CoD V.1.5.2- The Zaramo of Tanzania:

TANZANIA:

The United Republic of Tanzania has had a rich and eventful history, but I don't think most of you would be too interested, so I'll summarize:
The diverse cultural and ethnic traditions encompassed in modern-day Tanzania were first united as a single geographical and political entity under the Prussian empire, as German East Africa circa the 1880s. G.E.A. was transferred to the British Empire as a British Trust Territory in 1919 (the result of a great big war) and the colony, known as Tanganyika, gained independence in 1961. Tanganyika and the neighbouring island of Zanzibar merged on April 26, 1964 to form the nation of Tanzania (interestingly, Freddie Mercury of Queen was born to Indian Parsi parents on Zanzibar! It was a British colony at the time)(also, Tanzania owns an island named Mafia!).(For more on Tanzania's history check out- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanzania).

Quick Facts:
Government Type: Republic.
Population: ca. 37.5 million people (of which almost 9 % live with HIV/AIDS, and 160,000 - half the population of Brampton- die of the disease every year). In contrast, Canada has around 33 million people, of which 56,000 live with HIV/AIDS, and ca.1,500 die yearly of the disease.
Median Age: 17.7 yrs (Can- 38.9 yrs).
Infant Mortality Rate: 96.5 deaths/1000 live births (Can- 4.7 deaths/1000 live births).
Life Expectancy at Birth: 45.6 years (Can- 80.2 yrs).
Ethnic Groups: mainland- 99% Native African (of which 95% are Bantu, consisting of 130 different tribes), 1% other (Asian, European, Arab). Zanzibar- Arab, Native African.
Religions: mainland- Christian 30%, Muslim, 35%, Indigenous beliefs- 35%.
Zanzibar- more than 99% Muslim.
Languages: Kiswahili/Swahili (official), English (official language of commerce, administration and higher education), Arabic (Zanzibar), many local languages (the first language of most people is one of the local languages).
Literacy: male- 86%, female- 70% (Canada- 99% across the board).Capital- Dar es Salaam (the legislative offices have been transferred to Dodoma, planned as the new national capital).

Economy Overview:
Tanzania is one of the poorest countries in the world. The economy depends heavily on agriculture, which accounts for almost half of GDP, provides 85% of exports, and employs 80% of the work force. Topography and climatic conditions, however, limit cultivated crops to only 4% of the land area.
GDP (Gross Domestic Product)- $27.7 billion (Can- $1.114 trillion) per year.
GDP Per Capita- ca.$700 (Can- $34,000) per year.
Population below poverty line: 36% (Can- Canada does not have an official poverty line).
Currency- Tanzanian Shilling (TZS).
Exchange Rate: 1,130TZS = 1$US (Can- 1.15$cdn = 1$US).
(Source: CIA - The World Factbook https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/tz.html

THE WAZARAMO:

(Wa- seems to denote a tribe, whereas Ki- seems to denote language, and U- denotes a geographical area - so the WaZaramo speak KiZaramo and live in UZaramo)

There's surprisingly little to be found on the Zaramo or the WaZaramo people group within that greatest of all repositories of human knowledge known to man- the Internet. This is what I have been able to gather:

Estimates on the total WaZaramo population range from 200,000 to 600, 000 people. They are a largely rural people and live primarily on the coast of Tanzania, around and south of Dar es Salaam. As a result of the city's exponential growth over the last 20 years, many Zaramo settlements have been incorporated into the city, and many more Zaramo have immigrated into the city in search of work. These primarily speak KiSwahili, with KiZaramo being spoken by elders or at home.

In rural areas the Zaramo still rely mainly on farming for most of their income. They grow much of the fruit and vegetables sold in the markets of Dar es Salaam. Here, KiZaramo is the more commonly used language.

Most Zaramo believed in a supreme God, Mulungu, who was associated with rainfall. Most prayers were directed to familial spirits. Religion among the Zaramo was a household affair. Every family was responsible for appeasing its ancestral spirits. Shrines were built to the spirits on the ancestral homeland, and members of the family were expected to journey to these sites to make the proper offerings. Zaramo believed that major disasters and illnesses were sent by Mulungu, but appeals and prayers must be made to the ancestral spirits who served as a liason between living men and God. In order to determine the proper course of action necessary to appease an offended spirit, a spirit medium, or mganga would be consulted. Through various divination techniques, the mganga would communicate with the spirits and then prescribe treatment for an illness or social imbalance.

Today the Zaramo people are basically Muslim, but many hold to traditionaltribal religious practices. Even though there is no established church to speak of among the Zaramo, there have been missionary endeavours to this group before. Portions of the Bible have been translated into Kizaramo, but the New Testament that had been translated in 1975 is no longer available (I know, weird eh? Maybe someone lost all the copies...). However, I found part of the first chapter of John in KiZaramo!

I'm guessing from this that Longa is Word, I know that Mulungu is God, ikilongozi is probably beginning, etc. My first few KiZaramo words!