Today, Africa contains 54 sovereign countries, most of which have borders that were drawn during the era of European colonialism. [195] Fraser and Cole assert that, in Igboland, some art objects "lack the vigor and careful craftsmanship of the earlier art objects that served traditional functions. The Scramble for Africa, also called the Partition of Africa, Conquest of Africa, or the Rape of Africa[95], was the invasion, occupation, division, and colonisation of African territory by European powers during a short period known to historians as the New Imperialism (between 1881 and 1914). There is also high evaporation rates in some parts of the region resulting in lower percentages of precipitation in such places. [62][63] Egyptian influence reached deep into modern-day Libya and Nubia, and, according to Martin Bernal, as far north as Crete. The African Union, not to be confused with the AU Commission, is formed by the Constitutive Act of the African Union, which aims to transform the African Economic Community, a federated commonwealth, into a state under established international conventions. (2004). African dance utilizes the concept of as well as total body articulation.[210]. Niang, I., O.C. For discussion of major cities of the continent, see such articles as Alexandria, Cairo, Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Kinshasa. Based on stylistic similarities with the Nok terracottas, the bronze figurines of the Yoruba kingdom of Ife and those of the Bini kingdom of Benin are suggested to be continuations of the traditions of the earlier Nok culture.[78][60]. The Romans, who for a time ruled the North African coast, are also said to have called the area south of their settlements Afriga, or the Land of the Afrigs—the name of a Berber community south of Carthage. [111] From the most northerly point, Ras ben Sakka in Tunisia (37°21' N), to the most southerly point, Cape Agulhas in South Africa (34°51'15" S), is a distance of approximately 8,000 km (5,000 mi). In the Kalahari Desert of Southern Africa, the distinct people known as the Bushmen (also "San", closely related to, but distinct from "Hottentots") have long been present. Copper objects from Egypt, North Africa, Nubia, and Ethiopia dating from around 500 BC have been excavated in West Africa, suggesting that Trans-Saharan trade networks had been established by this date. [178] The country with the largest white African population is South Africa. 'Mrs Ples and the Taung Child are among the most important fossils found. The average poor person in sub-Saharan Africa is estimated to live on only 70 cents per day, and was poorer in 2003 than in 1973,[153] indicating increasing poverty in some areas. All about Africa. Here you have everyrthing about African memories and many more things :) The Oyo Empire, unable to adapt, collapsed into civil wars.[94]. Where they differ, provisos are clearly indicated. The king is the secular leader and a direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed. Western architecture has influenced coastal areas since the late 15th century and is now an important source of inspiration for many larger buildings, particularly in major cities. Significant Berber communities remain within Morocco and Algeria in the 21st century, while, to a lesser extent, Berber speakers are also present in some regions of Tunisia and Libya. [35] During the mid-20th century, anthropologists discovered many fossils and evidence of human occupation perhaps as early as 7 million years ago (BP=before present). The parliament is elected. Its inhabitants fished and grew millet. These entrenched environmental concerns are expected to worsen as climate change impacts Africa. Sonni Ali seized Timbuktu in 1468 and Jenne in 1473, building his regime on trade revenues and the cooperation of Muslim merchants. [113] The smallest nation on the continental mainland is The Gambia. [187], AIDS in post-colonial Africa is a prevalent issue. Updates? Food For All Africa is a non-profit organization specialized in fighting hunger and food waste through technology, diversity and innovation. African regions are treated under the titles Central Africa, eastern Africa, North Africa, Southern Africa, and western Africa; these articles also contain the principal treatment of African historical and cultural development. Related topics are discussed in the articles literature, African; literature, South African; architecture, African; art, African; dance, African; music, African; theatre, African; art and architecture, Egyptian; Islam; arts, Islamic; and Islamic world. Other etymological hypotheses have been postulated for the ancient name "Africa": Africa is considered by most paleoanthropologists to be the oldest inhabited territory on Earth, with the human species originating from the continent. [55] In West Africa, the wet phase ushered in an expanding rainforest and wooded savanna from Senegal to Cameroon. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Paradoxically, the coastline of Africa—18,950 miles (30,500 km) in length—is shorter than that of Europe, because there are few inlets and few large bays or gulfs. The last 400 years have witnessed an increasing European influence on the continent. Following a subsequent long and complex history of civilizations, migration and trade, Africa hosts a large diversity of ethnicities, cultures and languages. African Sculpture in Archaeological Context. Only 43 percent of Africa's population lives in urban areas. There are over one billion people living in the African continent. [172][citation needed]. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has identified Africa as the continent most vulnerable to climate change. For discussion of individual countries of the continent, see such articles as Egypt, Madagascar, and Sudan. The smallest country is Seychelles. Until the fifteenth century, these small states were on the periphery of the major Sudanic empires of the era, paying tribute to Songhai to the west and Kanem-Borno to the east. Africa's average population is the youngest amongst all the continents; the medianage in 2012 was 19.7, when the worldwide median age was 30.4. [125], Climate change in Africa is an increasingly serious threat for Africans as Africa is among the most vulnerable continents to climate change. [114] Since the continent of Africa consists of crust from both the African and the Somali plates, some literature refers to the African Plate as the Nubian Plate to distinguish it from the continent as a whole.[115]. Roman settlement occurred in modern Tunisia and elsewhere along the coast. In August 2008, the World Bank[151] announced revised global poverty estimates based on a new international poverty line of $1.25 per day (versus the previous measure of $1.00). [125] African agriculture is mostly based on rain-fed farming, and less than 10% of cultivated land in the continent is irrigated. As Europeans came to understand the real extent of the continent, the idea of "Africa" expanded with their knowledge. Cameroon, Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, and Algeria have advanced to the knockout stage of recent FIFA World Cups. The peoples of North Africa consist of three main indigenous groups: Berbers in the northwest, Egyptians in the northeast, and Nilo-Saharan-speaking peoples in the east. The later Muslim region of Ifriqiya, following its conquest of the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire's Exarchatus Africae, also preserved a form of the name. German is spoken in Namibia, as it was a former German protectorate. [138][132] The observed changes in temperature and precipitation vary regionally. Water in Africa is an important issue encompassing the sources, distribution and economic uses of the water resources on the continent. Imperial rule by Europeans would continue until after the conclusion of World War II, when almost all remaining colonial territories gradually obtained formal independence. SADC Policy Paper Climate Change,[141] and the adaptation strategy for the water sector. Egypt, in northern Africa, was ruled by the Ptolemaic dynasty for almost 300 years. Cold War conflicts between the United States and the Soviet Union, as well as the policies of the International Monetary Fund,[101] also played a role in instability. African politics, African business, African sports, health and technology on, also available on VOD africanews.com [168], Speakers of Bantu languages (part of the Niger–Congo family) are the majority in southern, central and southeast Africa. A common theme in traditional African architecture is the use of fractal scaling: small parts of the structure tend to look similar to larger parts, such as a circular village made of circular houses.[207]. Find the latest Africa news stories, photos, and videos on NBCNews.com. [180], European colonization also brought sizable groups of Asians, particularly from the Indian subcontinent, to British colonies. At about 30.3 million km (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area and 20% of its land area. The greater part of the continent has long been inhabited by Black peoples, but in historic times there also have occurred major immigrations from both Asia and Europe. 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