Originally inhabited by Khoisan peoples, the region was affected by the Bantu expansion of the thirteenth century. Following European expeditions in the eighteenth century, the British Empire began to consolidate control of the area following the 1890 British Ultimatum against the Portuguese, who had claimed the area between Angola and Mozambique in the 1885 Pink Map. Britain formed the British protectorates of Barotziland–North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia towards the end of the nineteenth century. These were merged in 1911 to form Northern Rhodesia. For most of the colonial period, Zambia was governed by an administration appointed from London with the advice of the British South Africa Company. On 24 October 1964, Zambia became independent of the United Kingdom as a republic in the Commonwealth, and prime minister Kenneth Kaunda became the inaugural president. Kaunda's socialistUnited National Independence Party (UNIP) maintained power from 1964 until 1991, with him playing a role in regional diplomacy, cooperating with the United States in search of solutions to conflicts in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), Angola, and Namibia. From 1972 to 1991, Zambia was a one-party state with UNIP as the sole legal political party under the motto "One Zambia, One Nation" coined by Kaunda. Following the introduction of a multiparty system in the early 1990s, Kaunda was defeated in the 1991 Zambian general election. Zambia has since continued to experience peaceful transitions of power.
The Itezhi-Tezhi Dam on the Kafue River in west-central Zambia was built between 1974 and 1977 at the Itezhi-Tezhi Gap, in a range of hills through which the river had eroded a narrow valley, leading to the broad expanse of the wetlands known as the Kafue Flats. The town of Itezhi-Tezhi is to the east side of the dam. (Full article...)
Image 6Graffitied rock art in Nsalu Cave, Kasanka National Park in North-Central Zambia (from Zambia)
Image 7Drawing of the ruler of Lunda, Mwata Kazembe, receiving Portuguese in the royal courtyard in the 1800s (from Zambia)
Image 8A drawing of Lunda houses by a Portuguese visitor. The size of the doorways relative to the building emphasizes the scale of the buildings. (from Zambia)
Image 9Zambia map of Köppen climate classification (from Zambia)
Image 10An 1864 photograph of the Scottish explorer and missionary David Livingstone (from Zambia)
Image 11The kalonga (ruler) of the Chewa today descends from the kalonga of the Maravi Empire. (from Zambia)
Image 12Enormous Ba-Ila settlement. These communities have been of interest to mathematicians due to their fractal pattern design. (from History of Zambia)
Image 13Inside the palace of the Litunga, ruler of the Lozi. Due to the flooding on the Zambezi, the Litunga has two palaces one of which is on higher ground. The movement of Litunga to higher land is celebrated at the Kuomboka Ceremony. (from Zambia)
Image 21Zambia National Assembly building in Lusaka (from Zambia)
Image 22A Yombe sculpture, 19th century (from Zambia)
Image 23The major Nkana open copper mine, Kitwe (from Zambia)
Image 24A drawing of Lunda houses by a Portuguese visitor. The size of the doorways relative to the building emphasizes the scale of the buildings. (from Zambia)
Image 25Drawing of the ruler of Lunda, Mwata Kazembe, receiving Portuguese in the royal courtyard in the 1800s (from Zambia)
Image 26GDP per capita (current), compared to neighbouring countries (world average = 100) (from Zambia)
Image 27Three young Ngoni chiefs. The Ngoni made their way into Eastern Zambia from KwaZulu in South Africa. They eventually assimilated into the local ethnic groups. (from Zambia)
Image 30Seated female Staffs of office (Kibango), were displayed by Luba kings. In Luba society, women's bodies were considered the ultimate vessels of spiritual power. (from History of Zambia)
Image 31Nsima (top right corner) with three types of relish (from Zambia)
Image 32Zambia map of Köppen climate classification (from Zambia)
Image 33The kalonga (ruler) of the Chewa today descends from the kalonga of the Maravi Empire. (from Zambia)
Image 34The Kalonga of the Chewa today descends from the Kalonga (rulers) of the Maravi Empire. (from History of Zambia)
Image 45Inside the palace of the Litunga, ruler of the Lozi. Due to the flooding on the Zambezi, the Litunga has two palaces one of which is on higher ground. The movement of Litunga to higher land is celebrated at the Kuomboka Ceremony (from History of Zambia)
Image 46Three young Ngoni chiefs. The Ngoni made their way into Eastern Zambia from KwaZulu in South Africa. They eventually assimilated into the local ethnic groups. (from Zambia)
Image 47Zambia National Assembly building in Lusaka (from Zambia)
Image 48S.M Chisembele, Cabinet Minister, Western Province (from History of Zambia)
Image 49The geopolitical situation during the Rhodesian Bush War in 1965 – countries friendly to the nationalists are coloured orange (from Zambia)
The blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus), also called the common wildebeest, white-bearded gnu or brindled gnu, is a large antelope and one of the two species of wildebeest. It is placed in the genusConnochaetes and familyBovidae, and has a close taxonomic relationship with the black wildebeest. The blue wildebeest is known to have five subspecies. This broad-shouldered antelope has a muscular, front-heavy appearance, with a distinctive, robust muzzle. Young blue wildebeest are born tawny brown, and begin to take on their adult coloration at the age of 2 months. The adults' hues range from a deep slate or bluish-gray to light gray or even grayish-brown. Both sexes possess a pair of large curved horns.
The blue wildebeest is an herbivore, feeding primarily on short grasses. It forms herds which move about in loose aggregations, the animals being fast runners and extremely wary. The mating season begins at the end of the rainy season and a single calf is usually born after a gestational period of about 8.5 months. The calf remains with its mother for 8 months, after which it joins a juvenile herd. Blue wildebeest are found in short-grass plains bordering bush-covered acacia savannas in southern and eastern Africa, thriving in areas that are neither too wet nor too arid. Three African populations of blue wildebeest take part in a long-distance migration, timed to coincide with the annual pattern of rainfall and grass growth on the short-grass plains where they can find the nutrient-rich forage necessary for lactation and calf growth. (Full article...)
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