Zimbabwe Profile
History, Foreign Relations, and Economic Conditions
Primarily of the Bantu group of south andcentral Africa,the black Zimbabweans are divided into two major language groups, which aresubdivided into several ethnic groups. The Mashona (Shona speakers), whoconstitute about 75 percent of the population, have lived in the area thelongest and are the majority language group. The Matabele(Sindebele speakers), representing about 20 percentof the population and centered in the southwest around Bulawayo,arrived within the last 150 years. An offshoot of the South African Zulu group,they maintained control over the Mashona until thewhite occupation of Rhodesiain 1890. Morethan half of white Zimbabweans, primarily of English origin, arrived in Zimbabweafter…
