Rwanda

Rwan·da  (r-änd) Formerly Ru·an·da (r-änd) A country of east-central Africa. By the late 18th century the region was the site of a Tutsi kingdom inhabited principally by Hutus. In 1890 it became part of German East Africa and later (1919) part of the Belgian League of Nations mandate of Ruanda-Urundi. Rwanda achieved independence from Belgium in 1962. In 1990 the country was invaded by the Rwandan Patriotic Front, a group largely composed of exiled Tutsis, which signed a peace agreement with the government in 1992. Ethnic fighting broke out again in 1994, and with the assassination of the president, the Hutu government initiated a campaign of genocide. It is estimated that 800,000 people were murdered before the Rwandan Patriotic Front seized control of the government 100 days later. Many Rwandan Hutus fled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, leading to ongoing conflict between the two countries. Kigali is the capital and largest city. Population: 9,910,000. Rwandan adj. & n.

Rwanda

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Rwanda¹

n

(Placename) a republic in central Africa: part of German East Africa from 1899 until 1917, when Belgium took over the administration; became a republic in 1961 after the successful Hutu revolt against the Tutsi (1959); fighting between the ethnic groups has broken out repeatedly since independence, culminating in the genocide of Tutsis by Hutus in 1994. Official languages: Rwanda, French, and English. Religion: Roman Catholic, African Protestant, Muslim, and animist. Currency: Rwanda franc. Capital: Kigali. Pop.: 7 313 000 (2001 est.). Area: 26 338 sq. km (10 169 sq. miles) Former name (until 1962) Ruanda

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Rwanda²

n

(Linguistics / Languages) one of the official languages of Rwanda, belonging to the Bantu group of the Niger-Congo family and closely related to Kirundi Also called Kinyarwanda

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

Rwanda - a landlocked republic in central Africa; formerly a German colony Ruanda, Rwandese Republic ALIR, Army for the Liberation of Rwanda, FAR, Former Armed Forces, Interahamwe - a terrorist organization that seeks to overthrow the government dominated by Tutsi and to institute Hutu control again; "in 1999 ALIR guerrillas kidnapped and killed eight foreign tourists" East Africa - a geographical area in eastern Africa capital of Rwanda, Kigali - the national capital and largest city of Rwanda; located in central Rwanda Africa - the second largest continent; located to the south of Europe and bordered to the west by the South Atlantic and to the east by the Indian Ocean Kivu, Lake Kivu - a lake in the mountains of central Africa between Congo and Rwanda Hutu - a member of a Bantu people living in Rwanda and Burundi Tutsi, Watusi, Watutsi - a member of a Bantu speaking people living in Rwanda and Burundi Rwandan - a native or inhabitant of Rwanda

Translations

Rwanda [rʊˈændə] N → Ruanda f

Rwanda

n → Ruanda nt