- What is Africa?
- Africa is the second largest continent in the world in terms of surface area and population density. It covers an area of 30.8 million km², including 6% of the world’s surface area and 24.4% of the world’s land. It has 15% of the world population with a population of 1 billion people. Africa is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea in the north, the Indian Ocean in the south, the Atlantic Ocean in the west, the Sina Peninsula in the east, the Red Sea, and the Suez Canal. Madagascar and various archipelagoes. The continental shelf has 54 diplomatically recognized independent states, nine regions and three well-known states.
- The youngest population in all continents is in Africa. 50% of Africans are under 19 years old. Algeria is the largest country of Africa as a surface area, while the largest country in terms of population is Nigeria. In particular, West Africa is considered to be the starting point of humanity. Homo sapiens, or modern man, evidenced by the evolution of species such as Sahelanthropus tchadensis, Australopithecus africanus, A. afarensis, Homo erectus, H. habilis and H. ergaster, which were seven million years old in the late period, as well as early large humanoid apes Finds were found in Ethiopia. Africa is the only continent on both sides of the equator with a wide range of climate zones and both climates on earth.
- Africa hosts a huge diversity in ethnicity, culture and language. It was colonized by European countries in the late 19th century. The modern states of Africa have emerged after the decolonization process of the 20th century. The African countries were partly formed during the African Lodge in 1881-1914.
- Africa Etymology
- The name of Africa is inspired by the name of the tribes called “Afri” or “Africani” who first set foot on the Carthaginian Romans. Although this name is thought to be used to describe the local Libyan tribes, it is often associated with aphorus, or powder word, used in Phoenician. But according to a hypothesis made in 1981, it comes from the Berber word, which means “camel”. The same word is the original name Yafran (or Ifrane) found in northwestern Libya, also named for the Banu Ifran tribe around Tripoli and Algeria.
- While under Roman rule, Carthage was today the capital of the African Pronconsularis province around the coastal areas of Libya. The Latin last element “-ica” is used to describe a field.
- According to ancient Romans, while the Asian word expresses Anatolia and beyond that is east of Egypt, the African word was used to describe the west of Egypt. This sharp line was determined by the Greek geographer Ptolemy (85-165 BC).
- Other etymological hypotheses are;
- According to the first century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus, in the view of Bible Creation 25: 4, the African name was given by Epher, the grandson of the prophet Abraham, who was said to have invaded Libya.
- According to Sevilla’s Isilde’s Etymologiae, his African name comes from the Latin word aprica meaning “sunny“.
- In 1881, according to a dissertation by Massey, the word african comes from the af-rui-ka clan in Egypt. This means “returning east to Ka’s mouth”. In Egyptian philosophy, “Ka” is the essence of life that every person believes to be in, and “returning to Ka” means to return to the beginning instead of birth. Africa is the beginning for the Egyptians, which is believed to have come true.
- According to another hypothesis put forth by Michèle Fruyt, it comes from the Latin word “africus”, which means “southern wind“, which means “rainy wind” originating from Umbria region in Italy.
- African History
- Africa has been accepted by many paleoanthropologists and archaeologists as the first place on earth to be settled in humans. In the middle of the 20th century, anthropologists discovered many fossil evidence that was supposed to belong to the earliest seven million years ago. Among these are the human ancestors of Ardipitecus, Australopithecus and Homo species. In the Archeology of Africa, the periods are divided into Early, Middle and Late Stone Ages. Like all prehistoric times, nation states did not exist before Africa’s history. Besides, it is seen that hunter and gathering groups such as Khoi and San passed the settled passion.
- At the end of the Glacier Age, ie around 10,500 BC, the Sahara was a green and fertile valley. However, around 5,000 BC the climate was drenched and the Saharan region became very hot and scorching. Thus, the population in the Sahara region marched towards the Nile Valley. These people have started to settle in this area continuously and semi-permanently.
- Domestication of bovine animals in Africa has preceded agriculture. At about 6,000 BC, large animals have already been domesticated in North Africa. Nile – People in the suburbs domesticated many animals. From the present day Algerian to Nubiya, the donkeys and the screw-horned goats were also domesticated. When we arrived at 4000 BC, the Sahara’s climate began to drown very quickly. This climate change led to the shrinking of the lakes and rivers in the region and large-scale desertification. This situation led to the reduction of fertile land and the migratory migrants to West Africa.
- In the first millennium BC, ironworking began in North Africa and then spread rapidly to sub-Saharan Africa. When it reached 500 BC, metalworking became commonplace in West Africa. M.S. Iron processing in Western and North Africa was used even 500 years ago, although other regions did not know anything about iron workmanship until the first century. Copper objects from 500 BC Egypt, North Africa, Nabiya and Ethiopia were found in excavations in West Africa. This indicates that a trans-Saharan trade network was established at this time.
- Early Civilizations
- Ancient Egypt, one of the earliest and longest living civilizations of the world, has been found in other parts of the periphery until around 330 BC, with the rise of literacy in the Pharaonic civilization in ancient Egypt around 3300 BC Impressed.
- The discovery of Africa in Europe began with the Romans and Ancient Greeks. In 322 BC, Alexander the Great saved Egypt from the occupation of Persia and formed here Alexandria, the capital of the Ptolemaic Kingdom after his death. After the conquest of North Africa along the Mediterranean strip of the Roman Empire, the region became both economically and culturally involved in the Roman system. Roman settlements have emerged in today’s modern Tunisia along that line. The dissemination of Christianity in the region continued until the year 340 AD.
- At the beginning of the 7th century, the Caliphate first entered Egypt and then spread to North Africa. In the short term, the local Berber ties are integrated with the Muslim Arab tribes. When Damascus, the capital of the Umayyads, fell in the 8th century, Islam flourished in the central Mediterranean and passed to Kayravan in North Africa.
- Between the 9th and 18th centuries
- Prior to the colonization period, more than 10,000 different states and policies in Africa were characterized by many institutions and rules. There are many different formations, including small hunter-gatherer groups such as Bushes, larger and structured family clans who speak Bantu tongues, clans in the much larger Horn of Africa, as well as autonomous city states or kingdoms such as Akan, Yorubara and Ibbol. In the ninth century, a number of dynastic states, such as the Kingdom of Hausa from West Africa, crossed the savannahs of the sub-Saharan regions and were present in the midst of today’s Sudan. Ghana, Gao and the Kingdom of Kanem were the most powerful of them. Although Ghana returned in the 11th century, the Mali Kingdom retained Sudan’s east until the 13th century. The Kingdom of Kanem adopted Islam in the 11th century.
- In the wooded areas of West Africa, new independent kingdoms were built with the small influence of the Muslim tribes in the north. The Nori Kingdom established by Ibolar was the first of these. The 9th-century Nri Kingdom is one of the oldest tribes in present-day Nigeria. The bronze finds of this tribe belong to the 9th century.
- Ife city is historically one of the first city states established by Yoruba. At the beginning is an administrator called “oba” who means “king” in Yoruba. Ise is one of Africa’s most important religious and cultural centers, especially with its bronze works.
- The Murabits from the Berber dervishes in the Sahara spread from here to northeast Africa and to the Iberian Peninsula in the 11th century. Then the Arab Bedouins, such as Banu Hilal and Banu Malik, migrated to Egypt from the Arab peninsula. As a result of this event that took place between the 11th and 13th centuries, the Arabs and the Berbers have caused great changes in the region by Arabizing local cultures and absorbing local cultures through a unified Islamic culture.
- 11th-15th century
- Following the fall of the Mali Kingdom, Sonni Ali (1464-1492), the local leader, controlled the trans-Saharan trade network and formed the Songhay Empire. Sonni Ali surrounded Timbuktu in 1468 and Djenne in 1473. It formed a strong empire by organizing trade incomes and Muslim merchants. His successor, Ture Muhammad (1493-1528), turned Islam into an official religion. Up to the 15th century, small cities belonging to the Kingdom of Hause had various transportation and production in the trade network in the region.
- The rise of slave trade in Africa
- Slavery has long been practiced in Africa. Between the 7th and 20th centuries, Arab slave traders sold about 18 million slaves from Africa to beyond the Sahara and then from the Atlantic Ocean route. From the 15th century to the 19th century, 7-12 million people followed this path and sold it to the new world.
- In West Africa, major economic problems were seen following the rejection of this trade in the 1820s. With the rise of the British Royal Navy’s presence in West Africa, states in this region are forced to become involved in the new economic system. This has led to an increase in anti-slavery movements in Europe and America, and the slave trade has fallen in large quantities. British troops in West Africa confiscated about 1600 slave ships between 1808 and 1860 and released 150,000 Africans who were kidnapped.
- These actions are also a result of the efforts of the British to prevent the illegal slave trade, even by the British in 1851, the King of Lagos. In this way, anti-slavery treaties were signed by more than 50 African countries. The great powers of West Africa have tried different ways to adapt to this change. Today it is the beginning of the trade of cocoa, palm oil, gold and timber which are the main export items of West Africa.
- Colonization in Africa
- After the 19th century, the imperial powers of Europe were struggling to establish colonies in a major race on the continent. In the process, there were only two fully independent states in Africa, Ethiopia and Liberia. Egypt and Sudan did not officially colonize at this time, but were occupied by British occupation in 1882 until 1922.
- Berlin Conference
- The Berlin Conference, held in 1884-85, is an important milestone for Africa’s ethnic groups. With the invitation of Leopard II of the King of Belgium and the participation of European powers over Africa. As a result of this meeting, the struggle over Africa was put to an end and the political regions and spheres of influence of Africa were accepted.
- Independence Challenges in Africa
- Independence Challenges II. It lasted until the end of the World War, and almost all the colonies achieved their independence. However, II. It has gained momentum after World War II. Especially, the fact that big European countries are not able to lean to the post-war destructive zone is the biggest influence that accelerates this process. In 1951 Libya gained independence from Italy. In 1956, Tunisia and Morocco gained independence from France. In March 1957, this process followed Ghana and became the first state to gain independence in Sub-Saharan Africa. In the next decade, the other states gained their independence, respectively.
- Especially Portugal’s withdrawal from sub-Saharan Africa lasted from the 16th century until 1975. In 1965, Rodezia unilaterally won independence from Britain. Rodezia, however, was known as Zimbabwe after the black nationalists’ guerrilla war in 1980 had overthrown the white minority rule. The AbsHardaid regime in the South African Republic lasted until 1994.
- After Colonization in Africa
- Today there are 54 independent states in Africa, but many of them are particularly struggling with instability, corruption, authoritarian regimes and violence. Many of these countries are governed by the presidential system. However, the processes of democratization of many countries are in the process of military dictatorships and military dictatorships.
- Unstability causes many ethnic groups to become marginalized and their leaders to be added to various groups in line with their wishes. Many leaders are dampened by such violent conflicts. Military groups are actively involved in governance in many countries. More than 70 coups in 1960 and 1980 in Africa and 13 countries were seen suicided by the leaders. The boundaries set for European imperialists continue to create strains for many countries and groups.
- During the Cold War, the International Monetary Fund worked on destabilizing the region. When a country earned its independence for the first time, it struggled to form an alliance with one of the two superpowers. While many countries in North Africa benefited from Soviet assistance, Central and South Africa was supported by the Western bloc.
- Especially in Ethiopia there is a great hunger. Some people think that this situation has been worsened by Soviet politics. One of the most destructive wars was during the Second Civil War in Congo. In 2008, 5.4 million people lost their lives in this war. The war in Darfur, which has been in place since 2003, contains major crimes against humanity. The genocide in Rwanda in 1994 resulted in the murder of 800,000 people. Especially in this process, AIDS is one of the biggest problems the region is struggling with.
- Despite all this, the conflicts in the 21st century tend to show a great decline. The civil war in Angola ended in 2002 after 30 years. This reduction is in many places accelerating the transition from economically structured communities to open market economies. Particularly in the region, the rise in the direction of the increase in foreign investments in African countries is increasing. Especially the People’s Republic of China is leading these investments. In 2011, some African economies were some of the fastest-growing economies. With the convergence of the communication revolution in the region, Africa is gradually increasing its level of connection with the world.
- Africa Geography
- Africa, separated from Europe by the Mediterranean, is separated from Asia by the Sinai Peninsula. Geopolitically, however, part of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula is considered to be part of Africa. The continent is in the east with the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Babulmendep Strait approaches the Arabian Peninsula about 18 km. The south of the continent is again surrounded by the Indian Ocean and the western Atlantic Ocean. The continent is separated by the Gibraltar Strait, which is 14 km wide from Europe in the northwest.
- Africa is located in the north-south direction between Tunisia’s White Nose (37 ° 22 ’20 K Parallel) and Agulhas Burnu (34 ° 50’28 G Parallel) in South Africa; It is 7.416 km wide between the Ras Hafun Burnu (51 ° 25 ’27 D Meridian) in Somalia and the Green Nose (17 ° 31′ 17 B Meridian) in Senegal.
- The largest country in Africa is Algeria, the smallest is the Seychelles islands in the eastern part of the continent. On the mainland, the smallest surface area is the Gambia.
- Geologically, the Arabian Peninsula, the Zagros Mountains, and the Anatolian Plateau are triggering each other and collide with the African Palatos, Eurasia. The highest point is Mount Kilimanjaro (5.895 m) with the lowest point being Assal Gölü (-156 m). The Sahara Desert is the largest desert of all Africa and the whole world. It is still expanding.
- The African climate varies from region to region. The highest peak is the semi-Arctic climate. Most of the northern part of the continent is desert and quasi-continental, while the central and southern regions contain savannahs and rain forests. In the transition areas, the plant cover is in various shapes such as sahel and steppe. Africa is the warmest continent in the world, covering 60% of the surface of desert and desert areas. The highest temperature measured up to sun-moon was measured in Libya in 1922 (58 ° C).
- Animal Variety in Africa
- Africa has the largest and most intense combination of wild animals in the world. All these animals live in their wild life and in a free form. Hundreds of species of felids, herbivores, reptiles and rainforests are living their wild lives in a wilderness.
- Ecology in Africa
- According to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Africa is the second most affected by forest damage. According to the Pennsylvania University Center for African Studies, 31% of Africa’s meadow areas and 19% of forest areas are classified as degraded. Besides, Africa is losing four million hectares of forest every year. This rate is more than twice the average rate of deforestation when compared to the rest of the world. Some sources suggest that deforestation destroys 90% of virgin forests in West Africa. Since the beginning of the human race, in other words, 2000 years, Madagascar has lost 90% of its original forests. 65% of Africa’s agricultural land is exposed to erosion.
- Biodiversity in Africa
- In addition to more than 3,000 protected areas in Africa, there are 198 marine protected areas, 50 biosphere reserves and 80 wet reserves. Significant habitat driving, population growth and poaching decrease African biological diversity. The introduction of human harm, social upheaval and non-native species to the continent is threatening biodiversity in Africa. This situation is exacerbated by administrative and financial problems as well as inadequate personnel.
- African Union
- The African Union is one of the most important international organizations in the world, with 54 countries in all of Arfika except Morocco. The center is located in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. It is also regarded as the capital of the African Union at the same time. The Union opened its headquarters on June 26, 2001, but the union was officially founded on 9 July 2002. The African Union was created in lieu of the African Union Organization itself, and intended to have a broader and more comprehensive structure than that. In July 2004, the Pan-African parliament of the African Union moved to Mitarand in South America. But the Human and Peoples’ Rights Commission remained in Addis Ababa. The reason for this regulation is that the union is intended to be distributed rather than centralized, and to be shared in other countries.
- The African Union itself is subject to a constitutional agreement. This constitutional text aims to transform the African Economic Union into a federalized nation-state. The African Union has its own legislative, executive and judicial bodies. The head of the Pan-African Parliament is also the head and representative of the African Union. This president is elected by the parliament with the support of the majority. Powers and duties are set out in the Constitution of the Union and in the bylaws of the Assembly, as well as in the old contracts and agreements stipulated by the taking over of the African Union Organization. The African Union Government is tasked with maintaining relations with the regional, state, and local authorities of the whole union, as well as with hundreds of organizations where the institution is in communication.
- The African Union aims to develop stability and economic co-operation that the continent would like to implement and maintain within and without. It is also taking measures against high human rights violations, especially in the various regions of Africa. Many human rights violations, especially reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Sudan, Zimbabwe, and the Ivory Coast, are being tried to be solved within the union.
- African Economy
- Despite being one of the richest geographies in the world in terms of natural resources, Africa is one of the world’s poorest and poorest regions. This is another part of the cause of the disease (AIDS, malaria), serious human rights violations, failures in central planning, difficulties in entering the centers, corrupt governments, and frequent military and internal conflicts. According to United Nations Human Rights reports, the last 25 countries are all on the Arctic continent.
- Famine, ignorance, malnutrition and inadequate water resources, as well as health conditions are deeply affecting people living in the region. According to a report released by the World Bank in August 2008, 80.5% of the global scarcity limit of $ 1.25 per day is in sub-Saharan Africa, and most of the region earns less than $ 2.50 per day.
- According to a survey conducted in 2005, about 380 million people in Africa are scarce. From 1973 to 2003, the average daily earnings of people living in Sub-Saharan Africa remained at 70 cents. Some reports in this area indicate that foreign investments have increased due to unsuccessful liberalization, but some sources indicate that they originate from failures in local administration.
- However, from 1995 to 2005, the economic growth of Africa is 5% on average. Countries that are particularly rich in oil resources, such as Angola, Sudan and Ecuador Ginesi, still show higher growth rates. The continent also has 90% of world cobalt and platinum reserves, 50% of gold reserves, 98% of chromium reserves, 70% of tantelite reserves, 64% of manganese reserves and three of uranium reserves. Democratic Congo The Republic possesses 70% of the Koltan mineral used in the construction of mobile phones and also holds 30% of the world’s diamond reserves. Guinea is the world’s largest bauxite exporter. Despite these resources, however, the quality of Africa in agriculture and production does not go forward at the expected rate. In addition, the Global Financial Crisis in 2008 hindered the development of the region. After this crisis, about 100 million people were affected by hunger.
- However, especially in recent years, economic activity has increased due to investments made by the People’s Republic of China in the region. Only in 2007, Chinese investors have invested 1 Billion dollars in the region
- African Demography
- The population of Africa has increased significantly in the last 40 years and as a result, the majority of the population consists of young people. In some African states, over half of the population is under 25 years of age. In the 1950s, the population of 221 million, the population of the country reached 1 billion in 2009.
- In the South, Central and South East Africa, the Bantu language is widely spoken. In addition, a number of Nilotic communities are spoken in Eastern Africa and South Sudan, the Swahili in the complex Swahili Coast, and the Khoisan (‘San’ or ‘Bushmen’) and Pygmyler Bantu languages of the remaining local tribes. The Bantu language is also dominant in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. The local communities, also known as the Kalahari Desert in the south of Africa, Busman, live here for a long time. Busans are different from other African tribes in race. The definite community of the tapes that arrive on a daily basis is Pygmiler. The majority of nations in West Africa speak languages from the Niger-Kongo Language family. There are also Afro-Asian languages and Nil-Saharan language speakers in this region. Niger Congo is home to some of the most complex ethnic groups in the language family including Yoruba, Igbo, Fulani, Akan and Wolof. In the central Sahara, Mandinka or Mande communities are important, and Zaghawa, Baya, Kanuri and Sao, who are in Nile-Sahara language family in Eastern Central Africa, suppress the languages.
- Communities in North Africa are made up of three main groups: Berbers in the north, Egypt and the Libyans in the northeast, and Nilo-Saharan-speaking communities in the east. Along with the Arabs who came to this region in the 7th century, Islam entered the region and transformed democracy. Semitic Phoenicians, Indo-Persians, Indo-Europeans, and Roman and Vandals, who were found in Carthage and Hiksos, became important peoples in history. Today Berbers still have significant assets in Morocco and Algeria. Nevertheless, there are also Berber-speaking communities living in Libya and Tunisia in a smaller number. The Berber-speaking Tuareks and other normative groups are also residents of the Sahara desert. Even though the region is largely influenced by Arabs and Muslims, still more Niger Congo-speaking communities still live in the Mauritania region. Although Sudan is dominated by Arabic and Arabic culture, different immigrants from the Arabian Peninsula for centuries have lived in groups that originally spoke Nil-Saharan, mixed with the Nubians, Nuba, Fur and Zaghava peoples.
- The peoples of the Horn of Africa are also Ethiopian and Eritrean communities. At the same time, there are the Babylonians who speak the tongues of the Semitic language family, a branch of the Afro-Asiatic tongue in this region. The Somalis and Oromolas, which speak the Kusitik tongues, are also in this region.
- Before the decolonization movement that started after World War II, there were many Europeans in Africa. The decolonization movements in the 1960s and ’70s caused many white Africans to seek asylum. Much of this migration is made up of people separated from Algeria and Morocco. (About 1.6 million people from Kenya, Congo, Rhodesia, Mozambique and Angola) migrated from places where they had more than 1 million Portuguese in existence by the end of 1977. However, many White Africans are still a minority in many African countries such as South Africa, Zimbabwe, Nabimia and Réunion They are still alive. The country with the most white African population is South Africa. The Afrikaner is the largest group of Anglo-African minorities in Africa today. The colonization period has caused people from many parts of the world (especially Indians and Asians) to come to Africa. In particular Indian communities are largely located in South Africa and are also located in small groups in Kenya, Tanzania and other Eastern countries. The great Indian tribe in Uganda was fired by the Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 1972, where they lived. Today, however, many of them have returned to their homeland. The communities in the islands of the Indian Ocean are also largely made up of Asian and Indian groups. The vast majority of Malagasy peoples in Madagascar are made up of people who speak the languages of South East Asia and Oceania. However, these communities are often mixed with Bantu, Arab, Indian and European communities. During the 20th century, Lebanese diaspora and Chinese investors continued to settle in Africa as small but economically influential groups.
|Country and Flag||Area
|Population (1 July 2002)||Population Density||Capital|
|Central Africa Republic||622,984||3,642,739||5.8||Bangui|
|Democratic Kongo Republic||2,345,410||55,225,478||23.5||Kinşasa|
|São Tomé ve Príncipe||1,001||170,372||170.2||São Tomé|
| West Sahra
| South Africa
|Canary Islands (Spain)||7,492||1,694,477||226.2||Las Palmas
|Madeira Islands (Portugal)||797||245,000||307.4||Funchal|