35 Fun and Interesting Facts About Botswana 2025
Are you finally planning your dream trip to Botswana?
Then you’re going to want to know all the fun facts there are to know about this amazing country. After spending a couple of months there, exploring as much as I could, I realized just how much there is to know.
One thing you’re going to find on your trip is that the scenery is amazing. The different types of landscaped are unbelievable, and include the Okavango Delta the Kalahari Desert.
Did you know that the Kalahari, a Cretaceous period desert, isn’t really a desert? And that the Delta fills up in the dry season, not the rainy season?
And – there are meerkats! But I digress. Let’s jump into all the facts about Botswana!
What is Botswana Known For?
This beautiful Southern African country has several claims to fame:
1. It has the largest population of African elephants per km². The majority of these live in beautiful Chobe National Park.
2. In fact, Chobe has the greatest concentration of wildlife on the entire continent of Africa. Included here is the national animal of Botswana, the Burchell’s zebra.
3. Botswana has a distinctive landscape mosaic. It’s made up of the celestial quality of the Nxai and Makgadikagadi Pans.
You’ll also see the harsher side of the Kalahari Desert, and the marshy environments of the Chobe River and Okavango Delta.
4. According to DNA studies, humankind originated in northern Botswana, South of the Zambezi River.
5. Tsodilo Hills, in northwest Botswana, is home to more than 4500 ancient rock paintings. The area has been nicknamed the Louvre of the Desert.
The spot gained UNESCO World Heritage status due in part to its spiritual and religious meaning to the local people.
6. The 1000th UNESCO World Heritage Site is also in Botswana – the Okavango Delta.
7. Another interesting fact about Botswana – it’s the world’s largest diamond producer – and of ethical diamonds.
8. The Botswana-Zambia border crossing called Kasungula, near the northern Botswana town of Kasane, is the point where Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe meet.
This is called a quadripoint – and is known locally as the Four Corners of Africa. This happens to be the only international quadripoint in the world.
Some Facts About Botswana Culture
9. The fascinating blend of cultures in Botswana seems at the same time beautifully unified, and uniquely varied through the eyes of an observer.
This can be attributed to the fact that the country’s people come from a variety of ethnic groups. Tswana is the largest and is also called Batswana.
Others include Kalanga, Basarwa, and Kagalagadi. And let’s not forget the 3% population of white Africans.
10. The Tswana group is made up of 8 different tribes, adding to the cultural diversity.
11. Music and dance are common threads running through this mosaic of cultures. However, even they have they differences.
As you travel throughout the country you’ll notice the subtle difference between the music and dance styles of different groups and tribes.
12. There are dances for storytelling, celebration, religious rites, and many other occasions. The San people, hunter-gatherers, even have a rain dance.
13. The San are thought to have been the first people to occupy this area. There are indications that their skills, tools, and traditions have remained largely unchanged for many thousands of years.
14. Despite the differences in marriage rites, lifestyles, and religions, to name a very few, intermarriage between Botswana’s ethnic groups is common and accepted.
15. Maintaining tradition and preserving culture is important to all of Botswana’s people. This is celebrated annually on Botswana Culture Day, or Letsatsi la Ngwao.
Botswana’s Official Languages.
16. It’s estimated that 31 different languages are spoken in Botswana.
17. English is the official language. This is a result of the UK’s rule over Southern Africa, which ended for Botswana in 1966.
18. English is used particularly when conducting business and in written communications.
19. Setswana is considered Botswana’s national language. It is a Bantu language, spoken by the Tswana people. Tswana make up 79% of the country’s population.
20. The majority of the remaining groups in Botswana also speak a Bantu language. Some of these, such as Yei and Gciriku, are “click” languages.
They are so-called because they incorporate a clicking sound as a consonant.
Botswana History Facts
21. The history of the Tswana people in Botswana can be dated back to the 14th century. Their lifestyle was one of herders and farmers.
22. From 1885 until it gained independence in 1966, Botswana was a British protectorate called Bechuanaland.
23. While a protectorate, the area we know as Botswana was among the poorest and most under-developed areas in the world.
24. Botswana has since gained a reputation for a clean democratic government, a stable economy, and a peaceful country.
25. The city of Gabarone, formerly Gabarones, was named the capital city in 1965, a year before full independence from Britain. Previously, the seat of government had been in South Africa.
26. Hunting was banned in Botswana in 2014, due to “declining wildlife numbers”. Unfortunately, this ban was lifted in September of 2019.
Botswana Food Facts
27. Botswana’s national dish is called Seswaa. It’s made with meat combined with onion and pepper. Nothing else. The meat might be lamb, beef, chicken, or goat.
Traditionally Seswaa is cooked for several hours over a fire in a short, fat pot with 3 legs. When it’s done it resembles a pulled beef dish.
Seswaa is very often eaten with pap, which is a cornmeal paste and a local staple. Samp is similar, but the corn meal has a coarser texture.
28. Goat meat is popular in Botswana, often in a stew with potatoes and vegetables.
29. Braai is often the way to go anywhere in Southern Africa. Braai is the local version of barbeque, cooking food over hot coals.
Steak, lamb chops, Boerewors (sausage), chicken, seafood, vegetables, fruit – anything’s fair game when it comes to braai.
30. Bogobe jwa lerotse is also known as slap-pap. It’s a type of porridge made from lerotse melon, sorghum, and sour milk. Some consider this dish a national dish of Botswana, along with seswaa.
31. Biltong is air-dried, cured meat, made most often these days from beef. Popular throughout Southern Africa, biltong was traditionally made from the game meat that was native to a region.
For example, ostrich or antelope would be dried and cured to preserve the meat to travel with or store. I find it similar to jerky.
32. A less familiar dish is mopane worms. Actually caterpillars, mopane worms are named for the mopane trees they’re found in.
They’re most often eaten in a stew or in a peanut sauce, and called moshanza. If you’d like to try them, look for them on the menu when you visit a restaurant in Botswana. You’ll only find them occasionally.
33. My own favourite Botswana treat is the magwinya, or fat cake. This is a slightly sweet fried dough, and can be eaten like a doughnut with honey or jam.
34. Botswana street stalls can be a great way to try the local food. Magwinya (fat cake) is a common street food, as are pap and stew. Just be sure the food is fresh and thoroughly cooked.
35. The Botswana-Zambia border crossing called Kasungula, near the northern Botswana town of Kasane, is the point where Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe meet.
This is called a quadripoint – and is known locally as the Four Corners of Africa. This happens to be the only international quadripoint in the world.
Summing It Up: Facts About Botswana
Botswana is a dream destination. Cross it off your bucket list, and collect a few Botswana facts of your own.
Then come back and let us know what you find!
Happy travels!
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