The name Malawi comes from “Maravi”, an old name of the Bantu people who emigrated to the area around 1400 AD. The group eventually divided between the Chewa, moving south down the west bank of Lake Malawi, and the ancestors of today’s Nyanja, who moved along the east side of the lake. David Livingstone, the British missionary and explorer, reached the lake in the mid-19th-century and considered the Shire Highlands suitable for the establishment of Anglican and Presbyterian missions. In 1889, a British protectorate was proclaimed over the Shire Highlands, which was then extended as the British Central Africa Protectorate and later renamed Nyasaland. In 1964 the protectorate was ended and the country became independent under the new name of Malawi. Today, Malawi is considered one of the world’s least-developed countries, its economy is heavily based on agriculture. Malawian cultural expression may date back to the 6th century BCE as attested by the Chongoni rock-art area, a UNESCO World Heritage site, where more than 100 sites feature ancient gatherers’ rock paintings. Furthermore, traditional arts and crafts, including sculpture in wood and ivory, form part of Malawi’s artistic culture along with a variety of traditional songs and dances, such as the ingoma and gule wa mkulu (performed by men) and chimtali and visekese (performed by women).