Blantyre

Blantyre, city, southern Malawi, administrative center of both the Southern Region and Blantyre District, on the Shire River near Zomba. It is the largest city of Malawi and the transportation and trade center of the Shire Highlands. Blantyre has government offices and several technical schools. The University of Malawi (1964) is located here. The district produces tobacco, corn, coffee, tung oil, and wheat. The city, founded in 1876 by Scottish missionaries, is named for the birthplace, in Scotland, of the explorer David Livingstone. Blantyre became a township in 1895 and was combined as the municipality of Blantyre-Limbe in 1956. It became a city in 1966. Population (1998) 502,053.