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Lake Muhazi
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Lake Muhazi
Lake Muhazi (Kinyarwanda: Ikiyaga cya Muhazi) is a long, thin shallow lake in the east of Rwanda. The bulk of the lake lies in the Eastern Province, with the western end forming the border between the Northern and the City of Kigali. It is a flooded valley lake, lying predominantly in an east to west direction, but with numerous offshoots in a north to south direction, formerly the location of tributaries. The lake has a concrete dam at the western end, constructed in 1999 to replace an earth dam which had existed since time immemorial. The lake empties into the Nyabugogo River, which flows southwards to Kigali, where it meets the Nyabarongo River, part of the upper Nile.
Lake Muhazi is located in the eastern part of Rwanda, at coordinates 1°52′S 30°22′E / 1.867°S 30.367°E. It is accessible from three of Rwanda's primary routes. The Kigali to Gatuna road passes close to the lake's western end, the Kigali to Kayonza road, which runs parallel to the lake to the south; finally, the Kayonza to Kagitumba road runs along the lakeshore for 3.8 kilometres (2.4 mi) near Gahini, before passing over two of the ridges emanating from the lake and finally leaving the lake near Kawangire. and it is a research proposal of Mediatrice, Irene and Sandra
Lake Muhazi is 60 km long, in an east–west direction, but its width is less than 5 km. It is located in east-central Rwanda and has shoreline in three of the country's five provinces. The western third of the lake forms the border between City of Kigali (Gasabo District) to the south, and Northern Province (Gicumbi District) to the north. The eastern two-thirds of the lake is in the Eastern Province, forming the border between Rwamagana District to the south, and Gatsibo and Kayonza Districts to the north.
Various meteorological and limnological observations have taken place (Plisnier, 1990, Mukankomeje et al. 1993).
According to oral history the Kingdom of Rwanda was founded in the 14th century after disintegration of Kitara empire on the shores of Lake Muhazi in the Buganza area, close to the modern city of Rwamagana. At that time Rwanda was a small state in a loose confederation with larger and more powerful neighbours, Bugesera and Gisaka. By playing these neighbours against each other, the early kingdom flourished in the area, expanding westwards towards Lake Kivu. In this expanded kingdom, the region around the lake became a powerful religious site, being synonymous with the earliest and most revered mwamis of the kingdom. In the late 16th or early 17th centuries, the kingdom of Rwanda was invaded by the Banyoro and the kings forced to flee westward, leaving Buganza and the Lake Muhazi area in the hands of Bugesera and Gisaka.
The formation in the 17th century of a new Rwandan dynasty by mwami Ruganzu Ndori, followed by eastward invasions, the retaking of Buganza and the conquest of Bugesera, marked the beginning of the Rwandan kingdom's dominance in the area. Lake Muhazi became a border zone between Rwanda and the still independent Gisaka, a situation which remained in place for 200 years, despite several unsuccessful attempts by the Rwandan kings to subdue Gisaka. Eventually, in around 1830, Gisaka was annexed and the eastern borders of the state began to take their present form, with the lake fully under Rwandan control.
Under German and Belgian colonial rule Lake Muhazi became an important east–west transport route, linking Kigali and the west of the country with the north–south and eastbound roads from Gahini. From 1922, the eastern area was temporarily fell under British control as part of the surveying process for the proposed Cape-Cairo railway, a period during which the Church Missionary Society (CMS), started missionary and medical work across eastern Rwanda. This land was returned to Belgium in 1924 but the rulers allowed the CMS to continue its work, and a permanent mission and hospital was set up close to Lake Muhazi in Gahini village.
In common with the rest of the country, Lake Muhazi was the scene of many killings during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Large numbers of bodies were discarded in the lake by Interahamwe militias, while others drowned attempting to escape; witnesses described the water at the time as "mixed with blood."
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Lake Muhazi
Lake Muhazi (Kinyarwanda: Ikiyaga cya Muhazi) is a long, thin shallow lake in the east of Rwanda. The bulk of the lake lies in the Eastern Province, with the western end forming the border between the Northern and the City of Kigali. It is a flooded valley lake, lying predominantly in an east to west direction, but with numerous offshoots in a north to south direction, formerly the location of tributaries. The lake has a concrete dam at the western end, constructed in 1999 to replace an earth dam which had existed since time immemorial. The lake empties into the Nyabugogo River, which flows southwards to Kigali, where it meets the Nyabarongo River, part of the upper Nile.
Lake Muhazi is located in the eastern part of Rwanda, at coordinates 1°52′S 30°22′E / 1.867°S 30.367°E. It is accessible from three of Rwanda's primary routes. The Kigali to Gatuna road passes close to the lake's western end, the Kigali to Kayonza road, which runs parallel to the lake to the south; finally, the Kayonza to Kagitumba road runs along the lakeshore for 3.8 kilometres (2.4 mi) near Gahini, before passing over two of the ridges emanating from the lake and finally leaving the lake near Kawangire. and it is a research proposal of Mediatrice, Irene and Sandra
Lake Muhazi is 60 km long, in an east–west direction, but its width is less than 5 km. It is located in east-central Rwanda and has shoreline in three of the country's five provinces. The western third of the lake forms the border between City of Kigali (Gasabo District) to the south, and Northern Province (Gicumbi District) to the north. The eastern two-thirds of the lake is in the Eastern Province, forming the border between Rwamagana District to the south, and Gatsibo and Kayonza Districts to the north.
Various meteorological and limnological observations have taken place (Plisnier, 1990, Mukankomeje et al. 1993).
According to oral history the Kingdom of Rwanda was founded in the 14th century after disintegration of Kitara empire on the shores of Lake Muhazi in the Buganza area, close to the modern city of Rwamagana. At that time Rwanda was a small state in a loose confederation with larger and more powerful neighbours, Bugesera and Gisaka. By playing these neighbours against each other, the early kingdom flourished in the area, expanding westwards towards Lake Kivu. In this expanded kingdom, the region around the lake became a powerful religious site, being synonymous with the earliest and most revered mwamis of the kingdom. In the late 16th or early 17th centuries, the kingdom of Rwanda was invaded by the Banyoro and the kings forced to flee westward, leaving Buganza and the Lake Muhazi area in the hands of Bugesera and Gisaka.
The formation in the 17th century of a new Rwandan dynasty by mwami Ruganzu Ndori, followed by eastward invasions, the retaking of Buganza and the conquest of Bugesera, marked the beginning of the Rwandan kingdom's dominance in the area. Lake Muhazi became a border zone between Rwanda and the still independent Gisaka, a situation which remained in place for 200 years, despite several unsuccessful attempts by the Rwandan kings to subdue Gisaka. Eventually, in around 1830, Gisaka was annexed and the eastern borders of the state began to take their present form, with the lake fully under Rwandan control.
Under German and Belgian colonial rule Lake Muhazi became an important east–west transport route, linking Kigali and the west of the country with the north–south and eastbound roads from Gahini. From 1922, the eastern area was temporarily fell under British control as part of the surveying process for the proposed Cape-Cairo railway, a period during which the Church Missionary Society (CMS), started missionary and medical work across eastern Rwanda. This land was returned to Belgium in 1924 but the rulers allowed the CMS to continue its work, and a permanent mission and hospital was set up close to Lake Muhazi in Gahini village.
In common with the rest of the country, Lake Muhazi was the scene of many killings during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Large numbers of bodies were discarded in the lake by Interahamwe militias, while others drowned attempting to escape; witnesses described the water at the time as "mixed with blood."
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