Location
The
Mediterranean Sea is to the north of
Algeria, while Tunisia, Libya, Niger,
Mali, Mauritania, Western Sahara and
Morocco all share borders with
Algeria. Algeria is the African
continent's second largest country.
The Tell Atlas mountains are heavily
forested and are the home to many
wild animals.
Food and
Drink
Much of the
food must be imported since most of
the large land area cannot support
agriculture. However, vegetables,
grapes, sugar beets, cotton, rice,
citrus fruit and olives for oil are
major products.
Arts
Algerian
films have won acclaim as have the
literature of Mammeri, Yacine and
Benhadouga. Albert Camus was born in
Algeria. Rock paintings depicting
Neolithic scenes are found in the
Sahara. Roman ruins can be seen at
Timgad and Djemila.
History
Many
invasions, perhaps due to a lack of
natural barriers, have resulted in a
diverse culture in Algeria.
Phoenicians probably established
Carthage in the 8th century B.C. The
Roman victory over Carthage in the
Jugurthine War in 105 B.C. resulted
in an integration into the Roman
Empire. In the 5th century the
Vandals invaded and ended Roman rule,
which was returned in the next
century. In the 7th and 8th centuries
the Arabs invaded leaving a lasting
impression on the culture. A Turkish
invasion resulted in 300 years of
Turkish rule. King Charles X of
France defeated the Turks in 1830 and
the era of French colonialism began.
The Algerians won independence in
1962 after a war lasting eight
years.
People, Religion, Ethnic
background,
Language
Arabic,
French and Berber are all spoken in
Algeria. Sunni Muslim is the major
religion.
Economics
Oil is a
major product, the Algerian oil is
fine quality needing less refining
than oil from other Middle Eastern
countries. A pipeline delivers
natural gas through Italy to European
countries. The roads and railways
have been maintained since the
departure of the French. People feel
comfortable wearing both
European-style and traditional
clothing. A substantial part of the
budget goes to education which has
resulted in a literacy rate of over
50%, a considerable change from the
10% literacy at the time of
independence in 1962.
Government
Algeria is a
presidential republic having had
strong, authoritarian presidents.
Miscellaneous
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Useful
Information
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Go To
Algeria
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