Zzz. Wake Up, This Is the Z Quiz!

Answer: Zimbabwe

The origin of the ruins of Great Zimbabwe is somewhat of a mystery as there are no written records of the place before the discovery by European explorers in the 19th century. Carbon dating seems to indicate a date of around 900 A.D. for the construction of the stone walls, although a tower described by some as a temple appears to be much later.

It is agreed though that the builders were certainly Africans, probably the Shona people. The name Zimbabwe was given to the troubled country that was called Southern Rhodesia before independence.

Answer: Zeno

Zeno was a Greek philosopher who lived around 500 B.C. He was famous for his paradoxes a couple of which are:
If everything that exists is in space, and space itself is something that exists, then space must be in space, and so on...
Achilles cannot catch the tortoise. By the time Achilles has reached the point where the tortoise was, the tortoise has moved on. By the time he has reached that further point, the tortoise had moved on a further distance, and so on...

Answer: Zola

Emile Edouard Charles Zola (1840-1902) was a French novelist, but is also famous for his defence of the Jewish army officer found guilty of treason. His article headlined "J'Accuse" in the Aurore on 23 Jan 1898 was a terrible denunciation of those who had conspired to convict the innocent Captain Dreyfus.
Zola tragically died of carbon monoxide poisoning due to a defective flue, in 1902. Originally buried in the Cimetière de Montmartre, some years later he was exhumed and reburied in the Panthéon, alongside Alexandre Dumas and Victor Hugo.
Apparently there is a famous football player and manager called Gianfranco Zola but this is not about him.

Answer: Zoophyte

Although the term is not used in modern science, it was what they used to call a plant that looked like an animal, and later an animal that looks like a plant (such as a sea anemone). It was once thought that the plant called the "Tartar Lamb" gave rise to sheep as its fruit!

Answer: Zebu

The zebu, a kind of ox commonly used in India for ploughing, has a characteristic hump on its shoulders. It also gives milk.

Answer: Zymic

Zymic is an adjective describing fermentation. A zymic substance (such as yeast) produces fermentation, or leavening.
It seems there is or was a free web hosting service called Zymic.

Answer: Zanella

According to my old dictionary, zanella is a material used for umbrellas. According to modern sources, Zanella is an Italian brand of designer trousers, and it is also the name of an Argentinian business that makes motorbikes.

Answer: Zinnia

Zinnias are defined as being in the sunflower tribe within the daisy family. They originate from the Americas, but are popular garden plants world wide.

Answer: Zareba

An improvised enclosure, often made of thorn bushes, in Africa, is called a zareba. It is a defence against enemies, or wild animals.

Answer: Zenith

The zenith is defined as the point in the heavens directly above the observer. Colloquially it can mean the highest point in someone's career, or the height of success.