Ten Categories of Zambia Trivia Quiz

Answer: Chaplin's barbet

Chaplin's barbet (Lybius chaplini) is also known as the Zambian barbet, and is a bird species found only in Zambia, in various subpopulations. In the late 2000s, the population was estimated at about 5200 individuals, and in 2008, the bird's status was changed from Near Threatened to Vulnerable. The biggest threat to the Chaplin's barbet is habitat loss, as they live in open woodlands and nest in fig trees, which are being cleared along with other woodland. They roost and forage in groups of around two to six birds, and eat figs, fruits, and arthropods.

Although the Moustached tinkerbird can be found in Zambia, it is not endemic, living also in surrounding countries such as Tanzania and Malawi. A pangolin is a scaly anteater rather than a bird species, and the lechwe is a type of antelope.

Answer: Lusaka

Lusaka is situated in the south of Zambia, in a province and district of the same name. The city connects to all four of Zambia's main highways, and has an international airport. Lusaka is a high altitude city, with an elevation of approximately 1300 m (or 4265 ft), giving it a subtropical climate.

The University of Zambia is located here, and is the country's largest university; a famous alumnus is Zambia's third president, Levy Mwanawasa, who ruled from 2002 to 2008.

Answer: Namibia

Zambia is landlocked, and has approximately 5,665 km (or 3,500 mi) of borders with its neighboring countries. The Zambian-Namibian border is very short, measuring about 230 km (145 mi), and comprises the end of a large strip of Namibian land that runs along the top of Botswana. Running clockwise from there, Zambia borders Angola for a length of 1110 km (690 mi), then onto its longest border, which is with the Democratic Republic of the Congo for a length of 1930 km (1200 mi). Within Lake Tanganyika, the border changes to the Zambian-Tanzanian border, which runs for 340 km (210 mi), and onto Malawi (840 km or 520 mi), Mozambique (420 km or 260 mi), and finally Zimbabwe (800 km or 495 mi). Victoria Falls is situated on the Zambian-Zimbabwean border. Kazungula is a Zambian town that exists at a site that almost forms a quadripoint (four-country border) between Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Botswana.

Zambia does share a border with Botswana, but it's very short at about 0.15 km (0.1 mi).

Answer: Copper

Copper was discovered in the late 1920s, and the town of Kitwe was founded in what is called the Copperbelt, which is also the name of one of Zambia's provinces. Around 1940, Zambia was the main source for copper in the world, and the number of white people in the country dramatically increased. Zambia was a British colony at this time, called Northern Rhodesia, and the British hoped that more and more white people would move to Zambia to take up mining jobs - this did not happen to the expected level. Miners formed strong bonds with their occupation, sometimes even more so than to their own tribes, and by 1948, the African miners had established a trade union.

Answer: Tonga

Tonga baskets have a particular shape, with a square bottom. Girls and women are taught the intricate art, which for many families is the main or only source of income. They can be used for a multitude of things, but many Zambians use them to carry maize or sorghum.

As they are handmade, the patterns used are often unique, and for tourists, they make a fantastic souvenir as well as supporting the local families.

Answer: Zulu

As well as being a reggae musician, Maiko Zulu is a human rights campaigner in his home country, particularly on behalf of the poor. His first album "In The Ghetto" was released in 2001. Ballad Zulu is a rather reclusive musician who is also an economist.

The Zulu people are an ethnic group of South Africa, and Zulu is also the name of their language.

Answer: David Livingstone

David Livingstone was a Scottish missionary born in 1813. Although Manuel Caetano Pereira was the first European in Zambia, Livingstone was the first European to see Victoria Falls, which he renamed from Mosi-oa-Tunya in honor of Queen Victoria, who ruled the United Kingdom at the time.

He traveled with only a few servants, and was friendly with local chiefs; although a Christian missionary, he did not force Christianity on the locals if they were unwilling to convert. He resigned as a missionary in 1857, and went instead to explore the Zambezi area.

The city of Livingstone is situated about six miles from the Zambezi River, and contains a museum dedicated to the explorer. It is sometimes called Maramba, and was formerly the capital of Zambia's Southern Province before it was moved to Choma in the 2010s.

Answer: Protestant

Zambia has followers of many Christian denominations, although approximately two thirds of Zambians are Protestant; these include Presbyterian, Seventh-Day Adventist, and Anglican. Christianity was largely established in the country by Western missionaries. Around five per cent of Zambians are Seventh-Day Adventists, which is one of the highest rates in the world of this denomination.

There is a small minority of Muslims (around one per cent), and communities of Ashkenazi Jews.

Answer: Rugby union

Since colonialism, rugby union has become a strong sport in Zambia, particularly sevens rugby, where each team has seven players. The Lusaka Mosi International Sevens is a competition that takes place in sevens rugby. Zambia competes in the Africa Cup, which is a rugby tournament for African countries first held in 2000.

The Red Arrows of Lusaka is an air force team, while the Green Buffaloes is the army team. Another club which plays in Lusaka is Lusaka Rugby Club.

Answer: Bantu

Bantu languages are a subgroup of the Niger-Congo group, and are spoken throughout the region of eastern, central, and southern Africa. Estimates differ, but sources count 200-500+ separate Bantu languages, with much debate about what comprises a dialect and what a separate language.

Bemba, or ChiBemba, has about 3.5 million speakers, and is Zambia's most commonly spoken Bantu language. It has many dialects, including Chisinga and Ngoma. The Bemba people comprise Zambia's largest ethnic group. Nyanja, or Chewa, is the official language of Malawi, and has about 11.5 million speakers. In Lusaka, Zambia's capital, the lingua franca is an urbanized dialect of Nyanja. Lozi, or SiLozi, has around half a million speakers, and is a hybrid of the languages of two tribes, Kololo and Luyana, who settled in Zambia from other regions of Africa.