Tanga is both the name of the
most northerly seaport city of Tanzania, and the surrounding Tanga Region.
It is the Regional Headquarters of the region. With a population of 243,580 in
2002, Tanga is one of the largest cities in the country. It is a quiet city
compared to, for example, Arusha or Moshi with a comparable
number of inhabitants.
The city of Tanga sits on the Indian Ocean, near the border with Kenya. Major exports from
the port of Tanga include sisal, coffee, tea, and cotton. Tanga is also an
important railroad terminus, connecting much of the northern Tanzanian interior
with the sea. Via the Tanzania Railways
Corporation's
Link Line and Central Line, Tanga is linked to the African Great Lakes region and the
Tanzanian economic capital of Dar es Salaam. The city is served byTanga Airport.
The harbour and surrounding is the centre of
life in Tanga. It is stretched out several km² into the country. It has several
markets in several neighbourhoods.
History
Tanga, Kaiserstrasse (about 1910)
Tanga was chosen in 1889 as a military post of German East Africa, and it became a district office in 1891. The local economy was
based mainly on the production of sisal, which had been brought to the colony several
years earlier, and population in the area grew rapidly. The town was also the
terminus of the Usambara Railway line, which runs inland
to Moshi at
the foot of Kilimanjaro.
The name Tanga comes from the word for farm or cultivated
land in several of the local languages (includingSambaa,Diggo, Bondei, and Zigua).[citation needed] Tanga gave its name to Tanganyika, literally meaning "Sisal Farm", the
territory which in 1964 joined with the island of Zanzibar to form the modern nation of Tanzania.
As the coastal town closest to Kenya, Tanga was on the front line at the outset
of World War I. A British landing was thrown back on 4 November 1914 in
the Battle of Tanga, and the town was not taken until 7 July 1916.
Economy
Tanga
Cement is one of the
major industries.
Transport
Tanga was served by
a 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge railway
of the national railway system, however this has not functioned in many years.
Healthcare
Tanga area medical institutions include:
·
Amani Biomedical
Research Laboratory
Tourist sites
Nearby tourist attractions include Amboni Caves,
Galanos hot springs, Saadaninational
park, Toten Island,
URITHI Tanga Museum, Tanga War Graves and Memorials, Tongoni Ruins,
Ndumi Village defense works, Mwarongo sand beaches and protected coastal mangroves.
Sports
Tanga is represented in the Tanzanian Premier League by football clubs Coastal
Union and JKT
Mgambo.
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