Unguja (also referred to as " Zanzibar Island" or simply " Zanzibar") is the largest and most populated island of the Zanzibar archipelago, in Tanzania.
History
Geography
Unguja is a hilly island, about long (north-south) and wide (east-west) at its widest, with an overall area of about .
It is located in the northern half of the Zanzibar Archipelago, in the
Indian Ocean, about south of the second largest island of the archipelago,
Pemba Island. Unguja and mainland
Tanzania are separated by the
Zanzibar Channel.
Unguja is surrounded by a number of smaller islands and islets, with only two of them, Tumbatu and Uzi Island, being inhabited. Other minor islands around Unguja include Bawe Island, Chapwani, Changuu, Chumbe, Kizingo, Kwale Island, Latham Island, Mautani, Miwi, Mnemba, Mwana wa Mwana, Nianembe, Popo Island, Pungume, and Ukanga.
Politics
Unguja and the surrounding islands are divided into three regions:
Unguja belongs to
Zanzibar, which is defined by the Tanzanian Constitution as "a part" of
Tanzania with a high degree of autonomy. The local Zanzibari government is based in
Stone Town, on the west coast of Unguja.
Population
As of the 2012
census, the total population of Unguja was 896,721, mostly concentrated in the Zanzibar urban region.
The main settlement on the island is
Zanzibar City, which serves as a capital for Zanzibar and which includes the renowned historical city of
Stone Town as well as other populated areas such as
Michenzani. Other major settlements on Unguja include Mbweni,
Mangapwani,
Chwaka, and
Nungwi.
People of Unguja mostly speak kiunguja ("the language of Unguja"), which is the dialect of the Swahili language that was used as the main model for the definition of standard Swahili.[ Kiunguja]
Economy
Unguja is the island of the Zanzibar Archipelago that has the most developed tourism industry. This accounts for a substantial part of Unguja's economy. Agriculture (including the production of
such as
cloves) and
fishing are other relevant activities. All along the east coast, most villages also rely on
seaweed farming.
Ecology
Notable mammal species on the island include the Zanzibar servaline genet, African palm civet, and Zanzibar red colobus. In June 2018, a
Zanzibar leopard was caught on camera here, despite previously being considered extinct in Zanzibar for the past 25 years.
External links
