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 nearly 1.4 billion people as of 2021, it accounts for about 18% of the world's human population. Africa's population is the youngest among all the continents; the median age in 2012 was 19.7, when the worldwide median age was 30.4. Based on 2024 projections, Africa's population will exceed 3.8 billion people by 2100. Africa is the least wealthy inhabited continent per capita and second-least wealthy by total wealth, ahead of Oceania. Scholars have attributed this to different factors including geography, climate, corruption, colonialism, the Cold War, and neocolonialism. Despite this low concentration of wealth, recent economic expansion and a large and young population make Africa an important economic market in the broader global context, and Africa has a large quantity of natural resources.
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 is also 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 varied, and has often been under-appreciated by the global historical community. In African societies the oral word is revered, and they have generally recorded their history via oral tradition, which has led anthropologists to term them "oral civilisations", contrasted with "literate civilisations" which pride the written word. African culture is rich and diverse both within and between the continent's regions, encompassing art, cuisine, music and dance, religion, and dress.
Africa, particularly Eastern Africa, is widely accepted to be the place of origin of humans and the Hominidae clade, also known as the great apes. The earliest hominids and their ancestors have been dated to around 7 million years ago, and Homo sapiens (modern human) are believed to have originated in Africa 350,000 to 260,000 years ago. In the 4th and 3rd millennia BCE Ancient Egypt, Kerma, Punt, and the Tichitt Tradition emerged in North, East and West Africa, while from 3000 BCE to 500 CE the Bantu expansion swept from modern-day Cameroon through Central, East, and Southern Africa, displacing or absorbing groups such as the Khoisan and Pygmies. Some African empires include Wagadu, Mali, Songhai, Sokoto, Ife, Benin, Asante, the Fatimids, Almoravids, Almohads, Ayyubids, Mamluks, Kongo, Mwene Muji, Luba, Lunda, Kitara, Aksum, Ethiopia, Adal, Ajuran, Kilwa, Sakalava, Imerina, Maravi, Mutapa, Rozvi, Mthwakazi, and Zulu. Despite the predominance of states, many societies were heterarchical and stateless. Slave trades created various diasporas, especially in the Americas. From the late 19th century to early 20th century, driven by the Second Industrial Revolution, most of Africa was rapidly conquered and colonised by European nations, save for Ethiopia and Liberia. European rule had significant impacts on Africa's societies, and colonies were maintained for the purpose of economic exploitation and extraction of natural resources. Most present states emerged from a process of decolonisation following World War II, and established the Organisation of African Unity in 1963, the predecessor to the African Union. The nascent countries decided to keep their colonial borders, with traditional power structures used in governance to varying degrees. (Full article...)
Selected article –
The sitatunga (Tragelaphus spekii) or marshbuck is a swamp-dwelling medium-sized antelope found throughout central Africa, centering on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, parts of Southern Sudan, Equatorial Guinea, Burundi, Ghana, Botswana, Rwanda, Zambia, Gabon, the Central African Republic, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya. The sitatunga is mostly confined to swampy and marshy habitats. Here they occur in tall and dense vegetation as well as seasonal swamps, marshy clearings in forests, riparian thickets and mangrove swamps. (Full article...)
Featured pictures –
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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. -
Chamaeleo jacksonii Photo credit: User:Movingsaletoday
Chamaeleo jacksonii (common names Jackson's Chameleon or Three-horned Chameleon) is an African chameleon belonging to the chameleon family (Chamaeleonidae). It is native to the humid, cooler regions of Kenya and Tanzania. -
Mikumi National Park Credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim
Moshi is a Tanzanian town with a population of 144,739 (2002 census) in Kilimanjaro Region. The town is situated on the lower slopes of Mt Kilimanjaro, a volcanic mountain that is the highest mountain in Africa. Moshi is home to the Chagga and Maasai tribes and lies on the A 23 Arusha-Himo east-west road connecting Arusha and Mombasa, Kenya. Just to the east of Moshi is the intersection with the B 1 north-south road eventually connecting with Tanga and Dar es Salaam. -
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 ten-rupie banknote was issued in 1916, and is now part of the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution.
Other denominations:
'"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000015-QINU`"' -
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. -
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. -
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. -
Giraffe at Melbourne Zoo Photo credit: User:Fir0002
The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all land-living animal species. Males can be 4.8 to 5.5 metres (16 to 18 ft) tall and weigh up to 1,360 kilograms (3,000 lb). Females are generally slightly shorter and weigh less than the males do. The giraffe is related to deer and cattle, but is placed in a separate family, the Giraffidae, consisting only of the giraffe and its closest relative, the okapi. Its range extends from Chad to South Africa. -
Karnak Credit: David Roberts RA and Louis Hahge
Karnak is a vast conglomeration of ruined temples, chapels, pylons and other buildings near Luxor, Egypt. This was ancient Egyptian Ipet-isut ("The Most Selected of Places"), the main place of worship of the Theban Triad with Amun as its head, in the monumental city of Thebes. This tinted lithograph depicts the hypostyle hall of the Precinct of Amun-Re, as it appeared in 1838. -
Ring-tailed Lemur holding twins born the previous night in Colchester Zoo, Essex, England Photo credit: NASA
The Sahara (Arabic: الصحراء الكبرى, aṣ-ṣaḥrā´, "The Great Desert") is the world's largest hot desert at over 9,000,000 square kilometres (3,500,000 sq mi). The Sahara defines the borders of North Africa and has an intermittent history that may go back as much as 2.5 million years. -
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. -
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. -
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. -
The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is an endangered member of the cat family (Felidae), a poor climber that hunts by speed and stealth. It is the fastest of all land animals and can reach speeds of more than 105 kilometres per hour (65 mph) in short bursts up to 460 metres (500 yd), as well as being able to accelerate from 0 to 110 kilometres per hour (68 mph) in three seconds. The word "cheetah" is derived from the Sanskrit word citrakāyaḥ चित्रकायः meaning "variegated body", via the Hindi cītā चीता.
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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). -
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: 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. -
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.
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Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that South African physician Tlaleng Mofokeng is the United Nations special rapporteur on the right to health, and was named one of the BBC's 100 Women?
- ... that African porters in Salvador, Bahia, went on strike after the provincial government passed a law requiring them to wear metal identification tags?
- ... that after erecting the African Union headquarters, the Chinese government was accused in 2018 of spying on the building for five years?
- ... that the son of an engine fitter from England became Director of Education in part of modern-day South Africa for almost twenty years?
- ... that Tennessee lawyer Bolton Smith was known for his work integrating African Americans into the Boy Scouts?
- ... that the bronze statue atop Thomas Eyre Macklin's 1907 South African War Memorial in Newcastle became known as the "Dirty Angel"?
Categories
Selected biography –
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o (Gikuyu pronunciation: [ᵑɡoɣe wá ðiɔŋɔ]; born James Ngugi; 5 January 1938) is a Kenyan author and academic, who has been described as "East Africa's leading novelist". He began writing in English, switching to write primarily in Gikuyu. His work includes novels, plays, short stories, and essays, ranging from literary and social criticism to children's literature. He is the founder and editor of the Gikuyu-language journal Mũtĩiri. His short story The Upright Revolution: Or Why Humans Walk Upright has been translated into 100 languages.
In 1977, Ngũgĩ embarked upon a novel form of theatre in Kenya that sought to liberate the theatrical process from what he held to be "the general bourgeois education system", by encouraging spontaneity and audience participation in the performances. His project sought to "demystify" the theatrical process, and to avoid the "process of alienation [that] produces a gallery of active stars and an undifferentiated mass of grateful admirers" which, according to Ngũgĩ, encourages passivity in "ordinary people". Although his landmark play Ngaahika Ndeenda, co-written with Ngũgĩ wa Mirii, was a commercial success, it was shut down by the authoritarian Kenyan regime six weeks after its opening. (Full article...)
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Sudan (or The Sudan), officially the Republic of the Sudan or Republic of Sudan (Arabic: السودان as-Sūdān), is the largest African and Arab country by area. The country is situated at a crossroads between the Horn of Africa and the Middle East. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, Kenya and Uganda to the southeast, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, and Libya to the northwest. It is the sixteenth largest country in the world by area.
In Sudan's 1993 census, the population was recorded to be 25 million. No comprehensive census has been carried out since then due to the continuation of the Second Sudanese Civil War. A 2006 United Nations estimate put the population at about 37 million. The population of metropolitan Khartoum (including Khartoum, Omdurman, and Khartoum North) is growing rapidly and is estimated at about 5 to 7 million, including around 2 million displaced persons from the southern war zone as well as western and eastern drought-affected areas. (Read more...)
Selected city –
Lubumbashi (UK: /ˌluːbʊmˈbæʃi/ LOO-buum-BASH-ee, US: /ˌluːbuːmˈbɑːʃi/ LOO-boom-BAH-shee; former French: Élisabethville [elizabɛtvil]; former Flemish: Elisabethstad [eːˈlisaːbɛtstɑt] ⓘ) is the second-largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, located in the country's southeasternmost part, along the border with Zambia. The capital and principal city of the Haut-Katanga Province, Lubumbashi is the center of mining in the region, acting as a hub for many of the country's largest mining companies. No definite population figures are available, but the population of the city's urban area is estimated to be around 2,584,000 in 2021. (Full article...)
In the news
- 29 March 2025 – Gaza war protests
- Security forces open fire at a pro-Palestine march organized by the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, in Abuja, Nigeria, killing five people and arresting 19 more. A policeman is killed in the subsequent clashes. (AP)
- 28 March 2025 –
- Russian authorities say that yesterday's sinking of the Sindbad submarine in Hurghada, Egypt, killing six Russians, happened during boarding and not due to a collision as reported. (The National)
- 27 March 2025 – Haitian crisis
- A Kenyan police officer deployed in Haiti as part of the Multinational Security Support Mission is killed in a suspected gang ambush, according to Haitian authorities. Kenya has confirmed that the officer is missing but has not yet verified his death. (BBC News)
- 27 March 2025 –
- At least six people are killed and 39 others are rescued after a Sindbad submarine carrying Russian tourists sinks off the Red Sea coast of Hurghada, Egypt. (BBC News)
- South Sudanese vice president Riek Machar is detained by security forces following an arrest warrant on "unclear charges", according to his spokesperson. The Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition says Machar's arrest has effectively ended the 2018 peace agreement which ended the civil war. (Sky News)
- 26 March 2025 – Sudanese civil war
- Battle of Khartoum
Updated: 17:05, 1 April 2025
General images -
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The Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt (from Culture of Africa) -
Aerial view of the Great Enclosure and Valley Complex at Great Zimbabwe, looking west (from History of Africa) -
An Ethiopian woman preparing Ethiopian coffee at a traditional ceremony. She roasts, crushes, and brews the coffee on the spot. (from Culture of Africa) -
1 = 2000–1500 BC origin
2 = c. 1500 BC first dispersal
2.a = Eastern Bantu
2.b = Western Bantu
3 = 1000–500 BC Urewe nucleus of Eastern Bantu
4–7 = southward advance
9 = 500–1 BC Congo nucleus
10 = AD 1–1000 last phase (from History of Africa) -
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9th-century bronze staff head in form of a coiled snake, Igbo-Ukwu, Nigeria (from History of Africa) -
Traditional pearl using for differents pearl in the religion (from Culture of Africa) -
Gateway to the Castle of Good Hope in South Africa (from Culture of Africa) -
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) -
Map of trade centres and routes in precolonial Zimbabwe. (from History of Africa) -
Maasai wearing traditional clothes named Matavuvale while performing Adumu, a traditional dance (from Culture of Africa) -
Nok sculpture (from History of Africa) -
The Mali Empire in 1337 CE, with major gold fields, of Bambuk, Bure, Lobi (tended by the Gan and later Lobi people), and Akan, and trade routes, outlined. The desert should extend further south to Koumbi. The Mossi Kingdoms are located north of Lobi. (from History of Africa) -
Pre-Neolithic and Neolithic migration events in Africa. (from History of Africa) -
Fufu (right) is a staple meal in West Africa and Central Africa. It is usually served with some peanut soup. (from Culture of Africa) -
Tingatinga is one of the most widely represented forms of paintings in Tanzania, Kenya and neighbouring countries. (from Culture of Africa) -
The Almoravid empire in the 12th century. (from History of Africa) -
Carthaginian Empire in 323 BC (from History of Africa) -
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Kenyan boys and girls performing a traditional folklore dance (from Culture 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) -
Ruby, Egyptian singer performing (from Culture of Africa) -
A Yombe sculpture (Louvre, Paris) (from Culture of Africa) -
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The Kingdom of Aksum in the 6th century AD. (from History of Africa) -
Display of African cultural apparel (smock) (from Culture of Africa) -
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The Kilwa Sultanate in 1310 (from History of Africa) -
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Order of independence of African nations, 1950–2011 -
Sudan basket-tray, tabar of weaved natural plant fiber, in different colors (from Culture of Africa) -
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Ancient Kano City Walls, Nigeria (from Culture of Africa) -
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Mapungubwe Hill, which features some ancient San art in a rock shelter on the east side. (from History of Africa) -
Map of the western Sahel and Sudan (northern West Africa) c. 1200. (Songhai is Gao)
Kingdoms in this era were centred around cities and cores, with variations of influence radiating out from these points, borders here are estimates. (from History of Africa) -
The Ghana Empire at its greatest extent (from History of Africa) -
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Potjiekos is a traditional Afrikaner stew made with meat and vegetables and cooked over coals in cast-iron pots. (from Culture of Africa) -
Evolution of the Fatimid Caliphate (from History of Africa) -
Map of ancient Egypt, showing major cities and sites of the Dynastic period (c. 3150 BC to 30 BC) (from History of Africa) -
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Traditional male dancers from Northern Nigeria (from Culture of Africa) -
Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum, one of the most iconic singers in African history (from Culture of Africa) -
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Africa topics
More did you know –
- ... that Safi Faye's 1975 film Kaddu Beykat was the first commercially distributed feature film made by a Sub-Saharan African woman?
- ... that legendary princess Yennenga, the "mother" of the Mossi people, was such a great warrior that her father refused to allow her to marry?
- ... that Safi Faye is a Senegalese film director whose work is better known in Europe than in her native Africa?
- ...that Mohamed Camara's 1997 film Dakan was the first West African film to explore homosexuality?
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Major Religions in Africa
North Africa
West Africa
Central Africa
East Africa
Southern Africa
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