Brief history of Tanzania

Pre-history

It is believed that the oldest hominids had first lived in Tanzania about 3.8 million years ago. In year 1931 archaeologist Dr Louis Leakey had discovered primitive stone tools in Olduvai Gorge in Northern Tanzania. These tools denoted the earlier and oldest human technology discovered in Africa. 

 

In the following 1959 Dr Mary Leakey had discovered first hominid skull named Zinjanthropus in the same Olduvai Gorge and was estimated to be about 1.8 million years old. Since these discoveries there had been a series of continuous  discovery of more evidence of earlier life in Tanzania. The oldest hominids footprints that were estimated to be about 3.6 million years old were discovered in 1978 by Dr Mary Leakey in Laetoli, on the same site she also discovered the oldest hominid remains estimated to be around 3.6-3.8 million years old named Australopithecus afarensis. 

Tanzania is believed to have been populated by hunter-gather communities in past 10,000 years or so, Bantu speaking peoplehad began to migrate from western Africa towards Tanzania and developed new political systems and iron-working skills. 

 

Tanganyika  

Explorers took interests of visiting Tanganyika in mid 1800s later to be colonized by German who faced resistance from locals who had established themselves to the land over 2000 years prior. Majimaji war was fought by the Nantudi of Ndambele led by Kinjekitile Ngwale from 1905-1907 after they revolted against the local administrators. Large number of Africans were killed and they had not succeeded to win their claim to resistance. German had dominated the region since around 1988 and imported new culture that dominated the culture of the indigenous.

After word war I (WWI), the land had become a British colony  in 1919 and it is during this time name Tanganyika came into use after British renamed the colony The Tanganyika Territory in January 1920.