Africa is the world’s second-largest and second most populated continent. At around 30.3 million km2. The history of Africa is long, complex, and has often been under appreciated by the global historical community. This blog post lists down some of the Interesting facts about Africa you may not know.
20 Facts about Africa
- Africa is the world’s second-largest and second most populated continent, It covers about 11.7 million square miles
2. Africa has the youngest population of the seven continents, with 70% of Sub-Saharan Africans under the age of 30.
3. Despite a vast range of natural resources, Africa is considered the poorest continent on Earth, attributable to geographic obstruction, legacy of European colonization in Africa, and the Cold War.
4. Algeria is the biggest country in Africa by total size, with a total area of 2,381,741 square kilometers, making it the world’s tenth largest country by area. According to the World Population Review, Algeria has a population of 45,212,010 million people as of April 2022.
5. The African elephant is the world’s largest land animal, growing up to 4.5 meters tall and six meters long, and weighing up to 6,000 kg.
6. Nigeria’s Lagos is the largest city in Africa, with a population of more than 15 million people.
7. The Nile is Africa’s longest river, with a drainage basin that covers 11 countries: Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, South Sudan, Sudan, and Egypt. The Nile, in particular, is Egypt, Sudan, and South Sudan’s main water source.
8. Arabic is the most spoken language in Africa. However, the overall number of languages spoken natively throughout the continent is estimated to be between 2,100 and 3,000. According to SIL Ethnologue, Nigeria has over 500 languages, making it one of the world’s most linguistically diverse countries.
5. Nigeria is Africa’s most populated country. With a population of over 215 million people.
10. Top Tourist attractions in Africa (Africa’s top most visited tourist attractions)
- Cape Town, South Africa
- Pyramids of Egypt
- Masai Mara National Park in Kenya
- Kruger National Park in South Africa
- Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, and Zambia
- Omo River Region, Ethiopia
- Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
- Zanzibar, Tanzania
Recommended: My African-related posts, such as The Richest Man In Africa and Top 5 Richest Musicians in Africa, are among the most popular on this site.
1O MORE INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT AFRICA
11. North Africa was home to early human civilizations such as Ancient Egypt and Carthage. Africa is host to a great diversity of races, cultures, and languages as a result of a long and complicated history of civilizations, migration, and trade. Over the past 400 years, Europe has had a growing impact on the continent. This was fueled by trade, notably the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, which resulted in large African diaspora communities in the Americas beginning in the 16th century. European countries colonized practically all of Africa in the late 19th century, seizing resources from the continent and exploiting indigenous inhabitants; most current African states came through a decolonization process in the 20th century.
12. In Africa, Christianity and Islam each account for around 40% of the population. In the south, Christianity is more prevalent, whilst in the north, Islam is more prevalent. According to all the major surveys
13. 16 of Africa’s 54 countries are landlocked. In other words, almost one-third of the continent is made up of countries that do not have access to the ocean or sea. Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Rwanda, South Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are among the African landlocked countries.
14. Lake Victoria is Africa’s largest lake by area, and the world’s second-largest freshwater lake by surface area after North America’s Lake Superior.
15. Seychelles is the smallest country In Africa . collection of more than 100 islands in the Indian Ocean, with a population of 98,908 people and a land area of 460 km2 (178 mi2).
16. Africa’s climate ranges from tropical to subarctic on its highest peaks. Its northern half is mostly desert, whereas its center and southern sections are mostly savanna grasslands and thick jungle rainforest.
17. Africa is the hottest continent on the planet, with drylands and deserts covering 60% of the total land surface.
18. Victoria Falls on Zambia/Zimbabwe border is Africa’s largest waterfalls, with a width of 1,708 m (5,604 ft)
19. Africa is rich in natural resources such as diamonds, sugar, salt, gold, iron, cobalt, uranium, copper, bauxite, silver, petroleum, and cocoa beans. Hydrocarbons account for 57 percent of Africa’s export earnings. Statista reports In 2020, agriculture accounted for 43.8 percent of all employment in Africa.
20. Lake Retba, in Dakar Senegal, is Africa’s only pink lake. It is a popular tourist destination.