Chronology of Catholic Dioceses:Tanzania

See a list of abbreviations used in this list. See also our listing of current ecclesial jurisdictions.

Regarding Northwestern and Western Tanzania:

1204

Constantinople / Konstantinopolis (Latin Patriarchate from now, de facto established by the Pope through Venice) - (Latin Empire of Constantinople) Turkey

1742

Constantinople / Konstantinopolis (AV, supplanting the Latin Patriarchal vicars / suffragan bishops) - (Ottoman Empire) Turkey

1760

Aleppo [Lat.] (AV, detached from AV Constantinople) - Syria

1817

Vicariate Apostolic of Syria, Egypt, Arabia and Cyprus [Lat.] (AV, reestablished with new name, previously Aleppo) - Syria, Egypt, Arabian Peninsula, Cyprus

1839

Abyssinia [Lat.] (AV, detached from Apostolic Vicariate of Syria, Egypt, Arabia and Cyprus) -Abyssinia

1846

Sudan / Central Africa (AV, detached from Abyssinia AV) - Sudan, etc.

1880

Nyanza (AV, detached from Sudan / Central Africa AV) - Tanzania, etc.

Regarding Zanguebar 1860, and subsequently most of Eastern Tanzania:

1514

Funchal (established by the Portuguese, see footnote) - Portugal

1533

Goa (detached from Funchal) - India

1558

Malacca (detached from Goa) - Malaysia

1712

Islands of the Indian Ocean (AP, detached from Malacca) - Indian Ocean

1818

Bourbon (AP, new name, previously Islands of the Indian Ocean) - Reunion, Indian Ocean, etc.

1850

Saint-Denis-de-La-Réunion (D, and new name, previously Bourbon AP) - Reunion

Regarding Zanzibar and Pemba 1964:

1953

Nairobi (Metr., and new name, previously Zanzibar [a.k.a. Northern Zanzibar] AV) - Kenya

1955

Mombasa and Zanzibar (detached from Nairobi) - Kenya/Tanzania

1860

Zanguebar (AP, detached from Saint-Denis-de-La-Réunion) - (Zanzibar) Tanzania

1880

Tanganyika (APV, detached from Sudan / Central Africa AV) - Tanzania

1880

Victoria-Nyanza (APV, and new name, previously Kasubi [Miss.]) - Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda

1883

Tanganyika (AV) - Tanzania, Congo [Kinshasa]

1883

Victoria Nyanza (AV, new name, previously Nyanza AV) - Tanzania, etc.

1883

Zanguebar (AV) - (Zanzibar) Tanzania

1886

Unanyembe (AV, detached from Tanganyika APV, and from Southern Upper Congo [Miss.]) - Tanzania

1887

Northern Zanguebar (AV, new name, previously Zanguebar AV) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1887

Southern Zanguebar (AP, detached from Zanguebar) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1894

Southern Victoria Nyanza (AV, detached from Victoria Nyanza AV) - Tanzania, etc.

1902

Southern Zanguebar (AV) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1906

Central Zanguebar (AV 11/5, detached from Northern Zanguebar AV) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1906

Bagamoyo (AV 21/12, new name, previously Central Zanguebar AV) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1906

Dar-es-Salaam (AV, new name, previously Southern Zanguebar) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1906

Zanzibar (AV, new name, previously Northern Zanguebar AV) - (Zanzibar) Tanzania

1910

Kilima-Ndjaro (AV, detached from Bagamoyo AV) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1912

Kivu (AV, detached from Southern Victoria-Nyanza) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1913

Lindi (AP, detached from Dar-es-Salaam AV) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1915

Victoria-Nyanza (AV, previously Southern Victoria-Nyanza) - (German South-East Africa) Tanzania

1922

Iringa (AP, detached from Dar-es-Salaam) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1925

Tabora (AV, new name, previously Unjanyembe AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1927

Lindi (Abb.) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1929

Bubuka (AV, detached from Victoria-Nyanza AV, and from Tabora AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1929

Mwanza (AV, new name, previously Victoria-Nyanza) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1931

Peramiho (Abb., new name, previously Lindi, Abb.) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1931

Ndanda (Abb., detached from Lindi, Abb.) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1932

Tukuyu (Mission "sui iuris", detached from Tanganyika AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1935

Dodoma (AP, detached from Kilima-Njaro, from Bagamoyo, and from Iringa) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1938

Tukuyu (AP) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1943

Mbulu (AP, detached from Tabora, from Kilima-Njaro, and from Dodoma) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1946

Karema (AV, new name, previously Tanganyika AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1946

Kigoma (AV, detached from Tanganyika AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1946

Musoma-Maswa (AV, detached from Mwanza) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1948

Iringa (AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1949

Mbeya (AV, and new name, previously Tukuyu AP) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1950

Musoma (AP, new name, previously Musoma-Maswa) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1950

Maswa (AV, detached from Musoma-Maswa) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1950

Tanga (AP, detached from Kilima-Njaro AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1951

Bukoba (D, and new name, previously Bubuka AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1951

Dodoma (AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1951

Lower Kagera (AV, detached from Bubuka) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1952

Mbulu (AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Dar-es-Salaam (Metr.) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Dodoma - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Iringa - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Karema - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Kigoma - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Maswa - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Mbarara (D, and new name, previously Ruwenzori AV) - Uganda

1953

Mbeya - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Mbulu - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Morogoro (D, and new name, previously Bagamoyo AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Moshi (D, and new name, previously Kilima-Njaro AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Mwanza (Tanganyika) - Tanzania

1953

Rutabo (D, and new name, previously Inner Kagera, AV) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1953

Tabora (Metr., was part of the Metropolitan Province of Dar-es-Salaam) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1956

Shinyanga (new name, previously Maswa) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1957

Musoma - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1958

Tanga - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1960

Bukoba (new name , previously Rutabo) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1960

Rulenge (new name, previously Bukoba - NOTE: Not the Bukoba erected in 1960) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1963

Arusha (detached from Moshi) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1963

Nachingwea (detached from Ndanda [Abb.]) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1963

Same (AP, detached from Moshi) - (Tanganyika) Tanzania

1964

Mahenge (detached from Dar-es-Salaam) - (United Republic of Tanzania and Zanzibar) Tanzania

1964

Zanzibar and Pemba (AA, detached from Dar-es-Salaam at the same instance as these territories are transferred from Mombasa to Dar-es-Salaam) - Tanzania

1968

Njombe (detached from Peramiho [Abb.], and from Iringa) - Tanzania

1969

Songea (D, and new name, previously Peramiho [Abb.]) - Tanzania

1969

Sumbawanga (new name, previously Karema) - Tanzania

1972

Mtwara (D, and new name, previously Ndanda [Abb.]) - Tanzania

1972

Singida (detached from Tabora, from Dodoma, from Mbeya, and from Mbulu) - Tanzania

1977

Same - Tanzania

1980

Zanzibar (D, and new name, previously Zanzibar and Pemba AA) - Tanzania

1983

Kahama (detached from Tabora) - Tanzania

1984

Geita (detached from Mwanza) - Tanzania

1986

Lindi (new name, previously Nachingwea) - Tanzania

1986

Mbinga (detached from Songea) - Tanzania

1986

Tunduru-Masasi (detached from Nachingwea) - Tanzania

1987

Mwanza (Metr., was part of the Metropolitan Province of Tabora) - Tanzania

1987

Songea (Metr., was part of the Metropolitan Province of Dar-es-Salaam) - Tanzania

1999

Arusha (Metr., was part of the Metropolitan Province of Dar-es-Salaam) - Tanzania

2000

Mpanda (detached from Sumbawanga) - Tanzania

2008

Kayanga (detached from Rulenge) - Tanzania

2008

Rulenge-Ngara (New name, previously Rulenge) - Tanzania

2018

Mbeya (Metr., was part of the Metropolitan Province of Songea) - Tanzania