The Mpoto are an ethnic and linguistic group based in the
Mbinga District of
Ruvuma Region
Ruvuma Region (''Mkoa wa Ruvuma'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The regional capital is the municipality of Songea. According to the 2012 national census, the region had a population of 1,376,891, which was lower th ...
in southern
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
, along the northeast shore of
Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania.
It is the fifth largest fr ...
. In 1977 the Mpoto population was estimated to number 80,00
Mpoto, or several variations on this word, is a word meaning "Europe" in several West African languages, including
Kongo language, Kongo (''Mputu'') and
Lingala
Lingala (Ngala) (Lingala: ''Lingála'') is a Bantu language spoken in the northwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the northern half of the Republic of the Congo, in their capitals, Kinshasa and Brazzaville, and to a lesser degree in ...
(''Mpótó''), and derives from the word "Portugal". In addition to the continent and people, it may refer to people of European descent, and thus also include places with a majority population of European descent, such as the Americas, Australia, and New Zealand.
Ethnic groups in Tanzania
Indigenous peoples of East Africa
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