Zanzibar

Zanzibar is an archipelago of islands just 25-40 km from the Tanzanian coast whose main island is named like the archipelago. It is also a semi-autonomous region of Tanzania.

Historically, the presence of microliths suggests that Zanzibar has been home to humans for at least 20,000 years, which was the beginning of the Later Stone Age. In the Middle Ages, Persian, Indian, and Arab traders used Zanzibar as a base for travel and trade between the Middle East, India, and Africa. It is only from Vasco da Gama’s visit in 1498 that the island started to be marked by European influence, and Zanzibar became part of the Portuguese Empire in 1503 or 1504. In the 17^th century, Zanzibar came under the influence of the Sultanate of Oman and a Sultanate of Zanzibar existed till the British protectorat and the independence of Tanzania.

With less than a million habitants, Zanzibar has a very rich cultural heritage that is often shadowed by its « Island of Spices » nickname as the plantations and trade of spices are, alongside the production of raffia and tourism, one of the country’s main economic activities.