Historical Country Names - Nations Online Project Historical Country Names keywords: geography, historical country names, former country names, history, place name changes, historical maps List of formerly used country names and names of countries which have ceased to exist. Name changes of countries, dependencies, geographical and other regions of particular geopolitical interest. Today Abyssinia The Ethiopian Empire spans a geographical area of today Ethiopia, Eritrea , and Djibouti ,and included parts of Northern Somalia , Southern Egypt , Eastern Sudan , Yemen and Western Saudi Arabia . Abyssinia was an empire that existed for more than 800 years, from circa 1137 (beginning of Zagwe Dynasty) until 1974 when the Ethiopian monarchy was overthrown in a coup d'etat. Afars and Issas Territory formerly known as French Somaliland, the French colony was renamed to the French Territory of Afars and Issas (1967 - 1977),the territory became independent in 1977, known today as Djibouti. formerly a British protectorate became independent in 1966 as the Kingdom of Lesotho.

formerly a British protectorate became independent in 1966 as Republic of Botswana. Democratic Republic of the Congo Benadir a coastal region of Somalia; covering most of the Indian Ocean coast of the country, from the Gulf of Aden to the Juba River, formerly part of Italian Somaliland. Biafra, Republic of (named after the Bight of Biafra) today part of Bophuthatswana - nominal republic and homeland for Tswana-speaking people, 1949 reincorporated into British Bechuanaland (region) incorporated into the Cape Colony (1895) British East Africa or East Africa Protectorate British protectorate from 1890 until 1920 Kenya , Tanzania , Uganda , and parts of Somalia (Jubaland) Cape Colony, 1795-1797 British colony, 1803-1806 colony of the Batavian Republic (Netherlands), since 1910 part of Central African Republic Kenya Colony The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya was part of the British Empire in Africa. It was established when the former East Africa Protectorate was transformed into a British crown colony in 1920.

Ciskei (Republic of Ciskei)- homeland for Xhosa-speaking people, 1994 reincorporated into Dahomey ; (the Republic of Dahomey; in French: République du Dahomey), was a former French colony andpart of French West Africa until independence in 1960, in 1975 the Republic of Dahomeychanged its name in Benin. Dan Ho Me was an ancient Kingdom located in the south of today Benin. French Guinea was a French protectorate in West Africa, after independence from France in 1958 it became today Mali French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegambia and Niger, French Sudan , French Guinea , Côte d'Ivoire, Upper Volta and Dahomey . Mauritania , The Gambia , Senegal , Niger , Mali , Guinea , Côte d'Ivoire , Burkina Faso and Benin.

German East Africa (German: Deutsch-Ostafrika) a German colony from 1885 until 1919 which included Burundi, Rwanda and Tanganyika (the mainland part of present Tanzania), an area almost three times the size of Germany today. German East Africa colony ended with the defeat of Imperial Germany in World War I. With the Treaty of Versailles the territory was divided between Britain (Tanganyika.), Belgium (Ruanda-Urundi), and Portugal (to become part of Mozambique). Hausaland, consisted of seven independent city-states: Biram, Daura, Gobir, Kano, Katsina, Rano, and Zaria.

Italian East Africa (former name for Italian possessions in eastern Africa) Kaffraria, former name for Transkei Katanga - 1960, Belgium granted independence to the Congolese province of the Mali Federation, was a country in West Africa 1959-1960, formed by a union between Malawi Portuguese East Africa (Província Ultramarina de Moçambique) Mozambique or Portuguese East Africa (officially the State of East Africa) for almost 500 years a Portuguese Colony, 1498–1975.

See also: Portugal Sahara Occidental, Spanish name for Senegambia (region; former name of the confederation of Senegal and Gambia) Songhay (Songhai), in the 16th century a major empire of the Western Sudan, in the region of South-West Africa (SWA, German: Deutsch-Südwestafrika), a German colony from 1884-1915 Spanish West Africa (former name for Ifni and Spanish Sahara) Stellaland, Republic of; annexed by the Boers later British Bechuanaland, incorporated into the Cape Colony (1895) Tanganyika Territory, united with the islands Zansibar and Pemba it became Togoland (British Togoland), since 1957 part of Transkei (former Kaffraria and one of ten "black homelands" and nominal republic, in Southeast of ) Transvaal or ZAR - Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek; today the Province Limpopo of Ubangi-Shari (Oubangui-Chari) a former French territory in central Africa, whith independence on 13 August 1960 the country became the

 Central African Republic Union of South Africa The Union of South Africa was formed on 31 May 1910 as a parliamentary union of the four self-governing British colonies: the Cape of Good Hope Province (Cape Province; previously Cape Colony), Natal Province (Natal Colony), the Orange Free State Province (Oranje Vrij Staat/Orange River Colony) and the Transvaal Province (Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek/Transvaal Colony).

The Union came to an end in 1961with a new constitution and became the "Republic of South Africa". Zaire, changed its name in 1997 to Zanzibar (island, east off the coast of Tanzania) a former protectorate of Britain. Zanzibar gained independence in1963 united with Tanganyika, today it is a semi-autonomous part of Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR) or Transvaal colony; today the Limpopo province of Abkhazia (Region name is still in use) Bactria (Bakhtria) historical region of Greater Iran, located between the Hindu Kush mountain range and the Amu Darya (Amu river). The region was the birthplace of Zoroastrianism (Mazdaism) and later, also hosted Buddhism before becoming Muslim after the 7th century. The Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley are a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Afghanistan with the remains of two huge standing Buddha statues which were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.

Circassia was located east of the Black Sea and west of the Caspian Sea in the Caucasus region, it was the mountainous territory of the Circassians (Adyghe), it was wiped from the map in the late 19th century whenRussia conqueredthe Caucasus region. All Circassians were displacedfrom their homeland. Historians refer to the displacement of the Adyghe people by the Russian Empire to "the inventing of the strategy of modern ethnic cleansing and genocide". Circassia was situated north of today Georgia in the southern half of Russia's Krasnodar Krai, south of Kuban River,as well as in the Beshtau, an isolated mountainous region in Stavropol Krai, and in todays Russian Republics of Adygea, Karachay–Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, and North Ossetia–Alania, in south west Russia . East Turkestan; Eastern Turkestan; Chinese Turkestan Part of western China (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region ) Kashmir (region) is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent.

Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the Vale of Kashmir, the valley between the GreatHimalayas (in northeast) and the Pir Panjal mountain range (in southwest). Today the term Kashmir refers to a larger area that includes the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir (including the Kashmir valley and Jammu and Ladakh), the Pakistani-administered Gilgit-Baltistan and the Azad Kashmir provinces, and the Chinese-administered regions of Aksai Chin and Trans-Karakoram Tract. state during the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, it is the ancient name of Cyprus Dilmun, mentioned in ancient texts as a trade partner of Mesopotamia, although the exact location of Dilmun is unclear, it is associated with Bahrain , the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia , Qatar , Oman and nearby coast of Iran in the Persian Gulf. Galilee, Galilea is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country.

See: Map of Israel Judea, Judäa,(region) Hebrew: יהודה was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BC (Assyrian rule) to the 2nd century AD, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt. Muscat and Oman, Sultanate of Muscat and Oman until 1970 North Yemen or Yemen Arab Republic was a country from 1962 to 1990 in the western part of what is now Yemen. Ottoman Empire the Turkish empire, established in northern Anatolia by Osman I (Osman Gazi Khan) at the end of the 13th century and expanded by his successors to include all of Asia Minor and much of southeastern Europe. After setbacks caused by the invasion of the Mongol ruler Tamerlane (Timur) in 1402, the Ottomans captured Constantinople (today Istanbul) in 1453, and the empire reached its zenith under Suleiman the Magnificent (ruled 1520 to 1566).

At the height of its power, in the 16th and 17th centuries, the Ottoman Empire controlled territory in southeastern Europe, southwestern Asia, and North Africa. It had greatly declined by the 19th century and collapsed after World War I. also known as the Trucial States, Trucial Oman, and the Trucial Shaykdoms Tylos, was referredby the Greeks to today Bahrain United Arab Republic (UAR) The United Arab Republic or U.A.R., was a union between Egypt and Syria. The union began in 1958 and existed until 1961, when Syria seceded from the union. Egypt continued to be known officially as the "United Arab Republic" until 1971. The President was Gamal Abdel Nasser. During most of its existence (1958–1961) it was a member of the United Arab States, a confederation with North Yemen.

Egypt , Syria , Yemen Yemen Arab Republic (YAR) The Yemen Arab Republic, also known as North Yemen, was a country from 1962 to 1990 in the western part of what is now Yemen, its predecessor was the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (1918–1962), also known as the Kingdom of Yemen, its capital was at Taiz (Ta'izz). Yemen __Eastern Asia Cathay, (English) Cathay is the Anglicized version of "Catai" the name used for northern China, and an alternative name for: Choson, Chosen the Korean peninsula today split into Republic of Korea (South Korea) and Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) Formosa (island) Dutch Formosa, period of a colonial Dutch government (1624–1662), the Dutch East India Company established its presence on Formosa to trade with China and Japan and to prevent Portuguese and Spanish trade and colonial activities in East Asia. Spanish Formosa, a Spanish colony established in the north of of the island (1626–1642).

Taiwan Great Korean Empire was the name of the Korean empire that existed on theKorean Peninsula, from the Proclamation of the Korean Empire in October 1897 to the Annexation of Korea by Japan in 1910. The Great Korean Empire was an absolute monarchy with a constitution. Republic of Korea (South Korea) and Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) Kingdom of Tungning (1662 - 1683) The kingdom was founded by Koxinga (official name: Zheng Chenggong),on the island of Formosa. Koxinga was born in Hirado, Japan to Zheng Zhilong, a Ming dynasty admiral-pirate-merchant, and his Japanese wife. The Kingdom of Tungning was run by the Zheng family, supporting the Ming Dynasty in mainland China which was replaced by the Manchu-ruled Qing Dynasty in 1644. Koxinga wanted to use the island as a base of operations to train its Ming military forces and recapture the mainland from the Manchus. Hedied in 1662 six month after the conquest of Formosa.

His son Zheng Jing ruled the next 20 years from its court at Tainan. Annam, Anam (1883-1954) French protectorate in Central Vietnam Ayutthaya, Kingdom of; (Siam) covered Thailand , half of Cambodia , most of Laos and large areas of present day Myanmar (Burma) Bengal, region in the northeast of South Asia today divided between Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan), and the India n federal stateWest Bengal. Balochistan or Baluchistan a region on in the Iranian Plateau in Southwest Asia, named after the local Baloch tribes of Persian origin. part of the region is now the province Balochistan in Pakistan , other areas of the region were part of today's Iran and Afghanistan . Baluchistan States Union existed between1952 and1955 in southwest British North Borneo, former British protectorate and crown colony, occupies the northern tip of the island of Borneo.

Burma, changed its name in 1989 to Ceylon in 1972 thename of the country was changed to "Free, Sovereign and Independent Republic of Sri Lanka", in 1978 the name was changed to "Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka" Map of Sri Lanka Dutch East Indies (Netherlands East Indies) was the Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalized colonies of the former Dutch East India Company that came under the administration of the Netherlands in 1800. Indonesia East Pakistan, a former province of Pakistan. East Pakistan was created from Bengal Province based on the 'Mountbatten Plan' in what was then British India in 1947. Eastern Bengal was given to the Dominion of Pakistan and became a province of Pakistan by the name East Bengal. East Bengal was renamed East Pakistan in 1956 and later became the country of Bangladesh after the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, which took place after the General Elections of 1970.

British West Indies - the colonies of the British in the Caribbean: today the term refers to the British Caribbean overseas territories which are: Anguilla , Bermuda , British Virgin Islands , Cayman Islands, Montserrat , Turks and Caicos Islands. Danish West Indies or "Danish Antilles", were a colony of Denmark - Norway in the Caribbean. They were sold to the United States in 1916 in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies and became the United States Virgin Islands in 1917. US Virgin Islands French West Indies, the French overseas departments Guadeloupe and Martinique , as well as the French Caribbean Départments d'Outre Mer, include the Guadeloupe dependencies of the French part of the island St. Martin and the islands Saint-Barthélemy, Les Saintes, Marie-Galante and La Désirade.

Haiti, the Arawaks name for the island of Hispaniola New Spain (Nueva España) colonial territories of the Spanish Empire in North and Central America, including Somers Islands is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean better kown as New Spain (Nueva España) colonial territories of the Spanish Empire in North and Central America, including Mexico , Guatemala , Belize , El Salvador , Honduras , Nicaragua , Costa Rica and parts of South-West USA New Netherland, or Nieuw-Nederland in Dutch, was the 17th-century colonial province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on the East Coast of North America. The settled areas are now part of the Mid-Atlantic States of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Connecticut, with small outposts in Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. The provincial capital, New Amsterdam, was located at the southern tip of the island of Manhattan on upper New York Bay. Today British Guiana was a British colony on the northern coast of South America, what is now the independent nation of Guyana. Capital was Georgetown . Guyana Dutch Guiana (Netherlands Guyana) Dutch colonization of the Guianas began in the beginning of the 17th century.

The colonies of Essequibo and Demerara (Demerary), Surinam, and Berbice were Dutch settlements, trading posts and plantations in the coastal areas ofthe north eastern part of South America, a region which is known as the Guianas, today divided into the countries of Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and the north eastern part of Brazil. Capital city was Fort Zeelandia ( Paramaribo ) Venezuela , Guyana , Suriname , French Guiana , and the Amapá province of Brazil. Gran Colombia (1819-1830), the former republic consisted ofthe territories of present-day Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Panama, northern Peru and northwest Brazil. Inini, an inland territory of French Guiana, its capital was Saint-Élie. New Holland (2), Nieuw Holland, or also known as Dutch Brazil, was a former dutch colony on the northeast coast of Brazil 1630 - 1654. Capital city was Mauritsstad, today part of the city of Recife .

Province of Pernambuco, Brazil Terra de Santa Cruz , in the early 16th century when the Portoguese realized it was not an island but part of a continent they were about to conquer, they renamed it from 'Ilha de Vera Cruz' (Island of the True Cross) to Terra de Santa Cruz (Land of the Holy Cross). Today the region is known as Brazil. Map of Moldova Pridnestrovia (Transnistria) formerly part of the Soviet Union ( Russia ), today a breakaway state of Moldova also known as Transnistria, which claims territory between the Dniester river and the eastern border of Moldova with Ukraine . It declared independence in 1990 but is unrecognised by any United Nations member state. Transnistria is one of four post-Soviet "frozen conflict" zones. (see: Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia) After the dissolution of the USSR, tensions between the newly created Moldova and the de facto sovereign state of Pridnestrovia escalated into a military conflict. Unlike the rest of Moldova Pridnestrovia had not wanted to separate from the Soviet Union.

Because of the Russian military contingent present in Transnistria, the European Court of Human Rights considers Transnistria "under the effective authority or at least decisive influence of Russia". Map of Moldova Prussia, Preussen a former kingdom of the German Empire.Originally a small country on the south eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, under Frederick the Great it became a major European power covering much of modern northeast Germany and Poland. Capital city was Königsberg (today Kaliningrad, Russia), later Berlin . (region; former name for Carpatho-Ukraine) Map of Ukraine Silesia, (in German: Schlesien) historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts in the Czech Republic and Germany, its largest city and capital was Wrocław(Breslau). Poland , the Czech Republic and Germany . Soviet Union (1922 - 1991) short form of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), a former federation of Communist republics occupying the northern half of Asia and part of eastern Europe, capital city was Moscow . 12 constituent republics emerged from the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 as independent post-Soviet states.

Armenia , Azerbaijan , Belarus , Estonia , Georgia , Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Latvia , Lithuania , Moldova , Russian Federation (Russia) , Tajikistan , Turkmenistan , Ukraine , Uzbekistan Scotland, the former independent kingdom is today one of four constituent nations which form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, capital city is Edinburgh Malawi - Country Profile - Republic of Malawi - Nyasaland - Southeastern Africa Info ___ Malawi Destination Malawi, a virtual travel guide to the "Warm Heart of Africa". This page aims to give you a broad overview of Malawi's art, culture, people, environment, geography, history, economy and government. Beside a country profile with facts and figures, the page contains links to sources which provide you with all the information you need to know about this African nation, e.g.: official web sites of Malawi, addresses of Malawian and foreign embassies, domestic airlines, city- and country guides with extensive travel and tourism information on accommodation, tourist attractions, events and more like weather information, maps, statistics and local newspapers from Malawi. Flag of Malawi Background: Malawis' predominantly rural population is comprised of various tribes that migrated from other parts of Africa.

According to its gross national income (GNI) the Republic of Malawi is the poorest country in Africa, its economy is agro-based. There is a small tourism sector which is being primed for growth. The former British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. First democratic multiparty elections were held in 1994, after three decades of one-party rule. A provisional constitution, took full effect in 1995. In the 2004 elections the UDF party was voted in again for the third time since 1994. HISTORY OF MALAWI HISTORY OF MALAWI Enjoy the Famous Daily The Maravi Confederacy: 16th - 18th century The earliest known settled kingdom in the region of Lake Nyasa is that of the Maravi Confederacy. Established by Bantu-speaking peoples in about 1480, and continuing into the 18th century, the confederacy controls territory west from the great lake to the Luangwa River, south to the Zambezi and east to the coast.

This tribal empire of the Maravi people loses cohesion in the 18th century under the impact of Arab traders arriving from the coast. Local chieftains now make their own competitive arrangements in the rapidly developing trade in ivory and slaves. And the Yao people, living south and east of Lake Nyasa, begin to rival the Maravi as middlemen between the interior and the markets on the coast. British involvement: from1858 From the middle of the 19th century slavery is the issue which focuses European attention on these regions of Africa. Livingstone , who launches an anti-slavery crusade based on what he has witnessed along the Zambezi, reaches Lake Nyasa in 1858. In 1876 Scottish missionaries establish Blantyre (named after Livingstone's birthplace and now the largest city in Malawi) as a centre from which to fight slavery. A central plank of Livingstone's policy is that legitimate trade must be provided to replace the local profit deriving from slaves. So the missionaries are soon followed by an African Lakes Company, financed in Scotland. Both the missionaries and the company's employees find themselves in frequent conflict with the slave traders.

Their difficulties prompt the appointment, in 1883, of a British consul to the area. He is accredited, grandiosely but vaguely, to 'the kings and chiefs of central Africa'. Thus in 1890, when Cecil Rhodes is making his treaty with Lewanika further to the west, there is already a British presence in the region bordering Lake Nyasa. By contrast the settlers sent by Rhodes into present-day Zimbabwe and Zambia are the European pioneers in these regions. This distinction directly affects British policy. In 1891 Rhodes's company is given charters to adminster Rhodesia ( Zimbabwe ) and Northern Rhodesia ( Zambia ). But in the same year the British government takes direct responsibility for the administration of present-day Malawi - to be known from 1893 as the British Central African Protectorate, and from 1907 as Nyasaland. Over the next half century Nyasaland barely prospers. With work in short supply for the African population, many move to neighbouring countries in search of employment. The view develops in government circles that Nysasaland's economy can only thrive in some form of closer union with its two colonial neighbours.

By the 1950s the political future of these neighbouring African colonies is under intense discussion. The Europeans of Rhodesia and Northern Rhodesia assume that sooner or later they will merge to form a single independent nation. From the British government's point of view, geography and economics alike suggest that Nyasaland should also be involved. But any such policy is resisted by the Africans, particularly in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland with their small European populations. To Africans here the danger of union is obvious. They will be overshadowed by the strong European culture of Rhodesia, postponing perhaps indefinitely the ideal of independence under black majority rule. Federation: 1953-1963 Confronted with conflicting demands, and aware of its responsibilities for Nyasaland as well as the two Rhodesias, the British government imposes in 1953 an awkward compromise in the form of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. This is to be a self-governing colony, with its own assembly and prime minister (first Lord Malvern, and from 1956 Roy Welensky).

The intention is to derive the greatest economic benefit from the larger unit while minimizing political tension between the three parts of the federation, each of which retains its existing local government. The federated colonies are at differing stages in their political development. All they have in common is an almost complete absence of any African voice in the political process. Rhodesia has been a self-governing colony for three decades, but with no African suffrage (a tiny 'B roll' of African voters is added to the electorate in 1957). Northern Rhodesia has a legislative council with, since 1948, two seats reserved for African members. At the time of federation there are no Africans on Nyasaland's legislative council. Two years later, in 1955, places are found for five members. The intended economic benefits materialize during the early years of the federation, helped by a world rise in copper prices, but this is not enough to stifle increasing political unrest - particularly as British colonies elsewhere in Africa win independence (beginning with Ghana in 1957). In the early 1960s African politicians in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland win increasing power in their legislative councils.

The pressure grows to break up the federation. In March 1963, by which time all three colonies are demanding independence, the British government finally concedes. The federation is formally dissolved on 31 December 1963. Steps to independence: to1964 The years immediately before federation have seen the first stirrings of African nationalism in Nyasaland. A group of politicians, among them a doctor, Hastings Banda, speak out against the proposed linking of the three colonies. When it nevertheless happens, in 1953, Banda goes abroad to practise medicine in Ghana. But there is pressure from his colleagues for him to return. He does so in 1958, becoming president of the Nyasaland African Congress. In this position he leads an increasingly strident campaign against the federation. In 1959 the resulting disturbances are followed by a state of emergency and Banda's arrest. Released in 1960, Banda takes part in government discussions on political reform. A compromise is achieved. Nyasaland will remain in the federation but Africans will have a majority of the seats in the colony's legislative assembly.

Banda joins the government as a minister in 1961 and becomes prime minister when Nyasaland is granted internal self-government in February 1963, ten months before the federation is dissolved. Nyasaland becomes independent in July 1964, taking the name Malawi. Banda retains his post as prime minister. Independence: from1964 From the start of what turns out to be a 30-year rule in Malawi, Banda follows policies which are at odds with other African leaders in the newly independent nations. He maintains cordial relations with the repressive white-supremacist regimes of the southern continent, South Africa and the Portuguese administration in neighbouring Mozambique . Within months of independence several members of his cabinet resign - partly on this issue, and partly in protest at the autocratic style of government which Banda adopts from the start. Little will change over the years in either respect. In 1965 two of his ex-ministers lead a rebellion against him. It fails, and the following year Banda transforms Malawi into a republic with himself as president - a post which in 1971 he claims for life.

He runs the country as a one-party state, with ferocious persecution of anyone showing signs of disagreement with his policies. Members of the MCP (Malawi Congress Party) stand for parliament in periodic elections, but under a 1981 amendment to the constitution the president may nominate as many members of parliament as he wishes. An exceptionally low turn-out for elections in 1992 coincides with pressure from international loan agencies for the introduction of multiparty democracy. The eventual result, after strong opposition from Banda and his MCP, is new elections in 1994. In spite of reported violence and intimidation by the MCP, the main opposition presidential candidate, Bakili Muluzi, is elected. His party, the United Democratic Front, also has the largest number of seats in parliament. In 1995 Banda is arrested and is charged with the murder, ten years previously, of three former cabinet colleagues. He is acquitted and dies in retirement, in 1997, at the age of ninety-five. In the second half of the 1990s President Muluzi makes considerable progress in improving Malawi's economy, particularly in terms of controlling inflation.

This brings a much needed increase in foreign investment and aid. HISTORY OF ZAMBIA HISTORY OF ZAMBIA Enjoy the Famous Daily Barotse and Kololo: 19th century The African tribes living in the region between the Zambezi and Lake Tanganyika are first reached by outsiders in 1798. In that year a Portuguese trading party, pushing north from Tete on the Zambezi, reaches the capital of a chief near Lake Mweru. Half a century later this is the region which Livingstone explores, from his journey down the Zambezi in 1855 to his death near Lake Bangweulu in 1873 . By this time the most important African kingdom is in Barotseland, now known as the Western Province of Zambia. During the 19th century there has been protracted warfare between the Barotse tribes in this area (subsequently known as the Lozi) and the Kololo, intruders from the south. The Kololo reach the Zambezi during the 1820s, after being pushed north from their homeland in south Africa by the aggressive Zulu expansion of this period.

Their leader is Sebetwane, who in 1838 conquers the Barotse. He rules them peacefully and greatly impresses Livingstone, who meets him briefly in 1851. After Sebetwane's death the Barotse recover control of their territory. It is their ruler, Lewanika, who in 1890 negotiates with a new intruder from south of the Zambezi - Cecil Rhodes . They reach an agreement which suits both parties. Lewanika, impressed by the way his neighbour in Bechuanaland has acquired British protection, wants the same for himself - while for Rhodes this step forms part of a long-held ambition. Cecil Rhodes: 1871-1891 In the last quarter of the 19th century the driving force behind British colonial expansion in Africa is Cecil Rhodes. He arrives in Kimberley at the age of eighteen in 1871, the very year in which rich diamond-bearing lodes are discovered there. He makes his first successful career as an entrepreneur, buying out the claims of other prospectors in the region.

In the late 1880s he applies these same techniques to the gold fields discovered in the Transvaal . By the end of the decade his two companies, De Beers Consolidated Mines and Gold Fields of South Africa, dominate the already immensely valuable South African export of diamonds and gold. Rhodes is now rich beyond the reach of everyday imagination, but he wants this wealth for a very specific purpose. It is needed to fulfil his dream of establishing British colonies north of the Transvaal, as the first step towards his ultimate grand vision - a continuous strip of British empire from the Cape to the mouth of the Nile. The terms of incorporation of both Rhodes's mining companies include clauses allowing them to invest in northern expansion, and in 1889 he forms the British South Africa Company to fulfil this precise purpose. Established with a royal charter, its brief is to extend British rule into central Africa without involving the British government in new responsibility or expense. The first step north towards the Zambezi has considerable urgency in the late 1880s. It is known that the Boers of the Transvaal are interested in extending their territory in this direction. In the developing scramble for Africa the Portuguese could easily press west from Mozambique.

So could the Germans, who by an agreement of 1886 have been allowed Tanganyika as a sphere of interest. Rhodes has been preparing his campaign some years before the founding of the British South Africa Company in 1889. In 1885 he persuades the British government to secure Bechuanaland , which will be his springboard for the push north. And in 1888 he wins a valuable concession from Lobengula, whose kingdom is immediately north of the Transvaal. Lobengula is the son of Mzilikazi , the leader of the Ndebele who established a new kingdom (in present-day Zimbabwe) after being driven north by the Boers in 1837. Fifty years later, in 1888, Lobengula grants Rhodes the mining rights in part of his territory (there are reports of gold) in return for 1000 rifles, an armed steamship for use on the Zambezi and a monthly rent of ï¿½100. With these arrangements satisfactorily achieved, Rhodes sends the first party of colonists north from Bechuanaland in 1890.

In September they settle on the site which today is Harare and begin prospecting for gold. In support of Rhodes's scheme, the government declares the area a British protectorate in 1891. The growth of the Rhodesias: 1890-1900 The population of settlers rapidly increases in the territory adminstered by Rhodes's British South Africa Company. There are as many as 1500 Europeans in the region by 1892. More soon follow, thanks partly to developments in transport. The railway from the Cape has reached Kimberley in 1885, at a fortuitous time just before the start of Rhodes's ambitious venture (one of the stated aims of his company is to extend the line north to the Zambezi). Trains reach Bulawayo as early as 1896. Victoria Falls is the northern terminus by 1904. Meanwhile the territory has been given a name in honour of its colonial founder. From 1895 the region up to the Zambezi is known as Rhodesia. During the early 1890s the company has considerable difficulty in maintaining its presence in these new territories.

Lobengula himself tries to maintain peace with the British, but many of his tribe are eager to expel the intruders. The issue comes to a head when Leander Jameson, administering the region for Rhodes, finds a pretext in 1893 for war against Lobengula . With five Maxim machine guns, Jameson easily fights his way into Lobengula's kraal at Bulawayo. Lobengula flees, bringing to an end the Ndebele kingdom established by his father. There is a strong tribal uprising against the British in 1896-7, but thereafter Rhodes's company brings the entire region up to the Zambezi under full control. But Rhodes has ambitions far beyond the Zambezi. In 1890 he arrives in Barotseland (the western region of modern Zambia) to secure a treaty with Lewanika, the paramount chief of the region. With this achieved, Rhodes comes to a new agreement in 1891 with the British government. His company will administer the area from the Zambezi up to Lake Tanganyika (the present-day Zambia).

From 1900 the territory is divided into two protectorates, Northwestern and Northeastern Rhodesia, each of them separately administered by Rhodes's company. In 1911 they are merged as Northern Rhodesia, with the colony's first capital at Livingstone (appropriately named, since it is near Victoria Falls ). Northern Rhodesia: 1911-1953 Northern Rhodesia proves an unexpectedly rich province owing to the discovery of minerals. Lead and zinc are found in 1902 at Broken Hill (now Kabwe), and the first hint of vast wealth is revealed in 1909 on the border between Northern Rhodesia and the Belgian Congo. This region, later known as the Copper Belt, turns out to contain the world's largest reserves of copper outside the American continent. In 1924 the British South Africa Company hands over the administration of Northern Rhodesia to the British government, but the company is allowed to retain the mineral rights in the colony. The Copper Belt brings increased European involvement in Northern Rhodesia, where efforts to encourage agricultural settlement have been largely unsuccessful.

In 1911, when the two parts of the region are merged as Northern Rhodesia, there are about 1500 Europeans in the company's territory. In 1924, when Northern Rhodesia becomes a crown protectorate and exploitation of the Copper Belt begins, there are some 4000. By the early 1950s there are about 40,000 - nearly all of them involved with copper. Although the Europeans represent less than 2% of the population, the political system of Northern Rhodesia is based on white supremacy. And the settlers hope to keep it that way. By the 1950s the political future of all African colonies is under intense discussion. Among the European population of the two regions first settled by Rhodes's company there is a general assumption that sooner or later Rhodesia and Northern Rhodesia will merge to form a single independent nation. But this is resisted by the Africans, now beginning to find a political voice. Black opposition is strongest in the northern colony, with its much smaller white minority. Here, from the African point of view, the danger of union seems all too evident.

Northern Rhodesia will be overshadowed by the strong European culture of Rhodesia, postponing perhaps indefinitely the ideal of independence under black majority rule. Federation: 1953-1963 Confronted with conflicting demands, and aware of its responsibilities for Nyasaland as well as the two Rhodesias, the British government imposes in 1953 an awkward compromise in the form of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. This is to be a self-governing colony, with its own assembly and prime minister (first Lord Malvern, and from 1956 Roy Welensky). The intention is to derive the greatest economic benefit from the larger unit while minimizing political tension between the three parts of the federation, each of which retains its existing local government. The federated colonies are at differing stages in their political development. All they have in common is an almost complete absence of any African voice in the political process. Rhodesia has been a self-governing colony for three decades, but with no African suffrage (a tiny 'B roll' of African voters is added to the electorate in 1957).

Northern Rhodesia has a legislative council with, since 1948, two seats reserved for African members. At the time of federation there are no Africans on Nyasaland's legislative council. Two years later, in 1955, places are found for five members. The intended economic benefits materialize during the early years of the federation, helped by a world rise in copper prices, but this is not enough to stifle increasing political unrest - particularly as British colonies elsewhere in Africa win independence (beginning with Ghana in 1957). In the early 1960s African politicians in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland win increasing power in their legislative councils. The pressure grows to break up the federation. In March 1963, by which time all three colonies are demanding independence, the British government finally concedes. The federation is formally dissolved on 31 December 1963. The steps towards independence: to1964 In retrospect the progress towards independence in Northern Rhodesia (achieved in 1964 under the new name of Zambia) can be seen to span nearly twenty years.

The first African political party is the African National Congress, formed in 1948 by members of welfare societies established during World War II in mining communities and rural districts. Ten years later, under the federal government of 1953-63, the demands of the ANC are too timid for a radical younger generation, determined by now to achieve an independent African state. Kenneth Kaunda leads a group which in 1958 splits from the ANC and founds the Zambia African National Congress. Kaunda deploys this organization in a campaign of civil disobedience against the prevailing policy of federation. His activities soon land him in gaol. While he is there, a new and more militant party is formed - UNIP, or the United National Independence Party. When Kaunda is released from prison, in January 1960, he is elected president of UNIP. In a wave of enthusiasm the new party acquires 300,000 members within six months - causing it, and Kaunda as its leader, to be recognized by the British authorities as the main political voice of Northern Rhodesia's African population.

When a conference on the future of Northern Rhodesia is held in London, in December 1960, Kaunda and other UNIP leaders are prominent among the African delegation. They emerge with agreement on a political process scheduled to lead towards independence. In elections in October 1962 UNIP emerges as the party with the largest number of seats in the legislative council (fifteen out of thirty-seven). In coalition with the ANC, the African members now have control of the Northern Rhodesian council. But they face strong opposition from the federal government in Salisbury and, initially, from the white population of Northern Rhodesia. During 1963 Kaunda works patiently to reassure his European opponents that their interests will be respected in an independent African state. Early in 1964, after the dissolution of the federation, elections are held on the basis of universal adult suffrage. UNIP wins a clear majority and receives some 30% of the European votes. Kaunda, taking charge as executive president of the new nation (independent from October 1964), begins a career of almost three decades in that position.

Kaunda: 1964 - 1991 In the early years of independence Zambia's economy flourishes. The mineral rights of the British South Africa Company now accrue to the state. And copper prices rise dramatically, largely because of the needs of the Vietnam War. But the economy takes a serious downturn during the 1970s. There is a major collapse in the price of copper in 1975, while the cost of imported oil soars. Even more significant is the damage caused by Zambia's proximity to Rhodesia. With the declaration of UDI by Ian Smith, in 1965, Zambia becomes the frontline state in Africa's struggle against this act of white supremacy. Kaunda takes a lead in opposing the Smith regime - a stance which includes offering safe havens to guerrilla forces operating across the borders against Rhodesia, but which also invites armed retaliation by Rhodesian forces. Even more significant is the economic consequence of being a land-locked neighbour of a nation which the international community is trying to isolate, after the imposition of UN sanctions on Rhodesia in 1968. Rhodesia has in the past been Zambia's main trading partner.

It has also been the route by which Zambia's copper travels to the sea at Beira. Now an expensive railway link has to be constructed, with a massive Chinese loan, to the distant port of Dar es Salaam. These difficulties cause Kaunda to impose a state of emergency. With regular renewals by parliament, this evolves gradually into a state of normality. Kaunda's rule becomes increasingly authoritarian. Political opponents are harassed. In 1973 a new constitution turns Zambia into a one-party state. By the late 1980s the economy is in such a decrepit state that there are food riots in several towns. Finally, in 1991, the national assembly withdraws the ban on political parties other than UNIP. Multiparty elections are held in October of this year. Their startling result gives Kaunda and Zambia undeniable credit, rare in Africa at this time, for high electoral standards. Chiluba: from1991 In the 1991 elections Kaunda's party, UNIP, is left with less than one sixth of the seats in the national assembly.

A massive majority (125 out of the 150 seats) is won by MMD, the Movement for Multiparty Democracy. The MMP candidate, the trades union leader Frederick Chiluba, easily defeats Kaunda in the race for the presidency. The 1990s remain a time of great difficulty for Zambia. Copper suffers a further decline in value. Efforts to reform the bloated civil service inherited from Kaunda are painful and not entirely successful. And the MMP begins to lose its early reputation for a serious commitment to democracy and human rights. This is seen in particular in the continuing career of Kenneth Kaunda, who makes it plain that he hopes to regain his presidency. Strenuous efforts are made to prevent his standing against Chiluba. Before the 1996 presidential election an amendment is added to the constitution requiring candidates to have parents who were native Zambians (Kaunda's were born in Malawi). In 1997 an opposition rally is fired on by police and Kaunda is slightly wounded. Later in the same year he is accused of having abetted an abortive military coup.

He is placed under house arrest, but is released in June 1998 when all charges are withdrawn. In November 1999 Kaunda's son Wezi, prominent in UNIP, is assassinated (why or by whom is not known). Meanwhile in 1996 Chiluba is re-elected to the presidency for the second of the two consecutive terms allowed in the constitution. And the MMP increases its majority from 125 to 127 seats in the national assembly. What was the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland? What was the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland? Updated March 01, 2016. Also known as the Central African Federation. The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland was created between 1 August and 23 October 1953 and lasted until 31 December 1963. The federation joined the British protectorate of Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia), the colony of Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), and the protectorate of Nyasaland (now Malawi).

Origins of the Federation White European settlers in the region were perturbed about the increasing black African population, but had been stopped during the first half of the twentieth century from introducing more draconian rules and laws by the British Colonial Office. The end of World War II led to increased white immigration, especially in Southern Rhodesia, and there was a worldwide need for copper which existed in quantity in Northern Rhodesia. White settler leaders and industrialists once again called for a union of the three colonies to increase their potential and harness the black workforce. continue reading below our video 10 Best Universities in the United States The election of the National Party in South Africa in 1948 worried the British government, which began to see federation as a potential counter to the Apartheid policies being introduced in SA. It was also seen as a potential sop to black nationalists in the region who were starting to ask for independence.

However black nationalists in Nyasaland and Northern Rhodesia were worried that the white settlers of Southern Rhodesia would come to dominate any authority created for the new federation -- this proved to be true, as the Federation's first appointed prime minister was Godfrey Huggins, Viscount Malvern, who had already served as PM of Southern Rhodesia for 23 years. Operation of the Federation The British government planned for the Federation to eventually become a British dominion, and it was overseen from the start by a British assigned governor-general. The federation was an economic success, at least at the start, and there was investment in a few expensive engineering projects, such as the Kariba hydro-electric dam on the Zambezi. In addition, in comparison to South Africa the political landscape was more liberal. Black Africans worked as junior ministers and there was an income/property-owning basis to the franchise which allowed some black Africans to vote. There was still, however, an effective white minority rule to the government of the federation, and just as the rest of Africa was expressing a desire for majority rule, nationalist movements in the federation were growing.

Break up of the Federation In 1959 Nyasaland nationalists called for action, and the resultant disturbances led to the authorities declaring an state of emergency. Nationalist leaders, including Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda , were detained, many without a trial. After his release in 1960, Banda decamped to London, where with Kenneth Kaunda (who had been similarly imprisoned for nine months) and Joshua Nkomo he continued to campaign for an end to the federation. The early sixties saw independence come to a number of French African colonies, and the British prime minister, Harold Macmillan, gave his famous ' wind of change ' speech in South Africa. The British had already decided in 1962 that Nyasaland should be allowed to secede from the federation. A conference held in early '63 at Victoria Falls was seen a last-ditch attempt to maintain the federation. It failed. It was announced on 1 February 1963 that the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland would be broken up. Nyasaland achieved independence, within the Commonwealth, as Malawi on 6 July 1964. Northern Rhodesia became independent as Zambia on 24 October that year.

White settlers in Southern Rhodesia announced a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) on 11 November 1965. Malawi (Nyasaland) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed Global African History Image Ownership: Public Domain Clements Kadalie, an early South African trade unionist and political activist , was born in April 1896 in Nkhata Bay District in Nyasaland (now Malawi ). His parents Musa Kadalie Muwamba had two sons with Clements the youngest. Kadalie graduated in 1913 at age seventeen from Livingstonia, a mission school administered by Church of Scotland missionaries. He was certified to teach elementary school and assigned to district schools in the region. Kadalie taught school for five years but like many of his contemporaries he was attracted by the much higher wages paid in South Africa and decided to move there. In 1918 he settled in Cape Town , South Africa where he befriended Arthur F. Batty, a white trade unionist and political activist. Batty viewed the poorly-paid African working class as a prime target for continued exploitation unless they unionized. He urged Kadalie to create such a union.

Kadalie responded by founding the Industrial and Commercial Union (ICU) in 1919, the first major black union in South Africa. Sources: Clements Kadalie, My Life and the I.C.U.: The Autobiography of a Black Trade Unionist in South Africa (London: Cass, 1970); D. D. Phiri, I See You: Life of Clements Kadalie, the Man South Africa, Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Namibia Should Not Forget (Blantyre, Malawi: College Publishing Company, 2000); Encyclopedia of World Biography (Detroit: Thomson Gale, 2009); ; . Contributor: Global African History "Image Ownership: Public Domain" Lilongwe, named after the Lilongwe River that runs through the town, became the official capital of the landlocked country of Malawi in 1975. In 2012 Lilongwe city had an estimated population of 781,000 people making it the largest city in the country.

Lilongwe is located in the center of this long, narrow nation making it easier for the country’s citizens to reach it as opposed to the previous capital in the far south section of the nation. Lilongwe is also close to the countries of Mozambique and Zambia . Since becoming the capital of Malawi, Lilongwe has grown dramatically partly because of the numerous Europeans and South Africans residing in the city. A number of non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) for Southern Africa are located there. The city is also the headquarters for British and United States foreign aid workers, diplomats from dozens of nations, and international corporations. Although Lilongwe is the political center of the country, Blantyre in the southern part of the country remains the economic and commercial center of Malawi. Sources: "Lilongwe–Useful Information About Malawi's Capital City," Kumbali Country Lodge RSS. Kumbali Country Lodge, ; “Lilongwe," Lilongwe | Malawi Tourism | Malawi Safari | Malawi Attractions, ; Roman A.

Cybriwsky, "Lilongwe," Capital Cities around the World: An Encyclopedia of Geography, History, and Culture (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2013) Contributor: Global African History "Image Ownership: Public Domain" Harare (formerly known as “Fort Salisbury” or “Salisbury”) is the largest city in Zimbabwe with a population of 1.6 million. It serves as Zimbabwe’s seat of government and Zimbabwe’s commercial and industrial center. The city is located in Northern Zimbabwe in the region of the Shona speaking people. Cecil Rhodes and the British South African Company (BSAC) founded the settlement as “Fort Salisbury” on September 12, 1890. The fort began when the BSAC’s Pioneer Column, under the command of Major Frank Johnson, invaded Shona territory and seized land held by the Shona and other indigenous groups. Britain recognized the fort as a colonial municipality in 1897 and in 1923 the settlement became the capital of the Rhodesia Colony which then included both Northern and Southern Rhodesia.

In 1953 Salisbury became the capital of the newly forged Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland which includes the contemporary nations of Zambia , Zimbabwe, and Malawi . After the collapse of the Federation in 1963 Salisbury remained the capital of Southern Rhodesia. Sources: “Harare,” New Encyclopedia of Africa, editors John Middleton and Joseph Miller (Detroit: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2008); "Robert Mugabe," Contemporary Black Biography, Vol. 71 (Detroit: Gale, 2009); Mary Johnson Osirim, Enterprising Women in Urban Zimbabwe: Gender, Microbusiness, and Globalization (Washington, D.C.: Woodrow Wilson Center Press, 2002); Oyekan Owomoyela, Culture and Customs of Zimbabwe (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2002). Contributor: African American History "Image Ownership: Public Domain" John F. Hicks is a diplomat and global educator who served as a United States Ambassador to the United Nations (UN). A native of Goldsboro, North Carolina , Hicks was born in 1949.

Hicks holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Morehouse College , a diploma and master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University in Bologna, Italy and Washington, D.C. His career in international relations and diplomacy began in 1973 when he joined the United Internship Program with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). This service propelled him through the ranks where he served in senior leadership positions in Ethiopia , Liberia , Malawi , Zambia , and the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt . In 1989, Hicks was awarded the Agency’s Senior Foreign Service Presidential Meritorious Service Award. Sources: “The President Names Ambassador to Eritrea,” The White House: Office of the Press Secretary, May 13, 1996, ; Philip Shenon, “U.S. Ambassador to Eritrea Quit Amid Sex Inquiry, Officials Say,” New York Times, February 27, 2010, ; “John F. Hicks, “The International University of Gran-Bassam Foundation, . Contributor: African American History "Image Ownership: Public Domain" John Andrew Burroughs, Jr. was an equal opportunity advocate and diplomat who was born in Washington, D.C.

on July 31, 1936. He spent his youth in Washington, D.C. before moving to the Midwest to attend the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. While there he played on the varsity football team, helping it win two conference championships and two Rose Bowl games. He graduated with his Bachelor’s Degree in 1959. After graduation, Burroughs returned to Washington, D.C., where he became a social sciences teacher in the city’s public school system. In 1960 Burroughs left teaching to become an employee in the U.S. Department of State. His first job was as an employee in the passport examiner’s office from 1960 to 1963. In 1963 he was promoted to Assistant Chief of Special Services Branch of the Passport Office, a post he held until 1964.

Sources: Jet magazine, May 20, 1985 and October 20, 1986; “Ambassador Nomination,” ; Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST) Country Reader on Malawi: ; Obituary Notice, Washington Post, September 26, 2014. Contributor: Bibliography Independence achieved 1 August 1960. Former name: Dahomey (renamed 30 November 1975). Botswana (Republic of Botswana) Independence achieved 30 September 1966. Former name: British Protectorate of Bechuanaland (name changed with independence in 1966). Burkina Faso (Republic of Burkina Faso) Independence achieved 5 August 1960. Former name: Republic of Upper Volta (renamed in 1984). Burundi (Republic of Burundi) Independence achieved 1 July 1962. Former name: Urundi (part of Ruaunda-Urundi, renamed with independence in 1962).

Cameroon (Republic of Cameroon) Independence achieved 1 January 1960 for East Cameroon (former French colony). Formed the Federal Republic (1 October 1961) when Southern (west) Cameroon (former British colony) voted in a U.N. supervised election (11 February 1961) to be attached to the former French Cameroon. Officially became United Republic of Cameroon on 2 June 1972, and renamed Republic of Cameroon in 1984. Central African Republic Independence achieved 13 August 1960. Former name: Oubangui-Chari (renamed 1 December 1958). Chad (Republic of Chad) Independence achieved 11 August 1960. Congo (People's Republic of the Congo) Independence achieved 15 August 1960. Former names: Middle Congo (part of French Equatorial Africa), Congo-Brazzaville. Côte d'Ivoire (Republic of Côte d'Ivoire) Independence achieved 7 August 1960.

Formerly refered to by the equivalent translation of the name into different languages, such as "Ivory Coast" in English. In 1986, the government declared that all countries should use the French name "Côte d'Ivoire". Democratic Republic of the Congo Independence achieved June 1960. 17 May 1997 the former regime (Zaire) of Marshal Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngendu Banga was toppled and the present Democratic Republic of the Congo was established in its place. Former names: Congo Free State 1855-1908, Belgian Congo, 1908-1960, Democratic Republic of the Congo or Congo-Leopoldville, 1960-1966, Congo-Kinshasa 1966-1971, Zaire 1971-1997. Djibouti (Republic of Djibouti) Independence achieved 27 June 1997. Former names: French Somaliland until 1967, French territory of the Afars and Issas until independence.

Egypt (Arab Republic of Egypt) Egypt has been seat of civilization since ancient times, however recent history has seen conquest by the Ottoman Empire in 1517, Napoleon Bonaparte's France in 1798, and finally by Britain in 1882. Modern independence was achieved on 28 February 1922 by British declaration. Equatorial Guinea (Republic of Equatorial Guinea) Independence achieved 12 October 1968. Former name: Spanish Guinea (renamed with independence). Eritrea (State of Eritrea) Independence achieved 24 May 1993. Ethiopia (Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia) Ethiopia has enjoyed independence from ancient times and has resisted attempts by other nations at colonization. Former name: Abyssinia. Gabon (Republic of Gabon) Independence achieved 17 August 1960. The Gambia (Republic of the Gambia) Independence achieved 18 February 1965. Ghana (Republic of Ghana) Independence achieved 6 March 1957. Former name: Gold Coast (renamed with independence). Guinea (Republic of Guinea) Independence achieved 2 October 1958.

Guinea-Bissau (Republic of Guinea-Bissau) Independence achieved 24 September 1973. Former name Portuguese Guinea (renamed with independence). Kenya (Republic of Kenya) Independence achieved 12 December 1963. Lesotho (Kingdom of Lesotho) Independence achieved 4 October 1966. Former name: Basutoland. Liberia (Republic of Liberia) Independence achieved 26 July 1847. Liberia was established by Black American colonists sent by the American Colonisation Society in a controversial move to repatriate freed American slaves to Africa. After Ethiopia, it is the oldest of the modern independent African nations. Libya (Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) Independence achieved 24 December 1951. Madagascar (Democratic Republic of Madagascar) Independence achieved 26 June 1960. Malawi (Republic of Malawi) Independence achieved 6 July 1964. Former name: Nyasaland. Mali (Republic of Mali) Independence achieved 22 September 1960. Former name: Soudan.

Mauritania (Islamic Republic of Mauritania) Independence achieved 28 November 1960. Morocco (Kingdom of Morocco) Independence achieved 2 March 1956. Mozambique (Republic of Mozambique) Independence achieved 25 June 1975. Former name: Portuguese East Africa. Namibia (Republic of Namibia) Independence achieved 21 March 1990. Former name South West Africa. Niger (Republic of Niger) Independence achieved 3 August 1960. Nigeria (Federal Republic of Nigeria) Independence achieved 1 October 1960. Rwanda (Republic of Rwanda) Independence achieved 1 July 1962. Former name Ruanda (part of Belgian administered territory of Ruanda-Urundi under League of Nations mandate 1919-1946, and U.N. Trusteeship 1946-1962). Senegal (Republic of Senegal) Independence achieved 20 August 1960. Sierra Leone (Republic of Sierra Leone) Independence achieved 27 April 1961.

Somalia (Somali Democratic Republic) Independence achieved 1 July 1960. South Africa (Republic of South Africa) Independence achieved 11 December 1931. The dismantling of apartheid affectively began in 1991 with the proposal to repeal of Lands Acts of 1913 and 1936, and the Group Areas act of 1966 by then President F.W. De Klerk. By 27 April 1994 a Majority Rule Constitution was adopted, and on 10 May 1994 anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela was sworn in as the President of South Africa bringing an end to apartheid in South Africa. Sudan (Democratic Republic of the Sudan) Independence achieved 1 January 1956. Swaziland (Kingdom of Swaziland) Independence achieved 6 September 1968. Tanzania (United Republic of Tanzania) Tanganyika achieved independence on 9 December 1961. Zanzibar Achieved independence on 10 December 1963.

The United Republic was formed on 27 April 1964, and the name Tanzania was adopted on 29 October 1964. Togo (Republic of Togo) Independence achieved 27 April 1960. Former name Togoland. Tunisia (Republic of Tunisia) Independence achieved 20 March 1956. Uganda (Republic of Uganda) Independence achieved 9 October 1962. Western Sahara (Saharwi Arab Democratic Republic) When Spain withdrew from Western Sahara (then known as Spanish Sahara or Rio de Oro) in 1976 both Morocco and Mauritania moved to annex the territory. Mauritania withdrew in August 1979, and Western Sahara was absorbed by Morocco. However a political front called the Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Rio de Oro (POLISARIO) continued to struggle against foreign domination against Morocco and formed the Saharwi Arab Democratic Republic as a government in exile on 4 March 1976 which was recognized in 1984 by the Organisation for African Unity (OAU) leading Morocco to withdraw its membership from the OAU.

In May 1991, Morocco and the Polisario Front ended fighting as a part of a U.N. sponsored peace settlement. The future of Saharwi is still to be decided as of this writing (9 September 1998). Zambia (Republic of Zambia) Independence achieved 24 October 1964. Former name: Northern Rhodesia. Zimbabwe (Republic of Zimbabwe) Independence achieved 18 April 1980. Former names: Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia. Not Shown on the Map: Cape Verde (Republic of Cape Verde) Independence achieved 5July 1975. Comoros Islands (Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros) Independence achieved 6 July 1975 (formally recognized by France (colonial regime) 1 January 1976). Mauritius (Republic of Mauritius) Independence achieved 12 March 1968. Reunion Administered by the French Overseas Department since 19 March 1946. French colony since 1642.

São Tomé and Príncipe (Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe) Independence achieved 12 July 1975. Seychelles (Republic of Seychelles) Independence achieved 29 June 1976. Bibliography

Question: The former African nation of Nyasaland is now known by what name?
Answer: Malawi