Kampala - History

History

Mutesa I, the Kabaka (king) of Buganda, had chosen the area that was to become Kampala as one of his favorite hunting grounds. The area was made up of hills and wetlands. It was an ideal breeding ground for various game, particularly a species of antelope, the impala (Aepyceros melampus). When the British arrived in the area they called one of the hills 'The Hill of the Impala' due to the large presence of impala. The native Baganda used this reference in their local dialect (Luganda) - 'Akasozi K'empala. It is worth noting that it is not unusual for Luganda to adopt the soundings of English words into the language - for example a car in Luganda is 'emotoka’ (a motor car). So K'empala formally became 'Kampala' with repeated usage, and when the British colonial rulers needed a name for the city they adopted this reference.

The city grew as the capital of the Buganda kingdom, from which several buildings survive, including the Kasubi Tombs (built in 1881), the Lubiri Palace, the Buganda Parliament and the Buganda Court of Justice. Severely damaged in the Uganda-Tanzania War, the city has since then been rebuilt with constructions of new buildings including hotels, banks, shopping malls, educational institutions, hospitals and improvement of war torn buildings and infrastructure. Traditionally, Kampala was a city of seven hills, but over time it has come to have a lot more.