North Africa

1. North Africa Chapter 21

2. North Africa includes Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, and Western Sahara (which is occupied by Morocco.) • North Africa stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea. • The northern border is the Mediterranean Sea.

3. Landforms • Coastal plains are the main landforms where North Africa meets the sea and ocean. • Beyond the coastal plain, the Atlas Mountains run parallel to the coastal plains. • The Sahara, the largest desert in the world, extends all across North Africa below the Atlas Mountains and acts as a natural barrier between North Africa and the rest of the African continent.

4. The Sahara covers about 3.5 million square miles (roughly the size of the USA) ERGS – Basins covered with high shifting sand dunes creating a sea of sand. REGS – Where the wind has blown the sand and dust away, leaving a gravel covered plain.

5. Other Landforms • Large, low areas are called depressions. In Egypt, the Qattara Depression is 440 ft. below sea level and is a wilderness of quick sand and salt marsh. • Rainwater also carves outwadis, which are dry streambeds that only fillwith water after rain falls.

6. Other Landforms • In the eastern Sahara, the Nile River flows north through Egypt into the Mediterranean. The Nile is a long oasis in the desert. Water from the river and Nile Delta supports crops and other vegetation, creating a fertile green strip across Egypt.

7. Climates • Mediterranean climate along the coast – warm, dry summers and mild rainy winters • Semiarid between coastal areas and the Sahara • Arid climate covers most of North America The highest temperature ever recorded on Earth was 135 degrees on the northern edge of the Sahara in Libya.

8. Natural Resources • Oil and natural gas are the region’s most valuable resources. • Oil is found in every country in North Africa (Libya has the most). • Morocco is the world’s largest exporter of sardines (350,000 tons are caught each year). • Egypt is an important cotton and rice producer.

9. History • The first people in North Africa were hunter-gatherers. • About 3000 BC the great civilization of Egypt grew along the Nile River. • They depended upon the Nile floodingfor survival (silt spilling out on the bank.) • Later, as Egyptian power weakened, Phoenicians, Greeks, and the Romans controlled North Africa.

10. History • The Phoenicians set up trading colonies such as Carthage in what is today Tunisia. • Alexander-the-Great founded the city of Alexandria in Egypt. • The Roman Empire became a great power in North Africa after it destroyed Carthage. • The Vandals (from Spain) set up a kingdom that became what is now Libya. • Eventually Arabs swept across North Africa and conquered Morocco. Most people in North Africa became Muslim and Arabic became the main language of the area.

11. People and Languages • The countries of North Africa share a similar history and Muslim culture. • Almost all people of North Africa consider themselves Arab (even tribes like the Berbers and the Bedouins). • Arabic is the official language of every country in North Africa. • Many people also speak European languages: French iswidely used in Algeria, Morocco,and Tunisia. Italian is spoken inLibya, and English is used widelyin Egypt.

12. Settlement and Land Usage • Most North Africans live along the Mediterranean coast or in the foothills of the Atlas Mountains. • Exception: Egypt – about 99% of the people live in the Nile River Valley and Delta. • Cairo, the capital of Egypt, is the largest urban area in North Africa.

13. Religion • Most North Africans are Muslims (except for small Christian and Jewish minorities). • Islam plays an important role in North African life – prayer 5 times a day, many businesses closed on Fridays, etc. • Wedding celebrations are very important and can last for several days. Women’s and men’s celebrations are held separately except for the last day of the wedding.