The district is located in the northeast of the country.

Zanzan District was created in a 2011 administrative reorganisation of the subdivisions of Ivory Coast.

[4] The territory of the district was composed of the former Zanzan Region.

[1] The name derives from the Zanzan dynasty who ruled in Gyaman.

Zanzan District is currently subdivided into two regions and the following departments: According to the 2021 census, Zanzan District has a population of 1,344,865.