Lake Niamawi, salt lake in Grande Comore, Comoros

Lake Niamawi is a natural water body located on Grande Comore in the Comoros. The lake sits within a volcanic landscape and is surrounded by hillsides that shape its setting.

Lake Niamawi lies in an extinct volcanic crater in northern Grande Comore, and the Comorian archipelago's largest lake covers about 3.5 square kilometres near Dzialandzé. Local tradition holds that a village once stood where the water now lies: a witch asked the villagers for water, was refused by all but one family, and that family left before the site was flooded overnight.

The lake lies near the town of Dzialandzé in northern Grande Comore, reached by road from the island's main centres. Its salt water comes from an underground link to the Indian Ocean, so bathers should expect a saline swim rather than fresh water. Local accounts hold that objects thrown into the lake are never heard landing, and that European and American scientists who tried to measure its depth never resurfaced.

Local legend says a village once stood where the lake now lies; a witch asked for water, was refused by all but one family, and warned that family to leave before nightfall. Returning the next morning, they found the village flooded. Another story claims European and American scientists who tried to measure the lake's depth never resurfaced, because a stone thrown in is never heard to land.