1.
Africa
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Africa is the worlds second-largest and second-most-populous continent. At about 30.3 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earths total surface area and 20.4 % of its land area. With 1.2 billion people as of 2016, it accounts for about 16% of the human population. The continent includes Madagascar and various archipelagos and it contains 54 fully recognized sovereign states, nine territories and two de facto independent states with limited or no recognition. Africas population is the youngest amongst all the continents, the age in 2012 was 19.7. Algeria is Africas largest country by area, and Nigeria by population, afarensis, Homo erectus, H. habilis and H. ergaster – with the earliest Homo sapiens found in Ethiopia being dated to circa 200,000 years ago. Africa straddles the equator and encompasses numerous climate areas, it is the continent to stretch from the northern temperate to southern temperate zones. Africa hosts a diversity of ethnicities, cultures and languages. In the late 19th century European countries colonized most of Africa, Africa also varies greatly with regard to environments, economics, historical ties and government systems. However, most present states in Africa originate from a process of decolonization in the 20th century, afri was a Latin name used to refer to the inhabitants of Africa, which in its widest sense referred to all lands south of the Mediterranean. This name seems to have referred to a native Libyan tribe. The name is connected with Hebrew or Phoenician ʿafar dust. The same word may be found in the name of the Banu Ifran from Algeria and Tripolitania, under Roman rule, Carthage became the capital of the province of Africa Proconsularis, which also included the coastal part of modern Libya. The Latin suffix -ica can sometimes be used to denote a land, the later Muslim kingdom of Ifriqiya, modern-day Tunisia, also preserved a form of the name. According to the Romans, Africa lay to the west of Egypt, while Asia was used to refer to Anatolia, as Europeans came to understand the real extent of the continent, the idea of Africa expanded with their knowledge. 25,4, whose descendants, he claimed, had invaded Libya, isidore of Seville in Etymologiae XIV.5.2. Suggests Africa comes from the Latin aprica, meaning sunny, massey, in 1881, stated that Africa is derived from the Egyptian af-rui-ka, meaning to turn toward the opening of the Ka. The Ka is the double of every person and the opening of the Ka refers to a womb or birthplace
2.
Northern Africa
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North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of Africa. The United Nationss definition of Northern Africa is, Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, the countries of Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Libya are often collectively referred to as the Maghreb, which is the Arabic word for sunset. Egypt lies to the northeast and encompasses part of West Asia, while Sudan is situated on the edge of the Sahel, Egypt is a transcontinental country because of the Sinai Peninsula, which geographically lies in Western Asia. North Africa also includes a number of Spanish possessions, the Canary Islands and Madeira in the North Atlantic Ocean northwest of the African mainland are included in considerations of the region. From 3500 BC, following the abrupt desertification of the Sahara due to changes in the Earths orbit. The Islamic influence in the area is significant, and North Africa is a major part of the Muslim world. Some researchers have postulated that North Africa rather than East Africa served as the point for the modern humans who first trekked out of the continent in the Out of Africa migration. The Atlas Mountains extend across much of Morocco, northern Algeria and Tunisia, are part of the mountain system that also runs through much of Southern Europe. They recede to the south and east, becoming a steppe landscape before meeting the Sahara desert, the sediments of the Sahara overlie an ancient plateau of crystalline rock, some of which is more than four billion years old. Sheltered valleys in the Atlas Mountains, the Nile Valley and Delta, a wide variety of valuable crops including cereals, rice and cotton, and woods such as cedar and cork, are grown. Typical Mediterranean crops, such as olives, figs, dates and citrus fruits, the Nile Valley is particularly fertile, and most of the population in Egypt and Sudan live close to the river. Elsewhere, irrigation is essential to improve yields on the desert margins. The inhabitants of Saharan Africa are generally divided in a manner corresponding to the principal geographic regions of North Africa, the Maghreb, the Nile valley. The edge of the Sahel, to the south of Egypt has mainly been inhabited by Nubians, Ancient Egyptians record extensive contact in their Western desert with people that appear to have been Berber or proto-Berber, as well as Nubians from the south. They have contributed to the Arabized Berber populations, the official language or one of the official languages in all of the countries in North Africa is Arabic. The people of the Maghreb and the Sahara regions speak Berber languages and several varieties of Arabic, the Arabic and Berber languages are distantly related, both being members of the Afroasiatic language family. The Tuareg Berber languages are more conservative than those of the coastal cities. Over the years, Berbers have been influenced by contact with cultures, Greeks, Phoenicians, Egyptians, Romans, Vandals, Arabs, Europeans
3.
Algeria
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Algeria, officially the Peoples Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a sovereign state in North Africa on the Mediterranean coast. Its capital and most populous city is Algiers, located in the far north. With an area of 2,381,741 square kilometres, Algeria is the tenth-largest country in the world, the country is a semi-presidential republic consisting of 48 provinces and 1,541 communes. Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been President since 1999, Berbers are the indigenous inhabitants of Algeria. Algeria is a regional and middle power, the North African country supplies large amounts of natural gas to Europe, and energy exports are the backbone of the economy. According to OPEC Algeria has the 16th largest oil reserves in the world, Sonatrach, the national oil company, is the largest company in Africa. Algeria has one of the largest militaries in Africa and the largest defence budget on the continent, most of Algerias weapons are imported from Russia, with whom they are a close ally. Algeria is a member of the African Union, the Arab League, OPEC, the countrys name derives from the city of Algiers. The citys name in turn derives from the Arabic al-Jazāir, a form of the older Jazāir Banī Mazghanna. In the region of Ain Hanech, early remnants of hominid occupation in North Africa were found, neanderthal tool makers produced hand axes in the Levalloisian and Mousterian styles similar to those in the Levant. Algeria was the site of the highest state of development of Middle Paleolithic Flake tool techniques, tools of this era, starting about 30,000 BC, are called Aterian. The earliest blade industries in North Africa are called Iberomaurusian and this industry appears to have spread throughout the coastal regions of the Maghreb between 15,000 and 10,000 BC. Neolithic civilization developed in the Saharan and Mediterranean Maghreb perhaps as early as 11,000 BC or as late as between 6000 and 2000 BC and this life, richly depicted in the Tassili nAjjer paintings, predominated in Algeria until the classical period. The amalgam of peoples of North Africa coalesced eventually into a native population that came to be called Berbers. These settlements served as market towns as well as anchorages, as Carthaginian power grew, its impact on the indigenous population increased dramatically. Berber civilization was already at a stage in which agriculture, manufacturing, trade, by the early 4th century BC, Berbers formed the single largest element of the Carthaginian army. In the Revolt of the Mercenaries, Berber soldiers rebelled from 241 to 238 BC after being unpaid following the defeat of Carthage in the First Punic War. They succeeded in obtaining control of much of Carthages North African territory, the Carthaginian state declined because of successive defeats by the Romans in the Punic Wars
4.
Libya
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The three traditional parts of the country are Tripolitania, Fezzan and Cyrenaica. With an area of almost 1.8 million square kilometres, Libya is the fourth largest country in Africa, Libya has the 10th-largest proven oil reserves of any country in the world. The largest city and capital, Tripoli, is located in western Libya, the other large city is Benghazi, which is located in eastern Libya. Libya has been inhabited by Berbers since the late Bronze Age, the Phoenicians established trading posts in western Libya, and ancient Greek colonists established city-states in eastern Libya. Libya was variously ruled by Carthaginians, Persians, Egyptians and Greeks before becoming a part of the Roman Empire, Libya was an early center of Christianity. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the area of Libya was mostly occupied by the Vandals until the 7th century, in the 16th century, the Spanish Empire and the Knights of St John occupied Tripoli, until Ottoman rule began in 1551. Libya was involved in the Barbary Wars of the 18th and 19th centuries, Ottoman rule continued until the Italian occupation of Libya resulted in the temporary Italian Libya colony from 1911 to 1943. During the Second World War Libya was an important area of warfare in the North African Campaign, the Italian population then went into decline. Libya became an independent kingdom in 1951, a military coup in 1969 overthrew King Idris I, beginning a period of sweeping social reform. Since then, Libya has experienced a period of instability, the European Union is involved in an operation to disrupt human trafficking networks exploiting refugees fleeing from wars in Africa for Europe. At least two political bodies claim to be the government of Libya, the Council of Deputies is internationally recognized as the legitimate government, but it does not hold territory in the capital, Tripoli, instead meeting in the Cyrenaica city of Tobruk. Parts of Libya are outside of either governments control, with various Islamist, rebel, the United Nations is sponsoring peace talks between the Tobruk and Tripoli-based factions. An agreement to form an interim government was signed on 17 December 2015. Under the terms of the agreement, a nine-member Presidency Council, the leaders of the new government, called the Government of National Accord, arrived in Tripoli on 5 April 2016. Since then the GNC, one of the two governments, has disbanded to support the new GNA. The name Libya was introduced in 1934 for Italian Libya, reviving the name for Northwest Africa. The name was based on use in 1903 by Italian geographer Federico Minutilli. It was intended to supplant terms applied to Ottoman Tripolitania, the region of what is today Libya having been ruled by the Ottoman Empire from 1551 to 1911
5.
Chott el Djerid
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Chott el Djerid also spelled Sciott Gerid and Shott el Jerid, is a large endorheic salt lake in southern Tunisia. The name can be translated from the Arabic into English as Lagoon of the Land of Palms, the bottom of Chott el Djerid is located between 10 and 25 meters below sea level. The lake is shaped, with a width that varies widely, at its narrowest point, it is only 20 km across. At times, parts of it appear in shades of white, green. The narrow eastward inlet of the chott is also known as Chott el Fejej and it is the largest salt pan of the Sahara Desert, with a surface area of over 7,000 km2. The site has a hot desert climate. Due to the climate with mean annual rainfall of below 100 mm and daytime temperatures sometimes reaching 50 °C or more during summer with dense solar radiation. In summer Chott el Djerid is almost entirely dried up, situated at 33 ° 42N8 ° 26E in the center-west of the country, between the cities of Tozeur and Kebili. During winter, a tributary of water can be seen discharging into the lake. Something similar happens with altitude, whose values vary between +10 and -25 meters below sea level, currently, freshwater irrigation schemes are applied in the region to help eliminate salt from soils and increase the productive area. South of Chott el Djerid, the Grand Erg Oriental desert begins, the towns of Kebili and Douz are also located south of the lake. The lake can be crossed by foot and even by car, during winter, when the lake is full, it can be crossed by boat. Piles of salt at its edges are collected for salt production processing, relict populations of the West African crocodile persisted in the Chott el Djerid until the early 20th century. Pink flamingos have been known to use the shores of the lake as nesting sites in springtime, Chott el Djerid is the namesake of the Jerid Lacuna an Endorheic hydrocarbon lake on the Saturnian moon Titan. That lake is located 66. 7°N and 221°W on Titans globe and involves liquid methane and ethane, Chott el Djerid was used as a filming location for the Star Wars series, among others. It was also described in Jules Vernes last novel, Invasion of the Sea, according to legend, it was there that the Greek goddess Athena was born. Chott Djerid Sahara Sea Chott el Djerid at Lexicorient
6.
Medjerda River
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The Medjerda River is a river in North Africa flowing from northeast Algeria through Tunisia before emptying into the Gulf of Tunis and Lake of Tunis. With a length of 450 km, it is the longest river of Tunisia and it is also known as the wādi Majardah and Wadi Mejerha and it was known as Bagrada in ancient times. It originates in the Tell Atlas, part of the Atlas Mountains, in northeastern Algeria and then eastwards to Tunisia. Its course has a length of 460 kilometres and it is the most important and longest rivers in Tunisia and is dammed in several locations, being a major supplier of water to the countrys wheat crops. Gulf of Utica was formed during the postglacial transgression about 6,000 years ago, over time, fluvial deposits from the Medjerda gradually filled up the northern part of the gulf. The succession of events during historical times has been inferred from ancient documents, besides morphological ground observations, aerial and satellite photographs have been used to analyze how the landscape has evolved over the past 3,000 years. The gulfs southern part was filled up in ancient times. The sea gradually withdrew from the part during the Middle Ages. The Ghar el Melh lagoon is the last vestige of what used to be the Utica gulf, following the last big flood in 1973, the Medjerda shifted, once again, its course. It now flows through a canal dug to evacuate the overflow of flood waters. Historically the Medjerda is Tunisias crucial waterway providing water to the supply facilities. Water from the Medjerda is used for irrigation and is pivotal to the regions agriculture. A very strategic river in North Africa, it was fought over and settled many times in history by the Berbers, Phoenicians, Punics, Romans, Vandals, Byzantines, Arabs, and the Ottomans. Several major cities, such as Utica, Carthage, and eventually Tunis were founded on or in proximity to it
7.
Tunisia
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Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia is the northernmost country in Africa, covering 165,000 square kilometres. Its northernmost point, Cape Angela, is the northernmost point on the African continent and it is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisias population was estimated to be just under 11 million in 2014, Tunisias name is derived from its capital city, Tunis, which is located on Tunisias northeast coast. Geographically, Tunisia contains the end of the Atlas Mountains. Much of the rest of the land is fertile soil. Tunisia is a unitary semi-presidential representative democratic republic and it is considered to be the only full democracy in the Arab World. It has a human development index. In addition, Tunisia is also a state of the United Nations. Close relations with Europe – in particular with France and with Italy – have been forged through economic cooperation, privatisation, in ancient times, Tunisia was primarily inhabited by Berbers. Phoenician immigration began in the 12th century BC, these immigrants founded Carthage, a major mercantile power and a military rival of the Roman Republic, Carthage was defeated by the Romans in 146 BC. The Romans, who would occupy Tunisia for most of the eight hundred years, introduced Christianity. After several attempts starting in 647, the Arabs conquered the whole of Tunisia by 697, the Ottomans held sway for over three hundred years. The French colonization of Tunisia occurred in 1881, Tunisia gained independence with Habib Bourguiba and declared the Tunisian Republic in 1957. In 2011, the Tunisian Revolution resulted in the overthrow of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the country voted for parliament again on 26 October 2014, and for President on 23 November 2014. The word Tunisia is derived from Tunis, an urban hub. The present form of the name, with its Latinate suffix -ia, the French derivative Tunisie was adopted in some European languages with slight modifications, introducing a distinctive name to designate the country. Other languages remained untouched, such as the Russian Туни́с and Spanish Túnez, in this case, the same name is used for both country and city, as with the Arabic تونس, and only by context can one tell the difference. The name Tunis can be attributed to different origins and it is generally associated with the Berber root ⵜⵏⵙ, transcribed tns, which means to lay down or encampment
8.
Mediterranean Sea
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The sea is sometimes considered a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it is usually identified as a separate body of water. The name Mediterranean is derived from the Latin mediterraneus, meaning inland or in the middle of land and it covers an approximate area of 2.5 million km2, but its connection to the Atlantic is only 14 km wide. The Strait of Gibraltar is a strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Gibraltar. In oceanography, it is called the Eurafrican Mediterranean Sea or the European Mediterranean Sea to distinguish it from mediterranean seas elsewhere. The Mediterranean Sea has a depth of 1,500 m. The sea is bordered on the north by Europe, the east by Asia and it is located between latitudes 30° and 46° N and longitudes 6° W and 36° E. Its west-east length, from the Strait of Gibraltar to the Gulf of Iskenderun, the seas average north-south length, from Croatia’s southern shore to Libya, is approximately 800 km. The Mediterranean Sea, including the Sea of Marmara, has an area of approximately 2,510,000 square km. The sea was an important route for merchants and travelers of ancient times that allowed for trade, the history of the Mediterranean region is crucial to understanding the origins and development of many modern societies. In addition, the Gaza Strip and the British Overseas Territories of Gibraltar and Akrotiri, the term Mediterranean derives from the Latin word mediterraneus, meaning amid the earth or between land, as it is between the continents of Africa, Asia and Europe. The Ancient Greek name Mesogeios, is similarly from μέσο, between + γη, land, earth) and it can be compared with the Ancient Greek name Mesopotamia, meaning between rivers. The Mediterranean Sea has historically had several names, for example, the Carthaginians called it the Syrian Sea and latter Romans commonly called it Mare Nostrum, and occasionally Mare Internum. Another name was the Sea of the Philistines, from the people inhabiting a large portion of its shores near the Israelites, the sea is also called the Great Sea in the General Prologue by Geoffrey Chaucer. In Ottoman Turkish, it has also been called Bahr-i Sefid, in Modern Hebrew, it has been called HaYam HaTikhon, the Middle Sea, reflecting the Seas name in ancient Greek, Latin, and modern languages in both Europe and the Middle East. Similarly, in Modern Arabic, it is known as al-Baḥr al-Mutawassiṭ, in Turkish, it is known as Akdeniz, the White Sea since among Turks the white colour represents the west. Several ancient civilisations were located around the Mediterranean shores, and were influenced by their proximity to the sea. It provided routes for trade, colonisation, and war, as well as food for numerous communities throughout the ages, due to the shared climate, geology, and access to the sea, cultures centered on the Mediterranean tended to have some extent of intertwined culture and history. Two of the most notable Mediterranean civilisations in classical antiquity were the Greek city states, later, when Augustus founded the Roman Empire, the Romans referred to the Mediterranean as Mare Nostrum
9.
Sahara
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The Sahara is the largest hot desert and the third largest desert in the world after Antarctica and the Arctic. Its area of 9,200,000 square kilometres is comparable to the area of the United States. The desert comprises much of North Africa, excluding the fertile region on the Mediterranean Sea coast, the Atlas Mountains of the Maghreb, and the Nile Valley in Egypt and Sudan. It stretches from the Red Sea in the east and the Mediterranean in the north to the Atlantic Ocean in the west, where the landscape gradually changes from desert to coastal plains. To the south, it is bounded by the Sahel, a belt of tropical savanna around the Niger River valley. The Sahara can be divided into several regions including, the western Sahara, the central Ahaggar Mountains, the Tibesti Mountains, the Aïr Mountains, the Ténéré desert, the name Sahara is derived from ṣaḥārā, the plural of the Arabic word for desert. The Sahara covers large parts of Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western Sahara, Sudan and it covers 9 million square kilometres, amounting to 31% of Africa. If all areas with an annual precipitation of less than 250 mm were included. It is one of three physiographic provinces of the African massive physiographic division. The Sahara is mainly rocky hamada, Ergs form only a minor part, wind or rare rainfall shape the desert features, sand dunes, dune fields, sand seas, stone plateaus, gravel plains, dry valleys, dry lakes, and salt flats. Unusual landforms include the Richat Structure in Mauritania, several deeply dissected mountains, many volcanic, rise from the desert, including the Aïr Mountains, Ahaggar Mountains, Saharan Atlas, Tibesti Mountains, Adrar des Iforas, and the Red Sea hills. The highest peak in the Sahara is Emi Koussi, a volcano in the Tibesti range of northern Chad. The central Sahara is hyperarid, with sparse vegetation, the northern and southern reaches of the desert, along with the highlands, have areas of sparse grassland and desert shrub, with trees and taller shrubs in wadis, where moisture collects. In the central, hyperarid region, there are subdivisions of the great desert, Tanezrouft, the Ténéré, the Libyan Desert, the Eastern Desert. These extremely arid areas often receive no rain for years, the northern limit also corresponds to the 100 mm isohyet of annual precipitation. To the south, the Sahara is bounded by the Sahel, the southern limit of the Sahara is indicated botanically by the southern limit of Cornulaca monacantha, or northern limit of Cenchrus biflorus, a grass typical of the Sahel. According to climatic criteria, the limit of the Sahara corresponds to the 150 mm isohyet of annual precipitation. The Sahara is the worlds largest low-latitude hot desert and this steady descending airflow causes a warming and a drying effect in the upper troposphere
10.
Gulf of Sirte
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Gulf of Sirte, or Gulf of Sidra after the port of Sidra, is a body of water in the Mediterranean Sea on the northern coast of Libya. Historically it has also known as the Great Sirte or Greater Syrtis. The Gulf of Sirte has been a centre for tuna fishing in the Mediterranean for centuries. It gives its name to the city of Sirte situated on its western side, the gulf measures 439 kilometres from the promontory of Boreum on the East side to the promontory of Cephalae on the West. The greatest extension of the inland is 177 kilometres land inward. Syrtis is referred to in the New Testament of the Bible where the Apostle Paul relates being sent in chains to Rome to stand trial before Caesar Nero, in ancient literature, the Syrtes were notorious sandbanks which sailors always took pains to avoid. The local climate features frequent calms and a more than usually powerful north wind, the shoreline between Cyrene in the east and Carthage in the west featured few ports. Ancient writers frequently mention the sandbanks and their vicinity as dangerous for shipping, the Syrtes maiores are unusually tidal and feature a strong clockwise current, at the rising tide, which then switches when the tide ebbs. This feature may explain the curious corkscrew shape in the area on the Peutinger Table, the landward side was a featureless plain which contrasted with the fertility of the rest of Tripolitania, to the west. Ancient writers mention sandstorms and serpents in this area, furthermore, the ancient textual evidence is not unambiguous in its condemnation of the Syrtes. Plutarch gives a much less melodramatic account of Cato’s march than Strabo’s, saying that it took seven days. As in Cato, they do not avoid the area, and their infamous reputation is, however, found in Roman poetry, from Virgil on. The information in this section is taken from The Syrtes between East and West by Josephine Crawley Quinn. First Battle of Sirte, World War II naval battle between Regia Marina and Royal Navy in December 1941, second Battle of Sirte, World War II naval battle between Regia Marina and Royal Navy in March 1942. The gulf was generally referred to by the US military in those times as Gulf of Sidra, gaddafi declared it The Line of Death, the crossing of which would invite a military response. Gaddafi claimed it to be a sea, not just a coastal area. In response the United States authorized Naval exercises in the Gulf of Sidra to conduct Freedom of Navigation operations, on 21 March 1973, Libyan fighter planes intercepted and fired on a U. S. Air Force C-130 conducting signals intelligence off the Libyan coast. During the encounter, two Libyan Mirage fighters signaled the C-130 to follow them toward Libya and land, prompting the American plane to take evasive action, the C-130 received cannon fire from the Libyan fighters as it fled, but was able to escape by using cloud cover
11.
Sirte
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Sirte, also spelled Sirt, Surt, Sert or Syrte, is a city in Libya. It is on the south coast of the Gulf of Sidra, Sirte lies halfway between Tripoli and Benghazi. The settlement was established in the early 20th century by the Italians and it grew into a city after World War II. As the birthplace of Muammar Gaddafi, Sirte was favoured by the Gaddafi government, the city was the final major stronghold of Gaddafi loyalists in the Libyan Civil War and Gaddafi was killed there by rebel forces on 20 October 2011. During the battle, Sirte was left almost completely in ruins, six months after the civil war, almost 60,000 inhabitants, more than 70 percent of pre-war population, had returned. Sirte is built near the site of the ancient Phoenician city of Macomedes-Euphranta and it is the last confirmed place where the Punic language was spoken, in the 5th century CE. The region had no recognized administrative centre and was infested for centuries by bandits, in Classical times, the coast was proverbially dangerous to shipping, called inhospita Syrtis in Virgils Aeneid. John Miltons Paradise Lost Book 2 lines 939-940 speaks of a boggy Syrtis, in 1842 the Ottomans built a fortress at Marsat al Zaafran which became known as Qasr al Zaafran, and later as Qasr Sert. The fortress was built under sultan Abdülmecid I as part of the restoration of Ottoman control over Tripolitania after the fall of the Karamanli dynasty and it was around this fortification, which was taken over and repaired by the Italians in 1912, that the settlement of Sirte grew up. Sirte served as an administrative centre under Italian rule and he was sent to the primary school at Sirte at the age of ten. After 1988, most government departments and the Libyan parliament were relocated from Tripoli to Sirte, al-Tahadi University was established in 1991. In 1999, Gaddafi proposed the idea of creating a United States of Africa with Sirte as its administrative centre, ambitious plans to build a new international airport and seaport were announced in 2007. In 1999, the Sirte Declaration was signed in the city by the Organisation of African Unity in a conference that was hosted by Gaddafi, in 2007 he also hosted talks in Sirte to broker a peace agreement between the government of Sudan and warring factions in Darfur. On 5 March 2011, anti-Gaddafi forces said they were preparing to capture the city, however, on 6 March, the rebel advance was stopped during the Battle of Bin Jawad before reaching Sirte. Government forces launched a counter-offensive that recaptured Ras Lanuf and continued to advance as far as the outskirts of the de facto capital of Benghazi. Under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, several Western and Arab countries then intervened with air and missile strikes, by 30 March, Gaddafi loyalists had forced the rebels out of Bin Jawad and Ras Lanuf and once again removed the immediate threat of an attack on Sirte. In August, the city faced a severe threat from the rebels as the loyalist position deteriorated rapidly. As Tripoli came under attack, other rebel forces based in Benghazi broke the stalemate in the eastern desert, taking Brega
12.
Geographic coordinates
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
13.
Nautical mile
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A nautical mile is a unit of measurement defined as exactly 1852 meters. Historically, it was defined as one minute of latitude, which is equivalent to one sixtieth of a degree of latitude. Today it is an SI derived unit, being rounded to a number of meters. The derived unit of speed is the knot, defined as one mile per hour. The geographical mile is the length of one minute of longitude along the Equator, there is no internationally agreed symbol. M is used as the abbreviation for the mile by the International Hydrographic Organization and by the International Bureau of Weights. NM is used by the International Civil Aviation Organization, nm is used by the U. S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Nmi is used by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the word mile is from the Latin word for a thousand paces, mīlia. In 1617 the Dutch scientist Snell assessed the circumference of the Earth at 24,630 Roman miles, around that time British mathematician Edmund Gunter improved navigational tools including a new quadrant to determine latitude at sea. He reasoned that the lines of latitude could be used as the basis for a unit of measurement for distance, as one degree is 1/360 of a circle, one minute of arc is 1/21600 of a circle. These sexagesimal units originated in Babylonian astronomy, Gunter used Snells circumference to define a nautical mile as 6,080 feet, the length of one minute of arc at 48 degrees latitude.3 metres. Other countries measure the minute of arc at 45 degrees latitude, in 1929, the international nautical mile was defined by the First International Extraordinary Hydrographic Conference in Monaco as 1,852 meters. Imperial units and United States customary units used a definition of the nautical mile based on the Clarke Spheroid, the United States nautical mile was defined as 6,080.20 feet based in the Mendenhall Order foot of 1893. It was abandoned in favour of the nautical mile in 1954.181 meters. It was abandoned in 1970 and, legally, references to the unit are now converted to 1,853 meters. Conversion of units Orders of magnitude
14.
Atlas Mountains
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The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range in the Maghreb. It stretches around 2,500 km through Algeria, Morocco, the ranges highest peak is Jebel Toubkal, with an elevation of 4,167 metres in southwestern Morocco. It separates the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines from the Sahara Desert, the Atlas mountains are primarily inhabited by Berber populations. The terms for mountain in some Berber languages are adrar and adras, the mountains are home to a number of plant and animal species unique in Africa, often more like those of Europe, many of them are endangered and some have already gone extinct. The basement rock of most of Africa was formed during the Precambrian period, the Atlas was formed during three subsequent phases of Earths geology. The first tectonic deformation phase involves only the Anti-Atlas, which was formed in the Paleozoic Era as the result of continental collisions, North America, Europe and Africa were connected millions of years ago. The Anti-Atlas Mountains are believed to have originally formed as part of Alleghenian orogeny. These mountains were formed when Africa and America collided, and were once a chain rivaling todays Himalayas, today, the remains of this chain can be seen in the Fall Line region in the Eastern United States. Some remnants can also be found in the later formed Appalachians in North America, a second phase took place during the Mesozoic Era. It consisted of an extension of the Earths crust that rifted and separated the continents mentioned above. This extension was responsible for the formation of many thick intracontinental sedimentary basins including the present Atlas, most of the rocks forming the surface of the present High Atlas were deposited under the ocean at that time. Such convergent tectonic boundaries occur where two plates slide towards each other forming a zone, and/or a continental collision. However, there is a lack of evidence for the nature of the subduction in the Atlas region, or for the thickening of the Earths crust generally associated with continental collisions. In fact, one of the most striking features of the Atlas to geologists is the small amount of crustal thickening. Recent studies suggest that deep processes rooted in the Earths mantle may have contributed to the uplift of the High, the Atlas are rich in natural resources. There are deposits of ore, lead ore, copper, silver, mercury, rock salt, phosphate, marble. The range can be divided into four regions, Middle Atlas. The Middle Atlas is a portion of the Atlas mountain range lying completely in Morocco, the Middle Atlas is the westernmost of three Atlas Mountains chains that define a large, plateaued basin extending eastward
15.
Lake of Tunis
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The Lake of Tunis is a natural lagoon located between the Tunisian capital city of Tunis and the Gulf of Tunis. The lake covers a total of 37 square kilometres, in contrast to its size its depth is very shallow and it was once the natural harbour of Tunis. The Tunis-Carthage connection was important to the Romans, as it meant control over the fertile hinterland. The Romans therefore built a dam through the lake, the dam is used today as an expressway for automobiles and railway connecting Tunis to the harbour, La Goulette, and the coastal cities of Carthage, Sidi Bou Said, and La Marsa. The northern lake includes the island of Chikly, once home to a Spanish stronghold, the lake continued to aggrade during the 19th century. French colonial forces traversed the lake with a 10-kilometer long, 450-meter wide, total costs of the investment, considered the biggest in Tunisias history, will be around $18 billion USD. The project should be ready in the next 10 to 15 years
16.
Wadi
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Wadi is the Arabic and Hebrew term traditionally referring to a valley. In some instances, it may refer to a dry riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain, the term wādī is very widely found in Arabic toponyms. Seasonal streams, frequent in south-east Spain, are called ramblas instead, in the Maghreb, the term wadi is applied to all rivers including regular ones. Wadis are located on the sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts, commonly they begin on the distal portions of fans. In basin and range topography, wadis trend along basin axes at the terminus of fans, permanent channels do not exist, due to lack of continual water flow. Wadi show braided stream patterns because of the deficiency of water, Water percolates down into the stream bed causing abrupt loss in energy and resulting vast deposition. Wadis may develop dams of sediment which results in change of stream patterns in the flash flood. Wind also plays its role in deposition, when wadi sediments are underwater or moist, wind sediments are deposited over them. Thus wadi sediments contain both wind and water sediments, wadi sediments may contain whole range from gravel to mud. There is also range of sedimentary structures. Thus, wadi sediments are most diagnostic of all other desert environments, flash floods represents severe energy conditions and results in wide range of sedimentary structures, including ripples and commonly plane beds. Gravels common display imbrications, Mud drapes show desiccation cracks, wind activity also generates its own sedimentary structures, large scales cross-stratification and wedge shape cross-sets are present. Typical wadi sequence consists of alternating units of wind and water sediments, Water laid sediments show complete fining upward sequence. Wind deposits are stratified and covered with mud-cracked deposits. Some horizontal Loess may also present, modern English usage differentiates a wadi from another canyon or wash by the action and prevalence of water. Wadis, as courses, are formed by water, but are distinguished from river valleys or gullies in that surface water is intermittent or ephemeral. Wadis are generally dry year round, except after a rain, the desert environment is characterized by sudden but infrequent heavy rainfall, often resulting in flash floods. Crossing wadis at certain times of the year can be dangerous as a result, Wadis tend to be associated with centers of human population because sub-surface water is sometimes available in them
17.
Tell Atlas
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The Tell Atlas is a mountain chain over 1,500 km in length, belonging to the Atlas mountain ranges in North Africa, stretching from Morocco, through Algeria to Tunisia. The ranges of this system have average elevations of about 1,500 m and its highest summit is the 2,308 m high Lalla Khedidja in the Jurjura Range. Several large cities such as the Algerian capital, Algiers, with ~1,500,000 residents, the Algerian city Constantine with approximately 505,000 residents lies 80 km inland and directly in the mountains at 650 meters in elevation. A number of towns and villages are situated within the Tell, for example. The Tell Atlas runs parallel to the Mediterranean coast, at the western end, it ends at the Rif and Middle Atlas ranges in Morocco. The Tell Atlas are also a distinct section of the larger Atlas Mountains province. The Tell Atlas and the Saharan Atlas form two natural barriers, the first against the Mediterranean and the second against the Sahara, between them lies the valley of the Chelif and various lesser rivers. South of the Tell Atlas is the plateau of the Hautes Plaines with level terrain where water collects during the wet season. Agriculture includes grazing of sheep and goats on grass in better-watered high plateau areas and some farming, the Chelif is a 725 km long river with headwaters in the Tell Atlas to its discharge into the Mediterranean. The Chelif is characterized by a fertile valley. Other noteworthy rivers having their sources in this range are the Medjerda, only seasonal streams are found flowing south from the Tell Atlas. The Tell Atlas enjoys a typical Mediterranean climate, warm dry summers and mild. As a consequence, the slopes of the Tell Atlas are forested with the endemic Abies numidica, and Atlas cedar, pine. In the summer a hot, dry wind, the Sirocco, blows north from the Sahara across the Tell Atlas, causing dusty, despite the arid climate, some agriculture for barley and wheat farming is found in the Tell Atlas region. The Chiffa gorge is situated within the Tell Atlas, this location is one of the few remaining habitats for the endangered primate, list of mountains in Algeria Saharan Atlas Media related to Tell Atlas at Wikimedia Commons Tell Atlas - The Great Soviet Encyclopedia
18.
Mediterranean climate
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A Mediterranean climate /ˌmɛdɪtəˈreɪniən/ or dry summer climate, is the climate typical of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin. The Mediterranean climate is characterised by dry summers and mild, moist winters, Mediterranean climate zones are associated with the four large subtropical high pressure cells of the oceans, the Azores High, South Atlantic High, North Pacific High, and South Pacific High. These climatological high pressure cells migrate by latitude according to the angle of the Sun, shifting north-eastward in the summer. These semi-permanent high pressure systems play a role in the formation of the worlds subtropical and tropical deserts as well as the Mediterranean Basins climate. The Azores High is associated with the Mediterranean climate found in the Mediterranean Basin, the Sahara Desert, the South Atlantic High is similarly associated with the Namib Desert and Kalahari Desert, and the Mediterranean climate of the western part of South Africa. Under the Köppen climate classification, hot climates and cool dry-summer climates are often referred to as mediterranean. Under the Köppen climate system, the first letter indicates the climate group, temperate climates or C zones have an average temperature above 0 °C, but below 18 °C, in their coolest months. The second letter indicates the precipitation pattern, Köppen has defined a dry summer month as a month with less than 30 mm of precipitation and with less than one-third that of the wettest winter month. Some, however, use a 40 mm level, the third letter indicates the degree of summer heat, a represents an average temperature in the warmest month above 22 °C, while b indicates the average temperature in the warmest month below 22 °C. Under the Köppen classification, dry-summer climates usually occur on the sides of continents. Under Trewarthas system, at least eight months must have average temperatures of 10 °C or higher, during summer, regions of mediterranean climate are dominated by subtropical high pressure cells, with dry sinking air capping a surface marine layer of varying humidity and making rainfall unlikely. In many Mediterranean climates there is a strong character to daily temperatures in the warm months. The majority of the regions with mediterranean climates have relatively mild winters, however winter and summer temperatures can vary greatly between different regions with a mediterranean climate. Or to consider summer, Athens experiences rather high temperatures in that season, in contrast, San Francisco has cool summers with daily highs around. In North America, areas with Csc climate can be found in the Olympic, Cascade, Klamath and these locations are found at high altitude nearby lower altitude regions characterized by a warm-summer mediterranean climate or hot-summer mediterranean climate. A rare instance of this occurs in the tropics, on Haleakalā Summit in Hawaii. In South America, Csc regions can be found along the Andes in Chile, the town of Balmaceda is one of the few towns confirmed to have this climate. Small areas with a Csc climate can also be found at elevations in Corsica
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Desert climate
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An area that features this climate usually experiences from 25 to 200 mm per year of precipitation and in some years may experience no precipitation at all. Averages may be even less such as in Arica, Chile, there are usually two or three variations of a desert climate, a hot desert climate, a cold desert climate and, sometimes, a mild desert climate. To determine whether a location has a climate, the precipitation threshold is determined. If the areas precipitation is less than half the threshold. Hot desert climates are found under the subtropical ridge where there is largely unbroken sunshine for the whole year due to the stable descending air. These areas are located between 30 degrees south and 30 degrees north latitude, under the subtropical latitudes called the horse latitudes, hot desert climates are generally hot, sunny and dry year-round. Hot desert climates also reach similar latitudes in the Middle East, North Africa, hot desert climates usually feature hot, sometimes exceptionally hot, periods of the year. In many locations featuring a hot climate, maximum temperatures of over 40 °C are not uncommon in summer. The world absolute heat records, over 50 °C, are generally in the hot deserts, some desert locations consistently experience very high temperatures all year long, even during wintertime. These locations feature some of the highest annual average temperatures recorded on Earth and this last feature is seen in some parts of deserts of Africa and Arabia. During colder periods of the year, night-time temperatures can drop to freezing or below due to the radiation loss under the clear skies. However, very rarely do temperatures drop far below freezing, only one region in Europe has a hot desert climate, Province of Almeria, Province of Alicante and Province of Murcia in South Eastern Spain. Cold desert climates usually feature warm and dry summers, though summers typically are not quite as hot as summers in hot desert climates, unlike hot desert climates, cold desert climates tend to feature cold winters with rare snow. Cold desert climates are found at higher altitudes than hot desert climates. A cold desert climate is found in temperate zones, usually in the rain shadow of high mountains. A classic example of this is the Patagonian Desert in Argentina bounded by the Andes to its west, in the case of Central Asia, mountains restrict precipitation from the monsoon. The Gobi desert in Mongolia is an example of this. Though hot in summer, it shares the cold winters of the rest of Central Asia
20.
El Borma
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El Borma is a town and commune, which is coextensive with El Borma District, in Ouargla Province, Algeria. According to the 2008 census it has a population of 3,250, up from 1,997 in 1998. and a population growth rate of 4. 9%. The town is located on the border with Tataouine Governorate, Tunisia, El Borma is located amidst the vast sand dunes of the Grand Erg Oriental in eastern Algeria. The location is notable for its underground petroleum reservoirs, El Borma has a hot desert climate with long, extremely hot summers and short, warm winters. The climate is similar to the one of Ouargla, daytime temperatures are soaring during summer months as they consistently turn around 45 °C between June and September. El Bormas economy is supported by the industry, due to the oil fields in the area. Grazing is also significant, although limited because of the plant life in the area. Agriculture is currently due to the lack of sufficient water supplies. El Borma is a town, with no significant settlements or major roads nearby. A local road leads west to Hassi Messaoud about 300 kilometres to the west, the town is served by El Borma Airport across the border in Tunisia. 1. 6% of the population has an education. The overall literacy rate is 42. 6%, and is 54. 7% among males and 28. 5% among females, all three rates are the lowest in the province. The commune is composed of eight localities
21.
Tunis
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Tunis is both the capital and the largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as Grand Tunis, has some 2,700,000 inhabitants. Situated on a large Mediterranean Sea gulf, behind the Lake of Tunis and the port of La Goulette, the city extends along the coastal plain, at its core lies its ancient medina, a World Heritage Site. Beyond this district lie the suburbs of Carthage, La Marsa, as the capital city of the country, Tunis is the focus of Tunisian political and administrative life, it is also the centre of the countrys commercial activity. Tunis is the transcription of the Arabic name تونس which can be pronounced as Tūnus, Tūnas, All three variations were mentioned by the Greek-Syrian geographer al-Rumi Yaqout in his Mujam al-Bûldan. Different explanations exist for the origin of the name Tunis, some scholars relate it to the Phoenician goddess Tanith, as many ancient cities were named after patron deities. Another possibility is that it was derived from the Berber verbal root ens which means to lie down or to pass the night, given the variations of the precise meaning over time and space, the term Tunis can possibly mean camp at night, camp, or stop. There are also mentions in ancient Roman sources of such names of nearby towns as Tuniza, Thunusuda, Thinissut. As all of these Berber villages were situated on Roman roads, the historical study of Carthage is problematic. Because its culture and records were destroyed by the Romans at the end of the Third Punic War and these writers belonged to peoples in competition, and often in conflict, with Carthage. Greek cities contended with Carthage over Sicily, and the Romans fought three wars against Carthage, not surprisingly, their accounts of Carthage are extremely hostile, while there are a few Greek authors who took a favourable view, these works have been lost. The existence of the town is attested by sources dating from the 6th century BC, in the 2nd millennium BC a town, originally named Tunes, was founded by Berbers and also over time occupied by Numidians. In 146 BC, the Romans destroyed Tunis, however, the city was subsequently rebuilt under the rule of Augustus and became an important town under Roman control and the center of a booming agricultural industry. Situated on a hill, Tunis served as an excellent point from which the comings and goings of naval and caravan traffic to and from Carthage could be observed. Tunis was one of the first towns in the region to fall under Carthaginian control, thus, during Agathocles expedition, which landed at Cape Bon in 310 BC, Tunis changed hands on various occasions. During the Mercenary War, it is possible that Tunis served as a center for the population of the area, and that its population was mainly composed of peasants, fishermen. Compared to the ancient ruins of Carthage, the ruins of ancient Tunis are not as large, according to Strabo, it was destroyed by the Romans during the Third Punic War. Both Tunis and Carthage were destroyed, Tunis, however, was rebuilt first, the city is mentioned in the Tabula Peutingeriana as Thuni
22.
Tunis Governorate
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Tunis Governorate is the smallest and most populated of the twenty-four governorates of Tunisia. Its capital is that of the country, Tunis, the Tunis Governorate is the largest industrial center in the country. Opening on the Mediterranean Sea, the governorate has a Mediterranean climate with rainfall reaching 470 mm. The area tapers towards the port and forms a narrow belt stretching westward. To the immediate south-west of the city centre is large freshwater lake and its banks includes cultivated land to the west and the small Foret de Sijoumi to the east, with suburbs largely to the other sides. The urban area reaches over half of the length of the province, the area includes a container-handling port including large ferries to Salemo, Civitavecchia, Genoa, Palermo and Trapani in Italy and to Marseille in France. Its international airport and railway hub support its status as a hub in hosting the government departments, stock exchange. Tunis Governorate is divided into eight municipalities
23.
Sfax
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Sfax is a city in Tunisia, located 270 km southeast of Tunis. The city, founded in AD849 on the ruins of Taparura and Thaenae, is the capital of the Sfax Governorate, Sfax has a population of 330,440. The main economic activities of Sfax are industries, agriculture, fishing, the city is often described as Tunisias second city. During the Roman Empire Sfax was a town called Taparura, by the end of the 10th century, Sfax, had become an independent city-state. Sfax became a base of the Barbary piracy, prompting an unsuccessful invasion by Venice in 1785. When the Bey of Tunis signed the Bardo Treaty, in 1881, making Tunisia a protectorate, six ironclads were dispatched from Toulon to join the French Navy ships in Tunisian waters. In Sfax, three ironclads from the Division of the Levant were already present, together with four cannon boats, Sfax was bombarded, and on 16 July the city was taken by the French after hard fighting, with 7 dead and 32 wounded for the French. During World War II, the Axis powers used the city as a base until British forces took it on 10 April 1943. After World War II, Tunisia was returned to France, the A1 motorway connects Sfax with Tunis. A narrow gauge system of SNCFT offers passenger services to Tunis and delivers phosphates. Founded in 1961, Radio Sfax broadcasts twenty hours a day on MW720 kHz/105.21 MHz, Sfax has a hot semi-arid climate. Owing to its location relative to Mediterranean Sea winter storms, Sfax receives half the rainfall of Tunis. Summers, like all of North Africa, are hot and almost rainless, the University of Sfax includes, ENIS issued a number of well-known scientists and industrialists. ESCS issued a number of managers, Economy and Management researchers, FLSHS issued a number of renowned poets and prose writers. FDS ISAMS CS Sfaxien, a club of football, volleyball, basketball and rugby. com Histoiredesfax. com CSS. org. tn Flysyphax. com
24.
Sfax Governorate
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The Sfax Governorate is one of the governorates of Tunisia. The governorate has a population of 955,421 and an area of 7,545 km² and it is along the east coast of Tunisia, and includes the Kerkennah Islands. The following sixteen municipalities are located in Sfax Governorate, The largest airport in the region is the Sfax–Thyna International Airport, the area code for telephoning to the Sfax governorate is 30
25.
Nabeul
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Nabeul is a coastal town in north-eastern Tunisia, on the south coast near to the Cap Bon peninsula. It is located at around 36°27′N 10°44′E and is the capital of the Nabeul Governorate, the city has a population of 73,128. Nabeul was founded in the 5th century BC by the Greeks of Cyrene and its name is a tunisification of the Greek Neapolis new city. The diocese was re founded in name at least in the 20th century as a see of the Roman Catholic church. Being on the Mediterranean coast it remains today a popular tourist destination, meherzia Labidi Maïza was elected to the assembly of the representatives of the people in the Tunisian parliamentary election in October 2014 by the second district of Nabeul
26.
Nabeul Governorate
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Nabeul Governorate is one of the 24 governorates of Tunisia. It is situated in north-eastern Tunisia and it covers an area of 2,788 km² and has a population of 787,920. Nabeul is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, except the south west side where it is delimited by the three governorates Zaghouan, Sousse and Ben Arous. Nabeul, the city of the governorate, was founded in the 5th century BC by the Greeks of Cyrene. Its name is an Arabised form of the Greek Neapolis new city, Nabeul has an arid climate with steppe precipitation and hot arid temperature. The following 24 municipalities are located in Nabeul Governorate
27.
Sousse
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Sousse or Soussa is a city in Tunisia, capital of the Sousse Governorate. Located 140 kilometres south of the capital Tunis, the city has 271,428 inhabitants, Sousse is in the central-east of the country, on the Gulf of Hammamet, which is a part of the Mediterranean Sea. The name may be of Berber origin, similar names are found in Libya and its economy is based on transport equipment, processed food, olive oil, textiles and tourism. It is home to the Université de Sousse, the Phoenicians founded Hadrumetum in the 11th century BC. The city allied itself with Rome during the Punic Wars, thereby escaping damage or ruin, livy wrote that Hadrumetum was the landing place of the Roman army under Scipio Africanus in the second Punic War. Roman usurper Clodius Albinus was born in Hadrumetum, as part of Bonifaciuss revolt against Constantinople, the Vandals were invited in and they took Hadrumetum in 434 AD and renamed the town Hunerikopolis. During the Vandalic War Justinian retook the town in 534 and restored its Roman name, in the 7th century AD Arab-Islamic armies conquered what is now Tunisia and rapidly spread Arab culture across what had been a thoroughly Romanized and Christianized landscape. The Arabs seized the city, which in the aftermath of Romes fall was and they renamed the city Sûsa and within a few decades elevated it to the status of the main seaport of the Aghlabid Dynasty. When the Aghlabids invaded Sicily in 827, Sûsa was their main staging ground, after the Byzantine city of Melite was captured by the Aghlabids in 870, marble from its churches was used to build the castle of Sousse. The French called the city Sousse, despite the turmoil around it, Sousses character had retained the solidly Arabian look and feel it had assumed in the centuries after Islams wars of conquest. Today it is considered one of the best examples of seaward-facing fortifications built by the Arabs and its ribat, a soaring structure that combined the purposes of a minaret and a watch tower, is in outstanding condition and draws visitors from around the world. Sousse was the site of Chess interzonal in 1967 which was made famous when American Grandmaster Bobby Fischer withdrew from the tournament even though he was in first place at the time. These days, Sousse, with a population of about 200,000, retains a medieval heart of narrow, twisted streets, surrounding it is a modern city of long, straight roads and more widely spaced buildings. Through history Sousse has come under the rule of 5 major cultures, each of those cultures gave a new or modified name to the town. Each of those names may appear in various forms, the report states that no monument from this period subsists in situ. The official Tunisian body for matters of heritage and archaeology is the Institut National du Patrimoine Tunisie / National Heritage Institute and that body maintains a project known as the Carte Nationale des Sites Archéologiques et des Monuments Historiques. Although it is to be expected that a city as important as Sousse would be covered by such a project, the project divides the country up into rectangles according to the 1,50000 mapping sheets. On that basis the town of Sousse falls on the 1,50000 sheet, Sousse 57 and, as such, should be covered in the project by a similarly numbered web page and PDF document
28.
Sousse Governorate
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Sousse Governorate is one of the twenty-four governorates of Tunisia. It is beside the eastern coast of Tunisia in the north-east of the country, the area compasses most of the broad eastern coastal plain featuring salt and fresh water lakes, fed by winter rains. A narrow strip of forest, the Foret Nationale de Tunisie and these cities are on the Gulf of Hammamet which is a gently-curved bay. The largest lake is the Sebkhet de Sidi El Hani which is shared with two areas but is mostly in the Sousse Governorate. Elevations are pronounced in the national park in the area
29.
Ben Arous Governorate
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Ben Arous Governorate is one of the twenty-four governorates of Tunisia. It is in the north-east of Tunisia and adjoins smaller Tunis Governorate and it covers an area of 790 km² and had a population of 631,842 as at the 2014 census. The governorate is centred 10 kilometres from the capital and surrounded by the governorates of Tunis, Zaghouan, Manouba and it has a short coastline, along the Gulf of Tunis to the northeast including the countrys main commercial port, Radès. The average temperature is between 6.8 °C and 17.9 °C, and annual rainfall is 275-515 millimeters, administratively, the governorate is divided into twelve delegations, eleven municipalities, six rural councils, and 75 sectors. The delegations and their populations from the 2004 and 2014 censuses, are listed below, Eleven municipalities are in Ben Arous Governorate
30.
Kairouan
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Kairouan (Arabic, القيروان Qeirwān, also known as al-Qayrawan, is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site, the city was founded by the Umayyads around 670. The holy Mosque of Uqba is situated in the city, in 2014, the city had about 186,653 inhabitants. The name (Arabic, القيروان Al-Qairuwân is an Arabic version, of the Persian word کاروان kârvân, meaning military/civilian camp (kâr, caravan, or resting place. Kairouan, the capital of Kairouan Governorate, lies south of Sousse,50 km from the east coast,75 km from Monastir and 184 km from Tunis, formerly, the city of Kamounia was located where Kairouan now stands. It had housed a Byzantine garrison before the Arab conquest, subsequently, there occurred a mass conversion of the Berbers to Islam. Kharijites or Islamic outsiders who formed an egalitarian and puritanical sect appeared and are present on the island of Djerba. In 745, Kharijite Berbers captured Kairouan, which was already at time a developed city with luxuriant gardens. Power struggles continued until Ibrahim ibn al-Aghlab recaptured Kairouan at the end of the 8th century, in 800 Caliph Harun ar-Rashid in Baghdad confirmed Ibrahim as Emir and hereditary ruler of Ifriqiya. Ibrahim ibn al-Aghlab founded the Aghlabid dynasty which ruled Ifriqiya between 800 and 909, the new Emirs embellished Kairouan and made it their capital. It soon became famous for its wealth and prosperity, reaching the levels of Basra and Kufa, the Aghlabites built the great mosque and established in it a university that was a centre of education both in Islamic thought and in the secular sciences. Its role can be compared to that of the University of Paris in the Middle Ages, in the 9th century, the city became a brilliant focus of Arab and Islamic cultures attracting scholars from all over the Islamic World. In that period Imam Sahnun and Asad ibn al-Furat made of Kairouan a temple of knowledge, the Aghlabids also built palaces, fortifications and fine waterworks of which only the pools remain. The Aghlabite also pacified the country and conquered Sicily in 827, in 893, through the mission of Abdullah al Mahdi, the Kutama Berbers from the west of the country started the movement of the Shiite Fatimids. The year 909 saw the overthrow of the Sunni Aghlabites who ruled Ifriqiya, governing again from Kairouan, the Zirids led the country through another artistic, commercial and agricultural heyday. Some 1,700 years of intermittent but continual progress was undone within a decade as in most part of the country the land was laid to waste for nearly two centuries. In the 13th century under the prosperous Hafsids dynasty that ruled Ifriqiya and it is only under the Husainid Dynasty that Kairouan started to find an honorable place in the country and throughout the Islamic world. In 1881, Kairouan was taken by the French, after which non-Muslims were allowed access to the city, the community disbanded in 1270 CE when the Hafsids forbade non-Muslims from living in the city, the remaining Jews were forced to convert to Islam or to leave
31.
Kairouan Governorate
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Kairouan Governorate is one of the twenty-four governorates of Tunisia. It is landlocked and in the centre-east of the country and it covers an area of 6,712 km² and has a population of 570,559. The narrower province of Sousse borders it to the east, the nearest coastline The capital is Kairouan, twelve municipalities are in Kairouan Governorate
32.
Bizerte
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Located 65 km north of the capital Tunis, the city had 142,966 inhabitants in 2014. Bizerte is known as the oldest and most European city in Tunisia and it was founded around 1100 BC by Semitic Phoenicians from Tyre. It is also known as the last town to remain under French control after the rest of the country won its independence from France, the city has several very different names in ancient authors. Scylax of Caryanda, who first mentioned the names Hippo Acra and Hippo Polis, the name of Hippo is certainly derived from a Phoenician word and not Ancient Greek, found in simple or compound state across North Africa to Spain. According to Polybius, the ancient Greeks added to Hippo, the nickname Diarrhytos, during the periods of the Romans, the Vandals and the Byzantine Empire, the city kept its names Hippo Diarrhytus and Hippo Zarytus. Its current Arabic name, drift of a transformation of its antique name. Initially a small Phoenician harbor for maritime trading in the western Mediterranean, located 30 kmin the north of Utica and 50 km of Carthage, other cities founded by Phoenicians. The town is shown on the Peutinger Map from around this time, from 534 AD to 642 AD, the city returned to eastern Romans under the Byzantine Empire, after a defeat of the vandals in 534, and they build the Fort of Bizerte. The city then became a harbour and struggled against the French. With the occupation of Tunisia in 1881, France gained control of Bizerte, the ships were never moved from the port and finally were sold there as scrap metal. In March 1939, towards the end of the Spanish Civil War, three cruisers, eight destroyers and two submarines left Cartagena harbor and reached Bizerte where they were impounded by the French authorities. During the Second World War, the German and Italian Army occupied Bizerte until Allied troops defeated them on 7 May 1943, during the fighting between the Allied forces and the German Army, many of the city inhabitants fled to the countryside or Tunis. The city had suffered significant damage during the battle, due to Bizertes strategic location on the Mediterranean, France retained control of the city and her naval base after Tunisian independence in 1956. In 1961 Tunisian forces blockaded the Area of Bizerte and demanded French withdrawal, the face off turned nasty when a French helicopter took off and drew fire. The French brought in reinforcements, when these were fired upon, using state of the art weapons and decisive force the French took Bizerte and Menzel Bourguiba. During the three days,700 Tunisians died, the French lost 24 dead, meetings at the UN security council, and other international pressure moved France to agreement, the French military finally abandoned Bizerte on 15 October 1963. Bizerte has to the west coastal hills forming an outcrop of the Tell Atlas with well-conserved woods and its associated beaches include Sidi Salem, La Grotte, Rasenjela, and Al Rimel. It is on a section of Mediterranean climate coastline, close to Sardinia and Sicily, North are Sidi Salam and Corniche
33.
Bizerte Governorate
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Bizerte Governorate is the northernmost of the 24 governorates of Tunisia. It is in northern Tunisia, approximately rectangular and having a north coast. It covers an area of 3,750 km² including two lakes, one coastal hence saline and one freshwater being the World Heritage Site. Its population was 568,219 as at the 2014 census, the capital is Bizerte which stands principally on inlet between Bizerte lake and the Mediterranean. The offshore Galite Islands are part of the governorate, the governorate is centered 60 kilometres from the capital and borders the governorates of Ariana, Béja, and Manouba. The average temperature is 22.75 °C and annual rainfall is 300-800 millimeters, administratively, the governorate is divided into fourteen delegations, thirteen municipalities, seven rural councils, and 102 sectors. The delegations and their populations from the 2004 and 2014 censuses, are listed below, The following thirteen municipalities are located in Bizerte Governorate
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Monastir, Tunisia
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Monastir, also called Mīstīr, is a city on the central coast of Tunisia, in the Sahel area, It is 20 kilometres south of Sousse and 162 kilometres south of Tunis. Traditionally a fishing port, Monastir is now a major tourist resort and it is the capital of Monastir Governorate. Monastir was founded on the ruins of the Punic–Roman city of Ruspina, the city features a well-preserved ribat that was used to scan the sea for hostile ships and as a defence against the attacks of the Byzantine fleet. Several ulema came to stay in the ribat of this city for contemplation. The ribat was, in the 1970s, also one of the locations for both the miniseries Jesus of Nazareth and Monty Pythons Life of Brian. The city is on the electrified, metre-gauge Sahel Metro line with trains serving Sousse, Monastir – Habib Bourguiba International Airport has flights from most Western European countries. It is run by Tepe Akfen Ventures Airport Holding, Monastir enjoys a dry Mediterranean climate with hot summers, extremely mild winters, lots of sunshine and low rainfall year-round. The city sits in the northeast of Tunisia, on its central coast and it is milder than inland areas of Tunisia, forty percent of which is part of the Sahara. In the summer, while humidity is low, the heat can still be hard to handle. The average high temperature of 29 °C in June skips past the 30 °C mark in the middle of the month and climbs up to 33 °C in July, nouvelair has its head office in Monastir in the Dkhila Tourist Zone, near the Hôtel Sahara Beach. Tunisian ex-president Habib Bourguiba was born in Monastir, and his mausoleum is located in the city and it is frequented throughout the summer by tourists from around the world. They also come for the medina, where it is possible to sample fresh Tunisian cooking, uSMonastir. com, official web site of the local multi-sports team
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Monastir Governorate
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Monastir Governorate is one of the twenty-four governorates of Tunisia. It is situated in north-eastern Tunisia and it covers an area of 1,019 km² and has a population of 548,828. The following 31 municipalities are located in Monastir Governorate
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Aryanah
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Aryanah is a coastal city in north-eastern Tunisia, part the agglomeration of Tunis, also called Grand Tunis. It is located at the north of Tunis city center, around 36°51′45″N 10°11′44″E and it is the capital of Ariana Governorate and the countrys eighth largest city. The citys name seems to back to the period of the Vandal kingdom in Africa. The citys origins date back to the Zirid dynasty, under the Hafsid sultan Muhammad I al-Mustansir Ariana became the residence of the Sephardi Jews and Muslim Andalusians, who sought refuge in Tunisia in the thirteenth century
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Ariana Governorate
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Ariana Governorate is one of the twenty-four governorates of Tunisia. It is in northern Tunisia, approximately triangular, having as one of its sides part of the Gulf of Tunis, the governorate borders the governorates of Tunis and Bizerte. The average temperature is 18.7 °C, and annual rainfall is 450 millimeters, administratively, the governorate is divided into seven delegations, six municipalities, four rural councils, and 42 sectors. The delegations and their populations from the 2004 and 2014 censuses, are listed below, The following six municipalities are located in Ariana Governorate
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Medenine
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Medenine is the major town in south-eastern Tunisia,77 kilometres south of the port of Gabès and the Island of Djerba, on the main route to Libya. It is the capital of Medenine Governorate, in pre-colonial times, Medenine was already the most important trading centre in the south, attracting merchants from all over North Africa and even from Bornu, to the south of the Sahara. The Ksar housed the central granaries of the various nomadic Berber tribes of the region, the area was the scene of an unsuccessful German counter-attack by General Erwin Rommel as part of Operation Capri during March 1943 against British Eighth Army forces. The Battle of Medenine was Rommels last engagement in Africa before he was replaced by General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim as commander of the Afrika Korps, part of the town was used as a location for the 1999 US science fiction film Star Wars, Episode I – The Phantom Menace. Hassi Amor Souitir Media related to Medenine at Wikimedia Commons Medenine on Wookieepedia, a Star Wars wiki Lexicorient
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Medenine Governorate
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Medenine is one of the 24 governorates of Tunisia. The govenerate encompasses the south-easternmost coastal strip, totalling 9167 km² and had a population of 479,520 at the 2014 census. The governorate includes the countrys largest island, Djerba, which is connected by bridge and has approximately a quarter of the total population and its own airport. It extends in two projections at its extreme ends a maximum of 60 km from the coast, otherwise the division of Tataouine is 30 km from the coast. Precipitation is low and reaches a maximum between October and January, the far north of the govenorate and western hill range benefiting from this most, key settlements are those associated with ports, tourism, fishing, farming in more fertile parts within the north-east and oases
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Petroleum
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Petroleum is a naturally occurring, yellow-to-black liquid found in geological formations beneath the Earths surface, which is commonly refined into various types of fuels. Components of petroleum are separated using a technique called fractional distillation and it consists of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other organic compounds. The name petroleum covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude oil and petroleum products that are made up of refined crude oil. A fossil fuel, petroleum is formed when large quantities of dead organisms, usually zooplankton and algae, are buried underneath sedimentary rock, Petroleum has mostly been recovered by oil drilling. Drilling is carried out studies of structural geology, sedimentary basin analysis. Petroleum is used in manufacturing a variety of materials. Concern over the depletion of the earths finite reserves of oil, the burning of fossil fuels plays the major role in the current episode of global warming. The word petroleum comes from Greek, πέτρα for rocks and Greek, the term was found in 10th-century Old English sources. It was used in the treatise De Natura Fossilium, published in 1546 by the German mineralogist Georg Bauer, Petroleum, in one form or another, has been used since ancient times, and is now important across society, including in economy, politics and technology. Great quantities of it were found on the banks of the river Issus, ancient Persian tablets indicate the medicinal and lighting uses of petroleum in the upper levels of their society. By 347 AD, oil was produced from bamboo-drilled wells in China, early British explorers to Myanmar documented a flourishing oil extraction industry based in Yenangyaung that, in 1795, had hundreds of hand-dug wells under production. The mythological origins of the oil fields at Yenangyaung, and its hereditary monopoly control by 24 families, Pechelbronn is said to be the first European site where petroleum has been explored and used. The still active Erdpechquelle, a spring where petroleum appears mixed with water has been used since 1498, Oil sands have been mined since the 18th century. In Wietze in lower Saxony, natural asphalt/bitumen has been explored since the 18th century, both in Pechelbronn as in Wietze, the coal industry dominated the petroleum technologies. In 1848 Young set up a small business refining the crude oil, Young eventually succeeded, by distilling cannel coal at a low heat, in creating a fluid resembling petroleum, which when treated in the same way as the seep oil gave similar products. The production of oils and solid paraffin wax from coal formed the subject of his patent dated 17 October 1850. In 1850 Young & Meldrum and Edward William Binney entered into partnership under the title of E. W. Binney & Co. at Bathgate in West Lothian, the worlds first oil refinery was built in 1856 by Ignacy Łukasiewicz. The demand for petroleum as a fuel for lighting in North America, edwin Drakes 1859 well near Titusville, Pennsylvania, is popularly considered the first modern well
