Portal:Africa
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Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surface area. With 1.4 billion people0 as of 2021, it accounts for about 18% of the world's human population. Africa's population is the youngest amongst all the continents; the median age in 2012 was 19.7, when the worldwide median age was 30.4. Despite a wide range of natural resources, Africa is the least wealthy continent per capita and second-least wealthy by total wealth, ahead of Oceania. Scholars have attributed this to different factors including geography, climate, tribalism, colonialism, the Cold War, neocolonialism, lack of democracy, and corruption. Despite this low concentration of wealth, recent economic expansion and the large and young population make Africa an important economic market in the broader global context.
Africa straddles the equator and the prime meridian. It is the only continent to stretch from the northern temperate to the southern temperate zones. The majority of the continent and its countries are in the Northern Hemisphere, with a substantial portion and a number of countries in the Southern Hemisphere. Most of the continent lies in the tropics, except for a large part of Western Sahara, Algeria, Libya and Egypt, the northern tip of Mauritania, and the entire territories of Morocco, Ceuta, Melilla, and Tunisia which in turn are located above the tropic of Cancer, in the northern temperate zone. In the other extreme of the continent, southern Namibia, southern Botswana, great parts of South Africa, the entire territories of Lesotho and Eswatini and the southern tips of Mozambique and Madagascar are located below the tropic of Capricorn, in the southern temperate zone.
Africa is highly biodiverse; it is the continent with the largest number of megafauna species, as it was least affected by the extinction of the Pleistocene megafauna. However, Africa also is heavily affected by a wide range of environmental issues, including desertification, deforestation, water scarcity and pollution. These entrenched environmental concerns are expected to worsen as climate change impacts Africa. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has identified Africa as the continent most vulnerable to climate change.
The history of Africa is long, complex, and has often been under-appreciated by the global historical community. Africa, particularly Eastern Africa, is widely accepted as the place of origin of humans and the Hominidae clade (great apes). The earliest hominids and their ancestors have been dated to around 7 million years ago, including Sahelanthropus tchadensis, Australopithecus africanus, A. afarensis, Homo erectus, H. habilis and H. ergaster—the earliest Homo sapiens (modern human) remains, found in Ethiopia, South Africa, and Morocco, date to circa 233,000, 259,000, and 300,000 years ago, respectively, and Homo sapiens is believed to have originated in Africa around 350,000–260,000 years ago. Africa is also considered by anthropologists to be the most genetically diverse continent as a result of being the longest inhabited. (Full article...)
Selected article –
Malagasy cuisine encompasses the many diverse culinary traditions of the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar. Foods eaten in Madagascar reflect the influence of Southeast Asian, African, Oceanian, Indian, Chinese and European migrants that have settled on the island since it was first populated by seafarers from Borneo between 100 CE and 500 CE. Rice, the cornerstone of the Malagasy diet, was cultivated alongside tubers and other Southeast Asian and Oceanian staples by these earliest settlers. Their diet was supplemented by foraging and hunting wild game, which contributed to the extinction of the island's bird and mammal megafauna. These food sources were later complemented by beef in the form of zebu introduced into Madagascar by East African migrants arriving around 1,000 CE.
Trade with Arab and Indian merchants and European transatlantic traders further enriched the island's culinary traditions by introducing a wealth of new fruits, vegetables, and seasonings. (Full article...)Featured pictures –
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Photograph: Muhammad Mahdi KarimAdansonia digitata is a sub-Saharan African species of baobab tree. The genus, scientifically known as Adansonia, consists of nine species native to Madagascar, Africa, Arabia and Australia, and can reach heights of 5 to 30 m (16 to 98 ft) with trunk diameters of 7 to 11 m (23 to 36 ft). -
Morogoro Credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim
Morogoro is a city with an urban population of 206,868 (2002 census) in the southern highlands of Tanzania, 190 km west of Dar es Salaam. It is the capital of the Morogoro Region. It is also known informally as "Mji kasoro bahari," which translates as 'city short of an ocean/port'. -
Caricature of Cecil John Rhodes, after he announced plans for a telegraph line from Cape Town to Cairo. Photo credit: Punch
The Cape to Cairo Railway is an uncompleted project to cross Africa from south to north by rail. The plan was initiated at the end of the 19th century, largely under the vision of Cecil Rhodes, in the attempt to connect adjacent African possessions of the British Empire through a continuous line from Cape Town, South Africa to Cairo, Egypt. While most sections of the Cape to Cairo railway are in operation, a major part is missing between Sudan and Uganda. -
Banknote design credit: Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank; photographed by Andrew ShivaThe rupie was the unit of currency of German East Africa between 1890 and 1916. During World War I, the colony was cut off from Germany as a result of a wartime blockade and the colonial government needed to create an emergency issue of banknotes. Paper made from linen or jute was initially used, but because of wartime shortages, the notes were later printed on commercial paper in a variety of colours, wrapping paper, and in one instance, wallpaper. This two hundred rupie banknote was issued in 1915, and is now part of the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution.
Other denominations:
'"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000013-QINU`"' -
Photograph: Sathyan VelumaniThe Larabanga Mosque was built in the Sudanese architectural style in the village of Larabanga, Ghana. It is the oldest mosque in the country and one of the oldest in West Africa, and has been called the "Mecca of West Africa". It has undergone restoration several times since it was founded. The World Monuments Fund has contributed substantially to its restoration, and lists it as one of the 100 most endangered sites. -
Photo credit: LaitcheThe Rose Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens) is a plant indigenous to various parts of southern Africa, and in particular South Africa. This specific species has great importance in the perfume industry. Its cultivars have a wide variety of smells, including rose, citrus, mint, coconut and nutmeg, as well as various fruits. -
Credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim
Dar es Salaam is the largest city in Tanzania. It is also the country's richest city and a regionally important economic centre. Dar es Salaam is actually an administrative province within Tanzania, and consists of three local government areas or administrative districts: Kinondoni to the north, Ilala in the center of the region, and Temeke to the south. The Dar es Salaam Region had a population of 2,497,940 as of the official 2002 census. Though Dar es Salaam lost its official status as capital city to Dodoma in 1974, it remains the center of the permanent central government bureaucracy and continues to serve as the capital for the Dar es Salaam Region. -
Photo: William WarbyPortrait of a Maasai woman, with shaved head, stretched earlobes, and beaded adornments, typical of the Maasai culture. The Maasai are a Nilotic ethnic group of semi-nomadic people located in Kenya and northern Tanzania. They are among the best known of African ethnic groups, due to their distinctive customs and dress and residence near the many game parks of East Africa. Their primary language Maa (ɔl Maa) is a member of the Nilo-Saharan language family that is related to Dinka and Nuer. -
Photo: NASAA composite satellite image of the geography of Africa, the Earth's second-largest continent, and its adjacent islands. Separated from Europe by the Mediterranean Sea and from much of Asia by the Red Sea, Africa is joined to Asia at its northeast extremity by the Isthmus of Suez. For geopolitical purposes, the Sinai Peninsula – east of the Suez Canal – is often considered part of Africa, although geographically it belongs in Asia. Africa can be divided into a number of geographic zones: The Atlas Mountains in the north, the Sahara, the coastal plains, and the inner plateaus. -
Bird of paradise flower Credit: USDAStrelitzia is a genus of five species of perennial plants, native to South Africa. It belongs to the plant family Strelitziaceae. The genus is named after Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom. A common name of the genus is bird of paradise flower, because of a resemblance of its flowers to birds-of-paradise. In South Africa, it is commonly known as a crane flower and is featured on the reverse of the 50 cent coin. -
Banknote: Swakopmund Bookshop (courtesy of the National Numismatic Collection, National Museum of American History)The South West African mark was a temporary currency issued in South West Africa between 1916 and 1918 as part of the South West Africa campaign. Issued after the conquest of German South West Africa by South Africa, notes were denominated in marks and pfennig, as with the withdrawn German South West African Mark. Many institutions issued banknotes; this two-mark note was issued by the Swakopmund Bookshop. The South-West African mark was replaced in 1918 by the South African pound. -
Photograph: Poco a pocoPanoramic view of the Amphitheatre of El Jem, an archeological site in the city of El Djem, Tunisia. The amphitheatre, one of the best-preserved Roman ruins and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979, was built around 238 AD, when modern Tunisia belonged to the Roman province of Africa. It is the third-biggest amphitheatre in the world, with axes of 148 m (486 ft) and 122 m (400 ft) and a seating capacity of 35,000, unique in Africa. -
Photograph credit: Charles James SharpThe roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus) is a species of savanna antelope found in western, central and southern Africa. Named for its reddish-brown coat, it has a black face with white patches around the eyes and the mouth, and a short erect mane of greyish brown hair extending from the back of the neck to the rump. This roan antelope, of the subspecies H. e. koba, was photographed in Senegal; the subspecies's range extends from Senegal to Benin in western Africa. -
Photograph credit: Charles J. SharpThe sable antelope (Hippotragus niger) is an antelope which inhabits wooded savanna in eastern and southern Africa, from the south of Kenya to South Africa, with a separate population in Angola. The species is sexually dimorphic, with the male heavier and about one-fifth taller than the female. It has a compact and robust build, characterized by a thick neck and tough skin, and both sexes have ringed horns which arch backward. The sable antelope has four subspecies.
This picture shows an adult male common sable antelope (H. n. niger) in the Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, South Africa. -
Photograph credit: Alexander SavinDallol is a cinder-cone volcano in the Danakil Depression, northeast of the Erta Ale Range in Ethiopia. The area lies up to 120 m (390 ft) below sea level, and has been repeatedly flooded in the past when waters from the Red Sea have inundated it. The Danakil Depression is one of the hottest places on Earth, and the evaporation of seawater after these flooding episodes produced thick deposits of salt, as seen in this landscape. The deposits at Dallol include significant quantities of the carbonate, sulfate and chloride salts of sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium. Hot springs discharge brine to form the blueish ponds, and small, temporary geysers produce cones of salt. -
A Senegal Wattled Plover in Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya Photo credit: John O'Neill
The dromedary camel (Camelus dromedarius) is a large even-toed ungulate native to northern Africa and western Asia. It is often referred to as the one-humped camel, Arabian camel, or simply as the "dromedary". -
Sand dunes of Erg Chebbi, Morocco Erg Chebbi (Arabic: عرج شبّي) is the sole Saharan erg in Morocco. In places, the dunes rise up to 150 metres (490 ft) from the surrounding hamada (rocky desert) and altogether, it spans an area of 28 kilometres (17 mi) from north to south and up to 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from east to west, lining the Algerian border. -
Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The government is an absolute monarchy, the last of its kind in Africa, and the country has been ruled by King Mswati III since 1986. One of the country's important cultural events is Umhlanga, the reed-dance festival, held in August or September each year. This photograph shows Princess Sikhanyiso Dlamini, the eldest daughter of Mswati III, at the 2006 festival. -
Snake charmers Credit: Tancrède Dumas
Snake charming is the practice of apparently hypnotising a snake by simply playing an instrument. A typical performance may also include handling the snakes or performing other seemingly dangerous acts. The practice is most common in India, though it is also practiced in the North African countries of Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia. This photo depicts snake charmers in late 19th-century Morocco.
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Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that Central City College was established as an African American-led alternative to the historically black Atlanta Baptist College?
- ... that geographer Hildegard Binder Johnson fled Third Reich Germany after the Nazi Party destroyed her scientific paper criticizing the development of European colonies in Africa?
- ... that African American Ivory Winston sang for President Harry S. Truman's birthday and was "Iowa's First Lady of Song"?
- ... that Roland Jefferson, the first African-American botanist to work at the U.S. National Arboretum, helped preserve the famous flowering cherry trees in Washington, D.C.?
- ... that the Octavius V. Catto Memorial, unveiled in 2017, contains the first statue on Philadelphia public property of a specific African American?
- ... that Elaine Estes, the first African American director of the Des Moines Public Library, holds a patent on her parents' barbecue sauce?
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Selected biography –
Barack Hussein Obama Sr. (/ˈbærək huːˈseɪn oʊˈbɑːmə/; born Baraka Obama, 18 June 1934 – 24 November 1982) was a Kenyan senior governmental economist and the father of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States. He is a central figure of his son's memoir, Dreams from My Father (1995). Obama married in 1954 and had two children with his first wife, Kezia. He was selected for a special program to attend college in the United States and studied at the University of Hawaii where he met Stanley Ann Dunham, whom he married in 1961 following the conception of his son, Barack. Obama and Dunham divorced three years later. Obama then went to Harvard University for graduate school, where he earned an M.A. in economics, and returned to Kenya in 1964. He saw his son Barack once more, when his son was about 10.
In late 1964, Obama Sr. married Ruth Beatrice Baker, a Jewish-American woman he had met in Massachusetts. They had two sons together before separating in 1971 and divorcing in 1973. Obama first worked for an oil company, before beginning work as an economist with the Kenyan Ministry of Transport. He was promoted to senior economic analyst in the Ministry of Finance. He was among a cadre of young Kenyan men who had been educated in the West in a program supported by Tom Mboya. Obama Sr. had conflicts with Kenyan president Jomo Kenyatta, which adversely affected his career. He was fired and blacklisted in Kenya, finding it nearly impossible to get a job. Obama Sr. was involved in three serious car accidents during his final years; he died as a result of the last one in 1982. (Full article...)Selected country –
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Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It borders Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south. It was inhabited in pre-colonial times by a number of ancient kingdoms, including the Ga Adangbes on the eastern coast, the inland Empire of Ashanti and various Fante states. Trade with European states flourished after contact with the Portuguese in the 15th century, and the British established a crown colony, Gold Coast, in 1874. Upon achieving independence from the United Kingdom in 1957, the name Ghana was chosen for the new nation to reflect the ancient Empire of Ghana that once extended throughout much of west of Africa.
Ghana is a republic and member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Its head of state is President John Agyekum Kufuor, the ninth leader of the country since independence. The government sits at Osu Castle. The Parliament of Ghana is unicameral and dominated by two main parties, the New Patriotic Party and National Democratic Congress. (Read more...)
Selected city –
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Cairo (/ˈkaɪroʊ/ ⓘ KY-roh; Arabic: القاهرة, romanized: al-Qāhirah) is the capital of Egypt and the city-state Cairo Governorate, and is the country's largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metropolitan area is the 12th-largest in the world by population with a population of over 22.1 million.
Cairo is associated with ancient Egypt, as the Giza pyramid complex and the ancient cities of Memphis and Heliopolis are located in its geographical area. Located near the Nile Delta, the city first developed as Fustat following the Muslim conquest of Egypt in 641 next to an existing ancient Roman fortress, Babylon. Cairo was founded by the Fatimid dynasty in 969. It later superseded Fustat as the main urban centre during the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods (12th–16th centuries). Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life, and is titled "the city of a thousand minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture. Cairo's historic center was awarded World Heritage Site status in 1979. Cairo is considered a World City with a "Beta +" classification according to GaWC. (Full article...)In the news
- 12 February 2024 –
- Two boats collide on the Congo River near Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo; with the death toll remains unclear. (AP)
- 11 February 2024 – 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
- In association football, hosts Ivory Coast win their third Africa Cup of Nations by defeating Nigeria 2–1 in the final. Sébastien Haller scores the winning goal in the 81st minute. (The Guardian)
- 10 February 2024 – Somali civil war
- Four Emirati soldiers and a Bahraini military officer are killed, while ten other people are injured, when a soldier opens fire at a military base in Mogadishu, Somalia, before being killed in the ensuing shootout. Al-Shabaab claims responsibility. (AP)
- 10 February 2024 –
- A Eurocopter EC130 helicopter crashes near Nipton, California, United States, killing all the six people on board, including Nigerian banker Herbert Wigwe. (CBS News)
- 10 February 2024 – 2023–2024 Senegalese protests
- Violent protests occur in Senegal following an announcement by President Macky Sall that presidential elections have been delayed from February 25 to December 15. (Sky News)
- 9 February 2024 –
- At least 18 people are killed during a collision between a bus and a truck on a road in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. (AP)
Updated: 16:33, 14 February 2024
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Fufu (right) is a staple meal in West Africa and Central Africa. It is usually served with some peanut soup. (from Culture of Africa) -
Ruby, Egyptian singer performing (from Culture of Africa) -
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Contemporary political map of Africa (Includes Sub-Saharan Africa and North Africa) (from History of Africa) -
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Dates of independence of African countries (from History of Africa) -
Vegetation and water bodies in early Holocene (top), between about 12,000 and 7,000 years ago, and Eemian (bottom) (from History of Africa) -
Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum, one of the most iconic singers in African history (from Culture of Africa) -
Kenyan boys and girls performing a traditional folklore dance (from Culture of Africa) -
A Yombe sculpture (Louvre, Paris) (from Culture of Africa) -
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Areas controlled by European powers in 1939. British (red) and Belgian (marroon) colonies fought with the Allies. Italian (light green) with the Axis. French colonies (dark blue) fought alongside the Allies until the Fall of France in June 1940. Vichy was in control until the Free French prevailed in late 1942. Portuguese (dark green) and Spanish (yellow) colonies remained neutral. (from History of Africa) -
Traditional male dancers from Northern Nigeria (from Culture of Africa) -
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Ancient Kano City Walls, Nigeria (from Culture of Africa) -
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Gateway to the Castle of Good Hope in South Africa (from Culture of Africa) -
Pre-Neolithic and Neolithic migration events in Africa. (from History of Africa) -
Tingatinga is one of the most widely represented forms of paintings in Tanzania, Kenya and neighbouring countries (from Culture of Africa) -
The Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt (from Culture of Africa) -
Sudan basket-tray, tabar of weaved natural plant fiber, in different colors (from Culture of Africa) -
Map showing the states, people and material cultures of the African continent c.1800BC (from History of Africa) -
Potjiekos is a traditional Afrikaner stew made with meat and vegetables and cooked over coals in cast-iron pots. (from Culture of Africa) -
Maasai wearing traditional clothes named Matavuvale while performing Adumu, a traditional dance (from Culture of Africa) -
Reconstruction of "Lucy" (from History of Africa) -
A terra-cotta head sculpture (1100-1500) of the Yoruba, showing extraordinary naturalism. This head represents the oni or king of Ife. (from Culture of Africa) -
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An Ethiopian woman preparing Ethiopian coffee at a traditional ceremony. She roasts, crushes, and brews the coffee on the spot. (from Culture of Africa) -
9th-century bronze staff head in form of a coiled snake, Igbo-Ukwu, Nigeria (from History of Africa) -
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Africa topics
More did you know –
- ... that Dutch malacologist Adolph Cornelis van Bruggen is an expert in African land snails?
- ... that a 20‑day study reported by BirdLife International discovered 265 species of birds in Nki National Park?
- ... that Kalulu, an African boy who died in 1877, was modeled in Madame Tussauds and attended Dr. Livingstone's funeral in London?
- ... that Samuel Jackman Prescod became the first person of African descent elected to the Parliament of Barbados?
Related portals
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Major Religions in Africa
North Africa
West Africa
Central Africa
East Africa
Southern Africa
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