Botswana

American  

[bot-swah-nuh] / bɒtˈswɑ nə /

noun

1. a republic in southern Africa: formerly a British protectorate; gained independence 1966; member of the Commonwealth of Nations. 275,000 sq. mi. (712,250 sq. km). Gaborone.

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Botswana British  

/ bɒt-, bʊtˈswɑːnə, bʊˈtʃwɑːnə /

noun

1. a republic in southern Africa: established as the British protectorate of Bechuanaland in 1885 as a defence against the Boers; became an independent state within the Commonwealth in 1966; consists mostly of a plateau averaging 1000 m (3300 ft), with the extensive Okavango swamps in the northwest and the Kalahari Desert in the southwest. Languages: English and Tswana. Religion: animist majority. Currency: pula. Capital: Gaborone. Pop: 2 127 825 (2013 est). Area: about 570 000 sq km (220 000 sq miles)

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Botswana Cultural  

1. Republic in south-central Africa, bordered on the south by South Africa, the west by Namibia, the north by Angola and Zambia, and the northeast by Zimbabwe; formerly called Bechuanaland. The capital and largest city is Gaborone.

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Discover More

Botswana became independent from British control in the 1960s.

Example Sentences

Sierra Leone has no national policy guaranteeing free sanitary products in schools - unlike Kenya, Botswana, South Africa and Zambia.

From BBC • May 17, 2026

"Zimbabwe must learn from countries like Norway, Botswana and Kuwait, which safeguard their natural resources through firm, consistent and strategic policy frameworks," he said.

From Barron's • Feb. 26, 2026

The trend has spread to other African countries and has become so pervasive that it has drawn the concern of central banks in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Botswana and Namibia.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2026

Botswana has perhaps been the most ardent in its ambition to acquire a controlling stake in the company that oversees the world trade in the stones on which its economy depends.

From Barron's • Feb. 8, 2026

“Rhodesia,” she said, pointing to a teakettle-shaped country in the southern part of Africa above a place called Botswana and next to one called Mozambique.

From "I Will Always Write Back" by Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda