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Tanzania

TZ

East Africa

Tanzania is home to 8 documented ethnic groups in East Africa — led by Tanzania Other (~58%), Sukuma (~16%), Swahili Tanzania (~9%), Nyamwezi (~5%). This page blends their phenotype and demographic data into one weighted reference: skin tone, facial features, hair texture and build, drawn from published census and ancestry sources.

Demographic Composition

Composition weights are derived from self-identification in published census and demographic surveys. Each row links to the source ethnic-group atlas page.

Ethnic groupWeightSource
Tanzania OtherTanzania Other57.8%Tanzania 2022 Census residual; includes Maasai, Hadza (the historic Khoisan-related foraging Indigenous population, ~1,000 individuals — the documented Indigenous Khoisan-language community of East Africa, genome-wide studies document the Hadza as carrying deeply-rooted African ancestry distinct from broader Bantu populations), Iraqw (Cushitic source population), Gogo, Hehe, Bena, Yao, plus broader other groups across Tanzania's approximately 130+ ethnic groups, plus Tanzanian-Indian, Arab-Tanzanian, plus other smaller groups
SukumaSukuma16.0%Tanzania 2022 Census plus subsequent estimates; Sukuma (~16%, ~10M+ of ~62M+ total). Bantu source population, the largest single ethnic group. Concentrated in northwestern Tanzania around Lake Victoria
Swahili TanzaniaSwahili Tanzania9.0%Tanzania 2022 Census; Swahili (~9%); the historic coastal Bantu-Arab admixed population, predominantly the Swahili Coast and Zanzibar. The Swahili language has become the lingua franca of East Africa
NyamweziNyamwezi4.5%Tanzania 2022 Census; Nyamwezi (~4.5%); Bantu source population, closely related to Sukuma
ChaggaChagga4.4%Tanzania 2022 Census; Chagga (~4.4%); Bantu source population, predominantly Kilimanjaro region
HayaHaya4.3%Tanzania 2022 Census; Haya (~4.3%); Bantu source population, predominantly northwestern Tanzania around Lake Victoria
HaHa4.0%Tanzania 2022 Census; Ha (~4%); Bantu source population, predominantly western Tanzania near the Burundian border
Makonde TanzaniaMakonde Tanzania4.0%Tanzania 2022 Census; Makonde (~4%); cross-border with Mozambican Makonde

Tanzania Phenotype Profile

Tanzania has a remarkably heterogeneous demographic structure with no single ethnic group reaching 20% — the country's 130+ ethnic groups reflect Tanzania's position spanning the East African Bantu source populations, the Cushitic and Nilotic source populations of northern Tanzania, plus the deeply-rooted Khoisan-related Hadza Indigenous population. The Hadza are one of the most-studied surviving foraging populations globally given their relevance for understanding pre-agricultural human demographic substrate.

A descriptive view, not a claim about individuals

This page shows a weighted aggregate of phenotype observations across the Tanzania population, based on demographic composition from published census and ancestry sources. Phenotypes within any country are far more varied than the aggregate suggests; this is a descriptive reference, not a deterministic claim about any individual. For source-level detail on individual ethnic groups, see the constituent atlas pages linked below.

Methodology Notes

Composition weights derived from Tanzania 2022 Census plus subsequent estimates.

See full project methodology →

Primary Sources

  1. 1.National Bureau of Statistics Tanzania. Population and Housing Census 2022. Dodoma: NBS; 2023.
  2. 2.Iliffe J. A Modern History of Tanganyika. Cambridge University Press; 1979.
  3. 3.Tishkoff SA, Reed FA, Friedlaender FR, et al. The genetic structure and history of Africans and African Americans. Science. 2009;324(5930):1035-1044.
  4. 4.Marlowe FW. The Hadza: Hunter-Gatherers of Tanzania. University of California Press; 2010.
  5. 5.Pollard E, Bates RJ. Anthology of Tanzania. Cambridge University Press; 2009.

Other countries in East Africa

Aggregate phenotype references for neighbouring East Africa nations, weighted by demographic composition.

Browse all East Africaethnic groups & countries →