Dar es Salaam (from , literally "the residence of peace"; or simply
Dar, formerly
Mzizima) is the largest city of
Tanzania and the largest city in eastern Africa by population, as well as a regionally important economic centre. It is Tanzania's most prominent city in arts, fashion, media, music, film and television. It is Tanzania's leading financial centre with the
Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) being the country's first and most important stock exchange market. Dar es Salaam is the largest and most populous Swahili speaking city in the world. It is the capital of the
Dar es Salaam Region administrative province and consists of three boroughs or administrative districts: northern
Kinondoni, central
Ilala, and southern
Temeke. The city is the leading arriving and leaving point for most tourists who visit tourism areas in Tanzania like the national parks for safaris and the islands of
Zanzibar. The region had a population of 4,364,541 as of the official 2012 census. Although Dar es Salaam lost its status as the nation's capital to
Dodoma in 1974 (not completed until 1996), it remains the focus of the permanent central government bureaucracy. Most decisions made by people in power within the city of Dar es Salaam affect the entire nation of
Tanzania.