Maps of Africa
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The predominant relief of Africa is formed by plateau,
with the presence of rare plains and mountain ranges
located mainly in the eastern portion. Relief
Most of North Africa are covered by large expanses of
the Sahara, the 2nd most arid region of the planet. The
Sahara portion includes smaller deserts such as the
Libyan and Nubian deserts in the east, and the Great
Eastern Erg, the Great Western Erg and the Erg Iguidi in
the west. In the middle of the desert are two important
plateaus: Tibesti and Hoggar, in the central part of the
Sahara. The relief of the region is also marked by
depressions, with emphasis on the Assal Lake basin, 156
meters below sea level.
In the northwest portion, between Morocco, Algeria
and Tunisia is the Atlas Range, a mountainous complex
that is approximately 2,500 km long, with altitudes of
more than 4,000 meters. Its location between the
Atlantic, Mediterranean and Sahara waters contributes to
the formation of dry areas.
Along the south bank of the Sahara are three large
sedimentary basins: the Djouf basin, through which the
Niger River flows; Chad basin, containing Lake Chad and
the Sudan basin, where a stretch of the Nile River is
located. The Congo River basin in Central Africa is
almost entirely surrounded by plateaus, with the East
African Plateau having the highest altitudes. The basin
contains most of the Congo River valley, which ends up
narrowing in the Cristal Mountains, near the Atlantic
coast.
In the eastern and southern portions of Sudan and the
Congo basin are located the highest plateaus on the
continent. There are considerable expanses of plateaus
inland, especially in Tanzania, Zambia and South Africa.
In the eastern part of the plateau region, from northern
Ethiopia to southern Mozambique, runs the Great Rift
Valley, a series of unevenness caused by a huge
tectonic fault. In some areas of the steep slopes of
the Rift Valleyappear the Ruwenzori mountains
in Central Africa and numerous volcanoes, including the
two largest peaks in Africa, Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania
(5,895 m), and Mount Kenya, in Kenya (5,199 m). Along
the edges of the eastern plateau and southeast coast, a
series of escarpments is found. The highest, reaching
3,350 meters, is Drakensberg, in South Africa.
Hydrography
Africa has some important and large rivers, but its
hydrography cannot be considered balanced. Its rivers
are poorly distributed due to the presence of several
areas of desert climate, which aggravates the situation
of drought and water scarcity in several locations on
the continent. In the Sahara region there are many
temporary rivers, also known as intermittent, as the
flow of these rivers decreases in the driest period
until it stops completely. Only the Nile River, the
second largest in the world in extension, with about
6,700 km, does not lose its flow in the route from the
desert to the sea. The Nile is born in the equatorial
region near the Nyungwe forest in Rwanda. As it emptied
into the Mediterranean Sea, forming a huge delta, it was
historically used for irrigation and agriculture.
The equatorial regions have a well-developed
drainage, mainly due to the presence of the Congo River,
which has the second largest flow on the planet, with
approximately 41,000 m 3 / second. The main
river in West Africa is the Niger (4,800 km), while in
the southern portion there are Orange (2,200 km),
Zambezi (2,574 km) and Limpopo (1,600 km). Many of the
rivers and waterfalls reduce the potential for
navigation, but provide great hydroelectric
potential. The most important are the Victoria Falls, on
the Zambezi River, and Boyomsa (formerly Stanley Falls),
a series of falls on the Congo River.
The main lake region is in the Great Rift Valley,
where Lakes Victoria, Albert, Tanganyika and Niassa (or
Malawi) are located. Because they are related to the
relief modified by the movements of the tectonic plates,
these lakes are called tectonic lakes. Lake Victoria, on
the plateau between the branches of the Rift Valley ,
is the largest lake in Africa, with a total area
comparable to the territory of Ireland and full of
springs that head towards the River Nile. The only large
natural lake located outside East Africa is Lake Chad,
in the southern tip of the Sahara. Its size varies,
depending on seasonal rainfall, but its area has been
intensely reduced in recent decades due to agricultural
practices that disregarded its conservation.
- The
ABBREVIATIONFINDER provides most commonly used
abbreviations and initials containing the continent
name of Africa.
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 East and Central African literature after 1960
In East Africa, the journal Transition (1961-68) and the universities of
Kampala and Nairobi were home to important debates about the role of literature
and the language choice of authors. Central characters were Okot p'Bitek, whose
satirical poem Song of Lawino (1966, da. Lawino's song, 1970) is found in both
acoli and English, and Ngugi wa Thiong'o. Ngugi thematizes in novels and drama
in English and kikuyu the moral dilemmas that the polarization of the mau mau
uprising entailed.
Furthermore, in Kenya, Uganda and Zambia, a more light-hearted literature
thrives, whose humorous treatment of middle-class corruption and ambitions has
great appeal to a modern audience. Internationally, Somali literature has
distinguished itself by Nuruddin Farah's novels, not least Maps (1986, da. Kort,
1988) on growing up and gender identity in the shadow of war. Significant works
from 1970's Rhodesia include Charles Mungoshi's Waiting for the Rain (1975) and
Stanley Nyamfukudza's The Non-Believer's Journey (1980).
Independent Zimbabwe has fostered a wide-ranging literature with Dambudzo
Marechera, Chenjerai Hove, Shimmer Chinodya and Tsitsi Dangarembga at the
forefront as poets and prose writers in English; with significant writers such
as Mungoshi and Ndabezinhle S. Sigogo on shona and ndebele, and with a
democratic activist theater in mixed languages represented by Cont Mdladla
Mhlanga. In Malawi, Jack Mapanje has written powerful poems, as in Of Chameleons
and Gods (1981) with many years of imprisonment as a result.
Literature in Angola and Mozambique after 1960
Modern literature from Angola and Mozambique is preoccupied with nationalism
and war due to the bloody events before independence in 1975 and the subsequent
civil wars. In Angola, the blind Óscar Ribas' folkloric tales and autobiography
Tudo Isto Aconteceu (1975) occupy a special position, and Luandino Vieiras
Luuanda (1963, eng. 1980) gives dignity to the poor's acquisition of Portuguese
as their own language. Pepetela's novel Mayombe (1980) about the war against the
Portuguese is widely used as a textbook in other African countries, while a more
recent guerrilla novel, Sousa Jambas Patriots (1990), depicts a UNITA soldier
trapped in the contradictions of the civil war. From Mozambique describes Luís
Bernardo Honwana inNós matamos o cão tinhoso (1964) kolonitidens ydmygelser. The
poetry of José Craveirinha and Noémia de Sousa pays homage to African and
national virtues; the euphoria after independence is expressed in poems by
Marcelino de Santos and Mia Couto. Rural disorders during South African
destabilization are addressed in a series of Histórias trágicas do banditismo
(1986-89) by Lina Magaia.
South African literature after 1960
In South Africa, even after 1960, non-white writers have stood in the shadow
of whites, and several have been banned from writing or lived in exile. Mazisi
Kunene's zulu poems, which connect intense nature images and cosmological
vision, and Alex La Gumas and Lewis Nkosi's descriptions of politics and racial
hatred were thus suppressed in the homeland and had to be published in Europe
and Nigeria. Modikwe Dikobe portrays folk life in urban slums and in the
countryside, Sipho Sydney Sepamla and Mongane Wally Serote describe growing up
conditions and political anger in black townships, and Njabulo Ndebele is a
leading short story writer and literary critic. Among female writers, Bessie
Head occupiesa special position with strong psychological and historical texts
about South Africa and Botswana. Among white writers, Nobel laureate Nadime
Gordimer has contributed to refining literary storytelling techniques, and
together with André Brink, she has persistently provided the international
public with an insight into the abomination of apartheid. In Afrikaans, Breyten
Breytenbach and Etienne van Heerden are innovative writers, while another Nobel
laureate, the English writer JM Coetzee, has marked himself as a deep-drilled
late modernist with novels such as Waiting for the Barbarians (1980, da. We are
waiting for the barbarians, 1982) and Disgrace (2000, da.Disgrace, s.å.).
The significance of literature
It has been argued that literature in third world societies performs a
special "national-allegorical" function. While African literature in the early
years of independence contributed to ideologies of national identity and played
a propagandistic role, it has since helped to promote pluralism, publicity, and
respect for individuality. The literature is of great importance for the
democratization that is taking place as the second stage of decolonization in
Africa. At the same time, the literature has increasingly been divided between
works written, launched and assessed as world literature aimed at an
international audience and a more local production with a broader appeal in the
home community. The underdevelopment that plagues Africa economically,
politically and educationally has thus also led to tensions in the field of
literature.
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Countryaah.com |
Satellite imaging and political map-making create a
zoomable map of this African country, with cities,
rivers and topography. |
https://www.countryaah.com/african-countries/ |
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Guinea-Bissau - CIA World Factbook |
Check out the map of this country between Senegal and
Guinea. Includes statistics on population, education and
industrialization. |
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/pu.html |
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National Geographic Map Machine - Gabon |
Take a look at the topographical map of this African
nation. Learn about the economy and population. |
http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/index.html?i |
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National Geographic Map Machine - Togo |
Offers a topographical map along with a brief overview
of the country's economy and population. |
http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/index.html?i |
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Niger - National Geographic |
Satellite imaging and political map-making create a
zoomable map of this African country, with cities,
rivers and topography. |
http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/index.html?i |
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Sao Tome and Principe - National Geographic |
Satellite imaging and political map-making create a
zoomable map of this African country, with cities,
rivers and topography. |
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/maps/atlas/africa/saotop.h |
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1UpTravel.com - Historical Maps of Africa |
Browse a collection of historical maps. Check out the
maps of Madagascar, Morocco, Namibia, Sierra Leone,
South Africa, Togo Land, Central Africa, North and West
Africa. |
http://www.1uptravel.com/worldmaps/history-africa.html |
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1UpTravel.com - Maps of Africa |
Browse a collection of political, reference and
historical maps of the African continent. Check out the
maps of population density and natural vegetation. |
http://www.1uptravel.com/worldmaps/africa-con.html |
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Africa - America's Roof |
Learn about the highest mountain peaks in the African
continent from this map listing each summit by its
country. |
http://www.americasroof.com/africa.html |
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Africa - Brock University Map Library |
Features a simple, black and white graphical map
outlining the countries of Africa and pinpointing
capital cities. Best used as a outline map. |
http://www.brocku.ca/maplibrary/images/africa.jpg |
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Africa - Digital Chart of the World |
Select a country in Africa and choose from maps that
reveal the locations of population centers, roads,
drainage, and political boundaries. |
http://www.maproom.psu.edu/cgi-bin/dcw/dcwarea.cgi?Africa |
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Africa - Earthrise Satellite Image Database |
View an outline map of Africa and click on a country to
retrieve a list of place names with accompanying
satellite images. |
http://earthrise.sdsc.edu/earthrise/political/af/ |
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Africa - Exploring Africa |
Visit this exhibit of maps, travel narratives and
illustrations from early European expeditions to the
continent. |
http://www.sc.edu/library/spcoll/sccoll/africa/africa.html |
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Africa - Frontier Forest Map |
Interactive map provides an overview of the continent's
national parks and surrounding forests. Find out which
ones are at risk. |
http://www.igc.org/wri/ffi/maps/map-afri.htm |
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Africa - GraphicMaps.com |
Slick graphical map of Africa offers viewers a
color-coded perspective. With country outlines and
capital cities. |
http://www.graphicmaps.com/aatlas/africa/afmap.htm |
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Africa - Historical Maps |
Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection at the University
of Texas offers a look at archived maps from 1808
through 1978. |
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/historical |
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Africa - Locator Map |
Presents an blank map of the continent of which the only
details are the outlines and names of the more than 50
countries. Ideal for learning. |
http://www.brocku.ca/maplibrary/fortopo/afrnames.html |
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Africa - Map of Modern Africa |
Features a full-color map of Africa and part of Europe.
Includes borders, rivers and capital cities. |
http://www.indiana.edu/~origins/images/africa.jpg |
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Africa - Mapping Africa and the Diaspora Movement |
Kennedy Center offers a map detailing the African
diaspora caused by slave trading. Includes a map showing
the return of slave descendents. |
http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/aoi/resources/hg/ae-map.h |
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Africa - National Geographic Map Machine |
Offers an interactive map of the continent, with links
to countries and regions. |
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/maps/atlas/africa/africa.h |
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Africa - Outline Map |
See and print a blank outline map of Africa, featuring
more than 50 countries. Useful for educators and parents
in teaching kids geography. |
http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/africa/afoutl.ht |
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Africa - Travel.com Map |
Features a large, graphical map of the continent with
each country outlined and identified. Click on any one
for a brief country almanac. |
http://www.travel.com.hk/region/afri-map.htm |
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Africa - Variety of Map Types |
Find a variety of maps detailing political boundaries,
topography and vegetation. Includes early African
hominid and Australopithecine sites. |
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/africa.htm |
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Africa - Virtualtourist.com |
High-definition, interactive map of Africa allows
visitors to click on a country to find a portal that
includes member messages and travel tips. |
http://www.virtualtourist.com/Africa/[email protected] |
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African Maps - African Roof |
Presents an alphabetical list of African countries with
information about highest elevations and links to maps
for that area. |
http://www.americasroof.com/africa.shtml |
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CountryWatch.com - Africa Map |
Peruse this professional, color map of Africa to study
the countries of the continent and geographic locations.
Each country includes a profile. |
http://www.countrywatch.com/cw_regions.asp?RID=1 |
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East Africa Maps - ReliefWeb |
Browse a long list of relief and other types of maps for
various countries and regions of East Africa. |
http://www.reliefweb.int/mapc/afr_east/index.html |
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Northwestern Africa - Atlapedia Online |
Access a richly-colored physical map of northwestern
Africa, including the Ivory Coast, Morrocco and the
Sahara Desert. |
http://www.geopedia.com/online/maps/physical/Nth_Africa_W.ht... |
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