Entebbe
city in Uganda
Entebbe is a city in Central Uganda which is located on Lake Victoria peninsula, approximately 36 kilometres (22 mi) southwest of the Ugandan capital city, Kampala. Entebbe was once the seat of government for the Protectorate of Uganda prior to independence, in 1962. The city is the location of Entebbe International Airport, Uganda's largest commercial and military airport, which gained worldwide attention in a 1976 Israeli rescue of 100 hostages kidnapped by the militant group of the PFLP-EO and Revolutionary Cells (RZ) organizations. Entebbe is also the location of State House, the official office and residence of the President of Uganda.
Etymology
The word came from Luganda language e ntebe which means 'seat' / 'chair'. Entebbe was a cultural site for the Mamba clan and it was called "entebbe za Mugula" - Mugula was the title of a chief of a subdivision of the Mamba clan - and is now the location of the official office and residence of the President of Uganda, as it was for British governors before independence. Entebbe was the former seat of power in the country, but has now been replaced by Kampala.
Location
Entebbe sits on the northern shores of Lake Victoria, Africa's largest lake. The town is situated in Wakiso District, approximately 34 kilometres (21 mi) south of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city. The metropolis is located on a peninsula into Lake Victoria, covering a total area of 56.2 square kilometres (21.7 mi2), out of which 20 km2 (7.7 mi2) is water.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Entebbe” is city in Uganda. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Entebbe, city and Uganda, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “city in Uganda” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 7, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q211970. VIAF identifies the subject as 131355140. The Library of Congress control number is n81020348. Authority coordinates are 0.050, 32.460. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1962 and 1976.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Entebbe”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Entebbe primary sources, Entebbe archive and Entebbe research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Entebbe”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Entebbe” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.