Malawi History Trivia

1. The area of present-day Malawi was once part of what empire?

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: Maravi

The Maravi Empire not only encompassed present day Malawi, but also Zambia and Mozambique. It's capital was the former city of Manthimba, which is in Malawi near the village of Mtakataka. The Maravi Empire was established in around 1480. The decline of this empire started in the 18th century, and was beyond repair by the 19th century. Reasons for this include conflicts within the empire regarding successions, the rise of their neighbors, the Yao, who attacked them and sold their captives into slavery. The Achaemenid Empire was an Iranian empire. The Durrani Empire was an Afghan empire. The Khmer Empire was a Cambodian Empire.

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: British Central Africa Protectorate

The British Central Africa Protectorate was proclaimed in 1889, but ratified in 1891. While this protectorate existed, most of its inhabitants were farmers, growing maize and other crops for their own consumption. When the agriculture began to expand in the late 1800s, coffee was the original main export from this protectorate. However, due to Brazil dominating this market too heavily, they turned their attention to producing crops like tobacco and cotton. Portuguese East Africa is now Mozambique. Swaziland is now Eswatini. Basutoland is now Lesotho. Although the Portuguese ruled Mozambique, when they then tried to claim areas of present-day Malawai, the British disputed their claims.

From Quiz Miscellaneous Malawi

Answer: Drought and flooding

From November to April (summer and autumn), Malawi has a violent rainy season, and floods are a constant danger. During the rest of the year, precipitation is markedly absent. Between 1982 and 2007, Malawi had twenty-two floods and six droughts, but the droughts were reckoned to be ten times as damaging by the International Disaster Database.

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: Nyasaland

The British renamed the British Central Africa Protectorate "Nyasaland" in 1907. In 1964 Nyasaland gained independence from the British, and the country was re-named "Malawi." Following independence, Malawi was under the rule of a one-party dictatorship until 1994. Between 1918-24, there were various famines in Nyasaland. The death toll is unknown. This was perhaps a catalyst for the uprisings that began in 1915. Basutoland is now the country of Lesotho. Dahomey is now the country of Benin. Upper Volta is now the country of Burkino Faso.

From Quiz Miscellaneous Malawi

Answer: Great Britain

It is easy to find English speakers in Malawi, especially in the larger towns. It isn't the mother tongue of most Malawians, though, and most prefer to speak Bantu-family languages like Chichewa (which is spoken by over half the population) Chinyanja, Chiyao, and Chitumbuka.

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: Chilembwe Uprising

The Chilembwe Uprising was led by Reverend John Chilembwe, a Baptist minister. He was educated in America, and returned to what is now Malawi in 1901. He was angry about both the treatment of the people working in the colonial plantations, and the colonialists' absolute refusal to neither help nor promote the citizens of the country they had colonized. William Jervis Livingstone was a manager for a branch of A. L. Bruce Estates (a major owner of the country's agricultural estates) and was killed and beheaded in front of his wife and two children during the uprising. John Chilembwe was killed by soldiers, and although his uprising was unsuccessful, he is celebrated as a hero in Malawi to this day. John Chilembwe Day is on January 15th. The Telangana Rebellion happened in India. The Cazin Rebellion happened in the former country of Yugoslavia, and the Al-Wathbah Uprising occurred in the city of Baghdad.

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: Hastings Banda

Hastings Banda was Prime Minister for two years, then became President of Malawi once the country became a republic. He declared Malawi to be a one party state, and set up the Malawi Congress Party (MCP). In 1970 the MCP declared him the party's President for Life. Possibly inspired by this, Banda declared himself Malawi's President for Life a year later. Political opponents, or those who criticised Banda, were often tortured or murdered. By law, every business building had to have an official picture of him hanging on the wall, and no wall hanging, such as a clock, could be higher than the picture. Banda was one of the few African leaders at the time, to support the U.S.A. during the Vietnam War, largely due to how much he hated Communism. Hosni Mubarak was President of Egypt from 1981-2011. Hifikepunye Pohamba was President of Namibia from 2005-2015. Hamed Bakayoko was Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire from 2020 - 2021.

From Quiz Miscellaneous Malawi

Answer: Hastings Banda

Banda left Malawi in 1925 to study in Britain. He earned his medical degree from the University of Edinburgh in 1941. While practicing medicine, he associated with other African expatriates like Kenyan nationalist Jomo Kenyatta and Ghanan leader Kwame Nkrumah. Along with these and other African activists, Banda took part in 1946's Fifth Pan-African Congress in Manchester, a gathering that would plant the seeds of nationalism and independence for many African countries. Banda returned to Malawi in 1958, heading up the Nyasaland African Congress, later known as the Malawi Congress Party. Though initially jailed by the British for, ostensibly, inciting riots in his homeland, Banda was released in 1960 to negotiate for Malawian self-rule. He was elected Prime Minister in 1963 and declared Malawi an independent republic in 1966. In 1970, he declared himself President for Life, a title he would hold into the 1990s. Banda's business dealings alone accounted for 10% of Malawi's gross domestic product at the height of his influence.

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: Zomba

The capital was changed from Zomba to Lilongwe, named for the the Lilongwe River, in 1975, partly because the first prime minister was born near there, and partly because of its central location. Zomba is located in the south of Malawi and features the Zomba Plateau, a mountain at almost 7,000 feet at its highest point and 50 square miles in area. Dar es Salaam is a former capital city of Tanzania. Bujumbura is a former capital city of Burundi, and Gondar is a former capital city of Ethiopia.

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: Joyce Banda

Joyce Banda founded and led the People's Party of Malawi, which she established in 2011. She became President of Malawi after Bingu wa Mutharika had a heart attack and died suddenly. Joyce Banda was the first female President of Malawi. She wass not related to Hastings Banda at all, although they share a surname. Her campaigning for women's rights in Malawi, fighting against government corruption, and support for grassroots development in the country made her a popular leader. When she first became President of Malawi, Joyce Banda sold her presidential jet, and contributed 30% of of her salary to Malawi's Council for the Handicapped. Samia Suluhu Hassan is the first female President of Tanzania. Sahle-Work Zewde was the first female President of Ethiopia. Gro Harlem Brundtland was the first female Prime Minister of Norway.

From Quiz Colonial History of Malawi

Answer: Bakili Muluzi

Bakili Muluzi won Malawi's first multiparty election since the end of the dictatorship, and was in office from 1994-2004. He was also the first Muslim President of Malawi. Although he was elected as President of Malawi twice, his time in office was rife with scandals and controversies. He sold Malawi's maize abroad, shortly before a drought was headed for Malawi, and this caused a famine across the country. He suggested a third term, but citizens of Malawi demonstrated at the suggestion of it. Hamani Diori, Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara and Mahamane Ousmane are all former Presidents of Niger.

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