Rhodesia

American  

[roh-dee-zhuh] / roʊˈdi ʒə /

noun

1. (asSouthern Rhodesia ) a former British colony in southern Africa: declared independence 1965; name changed to Zimbabwe 1979.

2. a historical region in southern Africa that comprised the British territories of Northern Rhodesia (nowZambia ) and Southern Rhodesia (nowZimbabwe ).

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Rhodesia British  

/ rəʊˈdiːʃə, -zɪə /

noun

1. a former name (1964–79) for Zimbabwe

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Rhodesia Cultural  

1. Former name of Zimbabwe, a nation in southeastern Africa.

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Discover More

Rhodesia was named for Cecil Rhodes, the English industrialist whose British South Africa Company colonized the region at the end of the nineteenth century. He also founded the Rhodes Scholarships for study at Oxford University.

Other Word Forms

• Rhodesian
  adjective

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Rhodesia

She was born in Edinburgh, married in Rhodesia, spent World War II in and around London and, once she became famous, circulated through New York, Rome and Tuscany.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Natalie Brook, 37, has sold cakes from her garden in Rhodesia, in Nottinghamshire, since January.

From BBC ● May 8, 2026

In the 1970s, Beijing built the Tazara Railway from landlocked Zambia to Tanzania’s Dar es Salaam port, allowing copper exports to circumvent white-minority-ruled Rhodesia and apartheid South Africa.

From Washington Times ● Mar. 31, 2023

In the 1970s, Beijing built the Tazara Railway from landlocked Zambia to Tanzania’s Dar es Salaam port, allowing copper exports to circumvent white-minority ruled Rhodesia and apartheid South Africa.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 30, 2023

That year, a group of MK soldiers who had been training in Tanzania and Zambia crossed the Zambezi River into Rhodesia with the intention of making their way home.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela