Tuesday 28 May 2013

More About Kilwa

Kilwa Kisiwani is an island off the coast of Kilwa Masoko Township, the head-quarter of the
Kilwa District. Kilwa District is one of six administrative districts in the Lindi region along
the Southern coast of mainland Tanzania. Kilwa District lies at Longitude 39033' East and
Latitude 8055' South. The total district area is 13, 347.50 km2 (1,334,750 ha) of which 12,
125.9 km2 is land surface and 1,221.52 km2 is ocean. The total population in 2002 was 171,
057 people, living in 36,549 households. It is administratively divided into 6 divisions, 20
wards and 97 registered villages3.

Historically, Kilwa Kisiwani was one of the most famous and prosperous Swahili towns
along the Tanzanian coast; an ancient African settlement with thousands of years of
history. In the 15th century, the town owned its own coins, which was very rare in Africa, at
that time. In its prosperous years, Kilwa Kisiwani was one of the great civilizations of
Africa. Today, Kilwa Kisiwani has managed to preserve much of the scenery from the old
town settlement where visitors can expect to see medieval ruins such as the mosque, the
great house (believed to be the house of an Imam or the Sultan), the Makutani na Husuni
Kubwa Palace, and the Gereza (prison) which was built by Portuguese and which
dominates the view of the island from far. The most remarkable ruin however, is the
Husuni Kubwa, which is the largest pre-European building in the Equatorial Africa.

The island has been under continuous occupation since at least the ninth century. The ruins that exist on the island today – a great number of structures such as the mosque, great house and the fort (gereza) are the remains of what once was a great city in the past2. Nevertheless, the historical heritage of the site is
deprived and there is a danger of disappearance of ruins by various agents including; sea
wave erosion, and the economic activities of the local communities who lives in and
amongst the ruins, which creates some challenges to the ruins such as goats wandering
amongst the ruins. This prompted UNESCO in 2004 to add Kilwa Kisiwani to the “World Heritage Sites in danger” list. 



kilwa information guide
Kilwa Map








Sunday 26 May 2013

Kilwa Sultante and Ancient Kilwa Coins

Some truly amazing news from Australia today, regarding the discovery of Kilwa coins belonging to the Kilwa Sultanate that were found on a small island of Australia. Kilwa was the first sub-Saharan state to have currency and most of western Europe was embroiled in the dark ages while the Kilwa inhabitants were minting their gold coins. These Kilwa coins managed (through trade or maybe shipwrecks) to arrive in Australia at least 500 years before Captain Cook. The reach of the Kilwa sultanate gets further every day!

Kilwa Coins
Kilwa Coins from Kilwa Sultanate
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Sunday 12 May 2013

Come to Kilwa Beach Lodge


Are you looking for a relaxing beach holiday combining a beautiful beach in Kilwa Masoko, Tanzania with a cultural holiday, then Kilwa Beach Lodge might be the Kilwa hotel for you.

Kilwa Beach Lodge was constructed in 2012 on Masoko Pwani one of Kilwa Masoko’s most stunning beaches. Each of the rooms is metres away from the warm, tropical sea.

As the road from Dar es Salaam to Kilwa Masoko is nearing completion we expect more visitors to the Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani, Kilwa Masoko and Kilwa Kivinje towns.

The ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani are one of the few UNESCO World Heritage sites in southern Tanzania and are available to visit as a day trip from your Kilwa hotel. We recommend visiting the ruins early in the morning to avoid the mid-day heat.



Kilwa Kisiwani ruins are the ruins of ancient buildings constructed by Shirazi Arabs visiting east Africa and subsequently trading with the African interior. Much gold from greater Zimbabwe was brought out of Africa through Kilwa Kisiwani.

Kilwa Kisiwani boomed during the slave trade and afterwards fell in to disrepair, awaiting rediscovery and UNESCO classification.

Kilwa Masoko is famous for its stunning tropical beaches, many of the beaches were former coconut plantations and these offer a perfect destination for a tropical beach holiday. Kilwa Masoko also offers diving, snorkeling and many other watersports.

Due to its proximity to the Selous Game Reserve, many tourists combine a Selous safari with a beach holiday at one of the Kilwa hotels. This is now becoming a southern Tanzanian safari itinerary in its own right.
Kilwa beach lodge welcomes you to Tanzania.