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The Republic of Zimbabwe-formerly called Southern Rhodesia by the British-is situated in the continent of Africa and takes its name from the Shona language. The Shona word for it means "big house of stone".
The one unique feature of the landscape in Zimbabwe is the fact that despite being a landlocked country, it is well fitted out with various land-formations-water bodies included. In fact, the biggest waterfall in Africa-the Victoria Falls-is located right here. The country is mostly plateau oriented-the Mafungabusa plateau; but there are mountain ranges too-the Inyanga and Udizi are the chief of them. The main river providing relief to the land is the Zambesi River. The other water bodies of importance are Lake Kariba, the Limpopo River, the Runde River and the Save River.
The Republic of Zimbabwe is situated in the southern region of the African continent, on the Equator.
It is uniquely positioned such that some parts of the country fall in the southern hemisphere and some in the north. The countries of Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Mozambique and South Africa enclose Zimbabwe in a land locked alignment.
The flag comprises four solid colors: red, black, yellow and green. They form a body of horizontal stripes; to the left side of these stripes is a white triangle - representative of peace - bordered with black. The white triangle contains a 'Soapstone Bird' and a red colored star. The Soapstone Bird doubles as a national insignia, while the star in red stands for an 'international outlook'.
Climate of Zimbabwe :
Since large parts of Zimbabwe lie in the southern hemisphere, the climatic conditions are different. The summer months stretch from October to April and thereafter the winter months continue from May to September. The summers are wet but hot, while the winters are cool but dry.
Flora and Fauna of Zimbabwe :
Zimbabwe has quite an incredible biodiversity. However, it contains all the conventional tropical flora and the African fauna. Mostly blanketed with savanna grasslands, its mountains nevertheless consist of evergreen forests. The chief animals of the country are the elephant, lion, buffalo, hyena, cheetah, monkey, jackal and antelope. A diverse variety of marine and avian fauna is also to be found; the tiger fish is a speciality.
People of Zimbabwe :
The people of Zimbabwe are a friendly lot and also belong to diverse cultures and ethnicities. Years of colonization too has left a mark. However, the people of the country are dedicated towards living in harmony. The majority of the people are Syncretic. There is also a small minority of people following indigenous and other religions. The other major religions of the country are Christianity and Islam. The population also contains a mixed number of white-skinned and dark-skinned people. The Shona and the Ndebele are the chief variety of native people who inhabit the land.
Arts, Culture and Music of Zimbabwe :
Sculpture and wood carvings are a famous Shona art form. The unique selling point of the wood-works in Zimbabwe is the fact that they are created from a single undivided piece of wood. Pottery, basket-making, weaving and textiles and hand-crafted jewelry are the other things that are integral to Zimbabwean life. No matter what the music, there is only one instrument of importance - the Mbira, a kind of piano. As far as the genres of music are concerned, they vary from the western styles to more home-bred types. Some of the folk types are: Sungura, Rumba and Bulawayo.
Economy of Zimbabwe :
Most of the economy of Zimbabwe is dependent on agriculture and mining and the export of the products obtained; though some revenue is acquired from tourism too. The chief crops grown in Zimbabwe include tobacco, cotton, wheat and corn. Gold and coal is mined while an adept industrial segment churns out Steel, chemicals and cement.
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