Tanzania is a sovereign country in Eastern Africa, in the wider region of Africa. Its full official name is United Republic of Tanzania. Government sits in Dodoma.
It is home to roughly 68.6 million people, placing it 22nd of 250 by population — between the United Kingdom above it and France below. Within Eastern Africa alone it is the 2nd largest of 20 and the 2nd most populous.
The land area is 945,087 km², which ranks it 32nd of the 250 countries and territories in this dataset — just behind Egypt and just ahead of Nigeria. For scale, it is almost exactly the same size as Nigeria.
The lie of the land
The coordinates the dataset gives are 6.0° S, 35.0° E, which puts it in the southern hemisphere, roughly 668 km from the equator, in what geographers would call the equatorial belt.
Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands sit at almost exactly the same latitude on other parts of the globe.
8 countries share a land border with it: Burundi, DR Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. The largest of them by area is DR Congo, which is also the most populous. Together those neighbours hold about 321.6 million people.
It has both a coastline and land borders, which is the most common arrangement of all.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Who lives in Tanzania
Density comes out at around 73 people per square kilometre, which makes it less crowded than the typical entry on this list. For comparison, the median entry on this list sits near 90 per square kilometre.
Officially it is multilingual, listing English and Swahili. English, the first listed, is shared with 90 other entries worldwide.
People from Tanzania are called Tanzanians.
Against Africa as a whole it is the 5th most populous of 59 entries, and it accounts for 14% of everyone living in Eastern Africa.
Money, codes and practical details
It uses the Tanzanian shilling (Sh, TZS). No other entry in this dataset uses it, so the currency is specific to Tanzania.
The top-level domain is .tz. Calls from overseas start with +255. Its ISO codes are tz and TZA, which is what most databases and flag files use.
Dodoma is the city to remember for this country.
It holds a seat at the United Nations, one of 193 entries here that do. The other 57 entries are territories, dependencies or observers, which is why totals on this site run to 250 rather than the familiar 195.
Neighbouring countries
Tanzania shares borders with 8 countries:
Fun facts about Tanzania
- The Tanzanian shilling is used here and nowhere else on this list.
- It shares land borders with 8 countries: Burundi, DR Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia.
- Websites based there use the .tz domain.
- People from Tanzania are known as Tanzanians.
- Within Eastern Africa it is the 2nd largest of 20.
- Ranked by land area, Tanzania is 32nd out of the 250 countries and territories on this site.
- It is 22nd of 250 by population, with about 68.6 million residents.
Tanzania — frequently asked questions
- What is the capital of Tanzania?
- The capital of Tanzania is Dodoma.
- How big is Tanzania?
- Tanzania covers 945,087 km², ranking 32nd of 250 by land area. That makes it almost exactly the same size as Nigeria.
- What is the population of Tanzania?
- Tanzania has a population of about 68.6 million, which makes it the 22nd most populous of the 250 countries and territories listed on this site. The United Kingdom sits just above it and France just below.
- What currency does Tanzania use?
- Tanzania uses the Tanzanian shilling, written Sh (currency code TZS). No other entry in this dataset uses it.
- Is Tanzania a country?
- Yes. Tanzania is a sovereign state and one of the 193 UN members listed on this site.
- Where is Tanzania located?
- Tanzania is in Eastern Africa, part of Africa. Its reference coordinates are 6.0° south and 35.0° east, roughly 668 km from the equator in equatorial latitudes.
- Which countries border Tanzania?
- Tanzania borders 8 countries: Burundi, DR Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. DR Congo is the largest of them by area.
- What language is spoken in Tanzania?
- Tanzania lists 2 official languages: English and Swahili.
