17 interesting facts about Lesotho

17 interesting facts about Lesotho

We share the most interesting facts about Lesotho that we gathered during our short but breathtaking visit to the “Kingdom of Heaven”.

We only had 36 hours in the tiny kingdom of Lesotho, but it turned out to be a gem of a trip with plenty of surprises along the way. We reached Lesotho via the winding Sani Pass with a local expert from Roof of Africa.

Lesotho is tiny and one of the least known countries in the world, but is still a country full of fascinating facts. Only 36 hours was not nearly enough and we promised to return one day.

For now, we share the most interesting facts about Lesotho that we learned during our trip.

Interesting facts about Lesotho

1. Lesotho war früher als Basutoland bekannt. Der vollständige Name des Landes lautet heute „The Kingdom of Lesotho“ und erlangte 1966 nach 100 Jahren Kolonialherrschaft die Unabhängigkeit von Großbritannien. (Quelle: BBC)
2. Der Sani Pass in Lesotho wurde als einer der gefährlichsten Gebirgspässe der Welt bezeichnet. Der kurvenreiche Pass verbindet Underberg in Südafrika mit Mokhotlong in Lesotho. (Quelle: Smithsonian)

alt="interesting facts about Lesotho Sani Pass">VAIZ HA; CC BY 2.0The winding Sani Pass, which descends towards South Africa

1. Lesotho ist ein Binnenstaat: ein Land, das von Land umgeben ist und keinen Zugang zum Meer hat. Derzeit gibt es 45 solcher Länder und fünf teilweise anerkannte Staaten. Die überwiegende Mehrheit dieser Länder leidet wirtschaftlich unter den Nachteilen, die durch den fehlenden Zugang zum Meer verursacht werden. (Quelle: The Economist)

2. Because Lesotho is completely surrounded by South Africa, it is not only a landlocked country, but also one of only three enclave countries. The other two are San Marino and Vatican City (entirely surrounded by Italy). (Source: Britannica)

alt="interesting facts about the Lesotho map">Mandavi; CC BY 3.0Lesotho is one of only three enclave states in the world

1. Lesotho bedeutet grob übersetzt „Land der Sesotho-Sprecher“. (Quelle: CIA World Factbook)

2. An individual in Lesotho is known as Mosotho, the people (as a collective) are called Basotho and the official language is Sesotho. (Source: Oxford University Press)

3. Lesotho is the “highest country in the world”…sort of. It has the “highest lowest point” of any other country: 1,400 m (4,593 feet). (Source: The Commonwealth)

4. Lesotho is also the only independent state to exist entirely above 1,000 m (3,281 feet), hence its nickname “Kingdom of Heaven”. Additionally, Lesotho is one of only two countries that average above 2,000 m (6,561 feet), the other being Kyrgyzstan. (Source: The Telegraph)

alt="interesting facts about Lesotho Highets Land">Atlas & BootsOne of the most interesting facts about Lesotho is that it is the “highest country in the world”.

1. Lesotho ist einer von wenigen Orten in Afrika, wo man Ski fahren kann. Afriski liegt in den Maluti-Bergen mit einer maximalen Höhe von 3.222 m (10.571 ft). (Quelle: The Atlantic)

2. Lesotho is home to one of the scariest runways in the world. The Matekane Air Strip is a high-altitude airstrip with a runway extending to the edge of a 600m high cliff. (Source: CNN)

alt="interesting facts about the runway in Lesotho">Tom Claytor; CC BY 2.0The Matekane Air Strip on the edge of a 600m high cliff

1. Lesotho hat einen Dinosaurier, der nach ihm benannt ist. Der Lesothosaurus entwickelte sich in der frühen Jurazeit vor etwas mehr als 200 Millionen Jahren. Frühe Fossilien wurden in Lesotho entdeckt. (Quelle: National Geographic)

2. In 2017, one of the largest dinosaur footprints ever found was discovered in Lesotho. The footprint measures 57 cm and comes from a dinosaur called Kayentapus ambrokholohali. It is a relative of Tyrannosaurus rex and is estimated to be 2.7 m tall and 9 m long, making it one of the largest dinosaurs to ever roam Africa. (Source: Africa Geographic)

alt="The Dinosaur Footprints Found in Lesotho">University of Cape TownThe dinosaur footprints found in Lesotho

1. Im Jahr 2018 wurde in Lesotho einer der größten jemals entdeckten Diamanten gefunden. Mit einem Gewicht von 910 Karat – mehr als ein Baseball – ist er der fünftgrößte Rohdiamant, der je gefunden wurde, und der größte in der Geschichte Lesothos. (Quelle: New York Times)

2. A quarter of Lesotho's population is HIV positive. The country has the second highest HIV prevalence rate in the world after Swaziland. (Source: The Guardian)

3. The highest pub in Africa is in Lesotho. Sani Mountain Lodge is located at 2,874 m (9,429 ft) above sea level, just over the border between South Africa and Lesotho. (Source: BBC)

alt="The highest pub in the world">Atlas & BootsThe highest pub in Africa is in Lesotho

1. Lesotho hat mit 70,1 % bei Männern und 88,3 % bei Frauen eine der höchsten Alphabetisierungsraten bei Erwachsenen in Afrika. (Quelle: CIA World Factbook)

2. There are still cave dwellers in Lesotho. The Ha Kome Cave Houses form a group of clay cave dwellings in the Berea District. The caves are still inhabited by the descendants of the original Basia clan who live in the area. (Source: Lonely Planet)

Lonely Planet South Africa, Lesotho & Swaziland contains a comprehensive travel guide to Lesotho, covering a range of activities and destinations as well as many other interesting facts about Lesotho.

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