History of the Comoros

The history of the Comoros goes back some 1,500 years. It has been inhabited by various groups throughout this time. France colonised the islands in the 19th century. The Comoros finally became independent in 1975.

Early inhabitants

According to myth, the Comoros islands were first visited by Phoenician sailors. The earliest inhabitants of the islands were probably Bantu-speaking Africans; the earliest evidence of settlement of the islands dates from the sixth century. Traces of this original culture have blended with successive waves of African, Arab and Malagasy. Shirazi immigrants appear to have arrived some time after the tenth century A.D.

In the 16th century, social changes on the East African coast probably linked to the arrival of the Portuguese saw the arrival of a number of Arabs of Hadrami who established alliances with the Shirazis and founded several royal clans.

Over the centuries, the Comoro Islands have been settled by a succession of diverse groups from the coast of Africa, the Persian Gulf, Southeast Asia and Madagascar. Portuguese explorers first visited the archipelago in 1505.

Comoros

Coordinates: 12°10′S 44°15′E / 12.167°S 44.250°E / -12.167; 44.250

The Comoros (ⁱ/ˈkɒməroʊz/; Arabic: جزر القمر‎, Juzur al-Qumur / Qamar), officially the Union of the Comoros (Comorian: Udzima wa Komori, French: Union des Comores, Arabic: الاتحاد القمري‎ al-Ittiḥād al-Qumurī / Qamarī), is a sovereign archipelago island nation in the Indian Ocean located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel off the eastern coast of Africa between northeastern Mozambique and northwestern Madagascar. Other countries near the Comoros are Tanzania to the northwest and the Seychelles to the northeast. Its capital is Moroni, on Grande Comore.

At 1,660 km² (640 sq mi), excluding the contested island of Mayotte, the Comoros is the third-smallest African nation by area. The population, excluding Mayotte, is estimated at 798,000. As a nation formed at a crossroads of different civilizations, the archipelago is noted for its diverse culture and history.

The archipelago was first inhabited by Bantu speakers who came from East Africa, supplemented by Arab and Austronesian immigration. It became a French colony in the 19th century before becoming independent in 1975. Since independence the country has experienced numerous coups d'état.