The area of Africa now known as Malawi had a very small population of hunter-gatherers before waves of Bantu-speaking peoples began emigrating from the north around the 10th century. Although most of the Bantu peoples continued south, some remained permanently and founded ethnic groups based on common ancestry. By 1500 AD, the tribes had established the Kingdom of Maravi, which had broken up by 1700 into areas controlled by many individual ethnic groups. The area was then British protectorate, from 1889 until 1964, when it gained the independence. Now Malawi's population is made up of many native ethnic groups, as the Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuka, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, and Ngonde, as well as populations of Asians and Europeans. Although most Malawians are Christians (68%) or Muslim (25%), many of the practices related to ancient religious beliefs have survived until today.
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