Zambia
Waiting for the first voice
تا مرد سخن نگفته باشد / عیب و هنرش نهفته باشد
Until a man has spoken, his faults and his gifts both stay hidden.
No advice from here yet. Know an elder from this country? Your recording could be the first: 2–3 minutes on a phone.
Did you know
Victoria Falls lies on the Zambezi, which forms the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe, and is the world's largest sheet of falling water. (source)
Elders in numbers
- of people are 65 or older
- 2%
- people aged 65 or older
- 438.3K
- will be 65 or older in 2050
- 4.8%
- is how long people live after 60, on average
- 16.9 years
- of people 65+ live alone
- 10.4%
- women 12.5%, men 7.8%
- of people 65+ live in collective quarters: care homes, hospitals, hostels and the like
- 1.1%
Sources: World Bank, 2025; World Bank projection for 2050; WHO, 2023; UN, 2024; UN, 2000 census
Languages
48 languages, 12 of them endangered
- KhweDefinitely endangered
- MboweDefinitely endangered
- NambyaDefinitely endangered
- ShanjoDefinitely endangered
- SimaaDefinitely endangered
- BwileVulnerable
- KuhaneVulnerable
- KundaVulnerable
- MashiVulnerable
- SebaVulnerable
- ShinyihaVulnerable
- TotelaVulnerable
Show all 48
- Afrikaans
- Aushi
- Bemba
- Chewa
- Chokwe
- Fwe
- Ila
- Kaonde
- Lala-Bisa
- Lamba
- Lambya
- Lenje
- Lozi
- Lucazi
- Lunda
- Luvale
- Luyana
- Mambwe-Lungu
- Mbukushu
- Mbunda
- Mwanga
- Nkoya
- Northern Ndebele
- Nsenga
- Nyemba
- Nyiha
- Nyika
- Sala
- Shona
- Soli
- Tabwa
- Tonga
- Tswana
- Tumbuka
- Yao
- Zambian Sign Language
Languages and their status: Glottolog v5.3, CC BY 4.0. Names: Wikidata.
UNESCO intangible heritage
- Mangwengwe dance2024
- Kalela dance2022
- Budima dance2020
- Mooba dance of the Lenje ethnic group of Central Province of Zambia2018
- Makishi masquerade2008
- Gule Wamkulu2008
List and years: ich.unesco.org
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