities
Harare
Harare, the largest and capital of Zimbabwe, was still called Salisbury until April 18, 1982. It stretches in the west of the Mashonaland province and has an estimated population of 1.9 million people – in the metropolitan area it is about 2.9 million people. The largest airport in the country, Harere International, is located in the largest suburb of Harares, near Chitungwiza. With the University of Zimbabwe, Harare has the largest higher education institution in the country. It is located in the beautiful Mount Pleasant district, around 3 miles from the city center. Major attractions in the city include the National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Jacaranda-tree-lined Sam Nujoma Street, National Heroes Acre and the bustling Mbare Musika market in the Mbare district. According to Abbreviation Finder, ZWE stands for Zimbabwe in English. Click to see other meanings of this 3-letter acronym.
Bulawayo
The capital of the province of Matabeleland North, located in the southwest, is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after Harare, with a population of 1.5 million. The trading center for the surrounding area is both a railway junction and a university town. The colonial cityscape, which is dominated by Victorian houses, is quite pretty. While the National and National Railway Museum are located directly in Bulawayo, you have to drive into the vicinity to visit the ruins of Khami and the Matobo National Park.
Chitungwiza Chitungwiza,
which was only created in 1981 through the merging of the suburbs Seke, St. Marys and Zengeza, is Zimbabwe’s third largest city with around 325,000 residents. The metropolis, perceived as the “sleeping city” of Harares, is one of the fastest growing cities in Zimbabwe. Most of the residents travel to the Zimbabwean capital every day to work. Chitungwiza, which is close to Harares Airport, suffers from a total congestion of the local public transport system and offers hardly any sights.
Epworth
The city of Epworth, with a population of 115,000, is a suburb of Harare, one of the fastest growing and poorest settlements near Harares. The city is an outstanding example of so-called urban farmland, because vegetables are grown in front of private houses. The poverty, the completely inadequate infrastructure and the sometimes catastrophic living conditions are terrifying.
Gweru
The city of Gweru, called Gwelo until 1982, spreads almost in the center of Zimbabwe and has only had city rights since 1971. Around 145,000 people live in Zimbabwe’s fifth largest city, which is one of the country’s most important import and export centers. Apart from an internal airport, Gweru has numerous educational institutions and a very good infrastructure.
Zimbabwe: geography, map
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country north of South Africa. In the middle of the country there is a hilly highland from which numerous rivers have their source. An approx. 350 km long mountain range rises on the eastern border. Check topmbadirectory for politics, flags, famous people, animals and plants of Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe – the former Rhodesia – is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa and covers an area of 390,580 km². Thereof:
ForestAround 23% of the country is forested. The annual clearing is around 3,200 km².
Meadow and pasture landAround 12% of the land is used as meadow or pasture land.
Fields and fieldsAround 8% of the land is used as arable land or fields, especially for growing tobacco, sugar, coffee, cotton, tea and peanuts.
Zimbabwe shares a border with the following four countries :
– Mozambique with a length of 1,231 km,
– Botswana with a length of 813 km,
– Zambia with a length of 797 km and
– South Africa with a length of 225 km.
Longitude and latitude
Zimbabwe extends over the following geographical latitude (abbreviation Δφ) and geographical longitude (abbreviation Δλ):
Δφ = from 15 ° 30 ‘to 22 ° 20’ south latitude Δλ = from 025 ° to 033 ° east longitude
You can find detailed information on this subject under Longitude and Latitude.
Legal time
For Zimbabwe, the following value applies compared to Central European Time (CET), i.e. the time without summer time. A minus sign means that it is earlier there, a plus sign that it is later than CET:
Δt (CET) = + 1 h
Further and detailed explanations of the time can be found under Time zones, time.
Highest level of the sun in Harare
Harare, the capital of the country, lies at a southern latitude of around φ = 18 °.
If the declination δ of the sun has the value 18 ° south and the image point of the sun is above the city, the sun is perpendicular there. This happens twice a year, roughly 22 days before December 21st and then again 22 days after December 21st.
Attention
If the image point of the sun and thus the declination δ is north of the latitude of Harare, the sun is not in the south at noon, as in our latitudes, but in the north. In this case, the sun moves from east to north to west, where, like us, it sets.
Mountains
Inyangani
The highest mountain in the country is Inyangani with a height of 2,592 m. Another high mountain is the Nyangui with a height of 2,230 m.
Rivers
Zambezi
The longest river in the country is the Zambezi with a length of around 2,660 km. Other rivers in the country are the Shangani, Sanyati, Runde and Save.
Lakes
KaribaLake
The country includes numerous smaller and larger lakes. The largest lake is the Kariba Lake with an area of 7,770 km². Other larger lakes are LakeKyle and LakeManyamé.
