ALGERIA | EGYPT | ERITREA | ETHIOPIA | GHANA | GUINEA BISSAU | KENYA | LIBYA | MALI | MOROCCO | MOZAMBIQUE | NIGERIA | SENEGAL | SIERRA LEONE | SOUTH AFRICA | TANZANIA | TUNISIA | ZAMBIA | ZIMBABWE |
Africa is the world's
second-largest and second
most-populous continent, after
Asia. At about 30.2 million km²
(11.7 million sq mi) including
adjacent islands, it covers 6%
of the Earth's total surface area
and 20.4% of the total land
area. The continent is
surrounded by the
Mediterranean Sea to the
north, the Suez Canal and the
Red Sea to the northeast, the
Indian Ocean to the southeast,
and the Atlantic Ocean to the
west.
Africa, particularly central eastern Africa, is widely regarded within the scientific ommunity to be the origin of humans and the Hominidae tree (great apes), as
evidenced by the discovery of the earliest hominids and their possible ancestors,
as well as later ones that have been dated to around seven million years ago.
Africa straddles the equator and encompasses numerous climate areas; it is the
only continent to stretch from the northern temperate to southern temperate
zones. Because of the lack of natural regular precipitation and irrigation as well
as glaciers or mountain aquifer systems, there is no natural moderating effect on
the climate except near the coasts.
Much of the traditional African cultures have become impoverished as a result of
years of neglect and suppression by colonial and neo-colonial regimes. There is
now a resurgence in the attempts to rediscover and revalourise African
traditional cultures, under such movements as the African Renaissance led by
Thabo Mbeki, Afrocentrism led by an influential group of scholars including Molefi
Asante, as well as the increasing recognition of traditional spiritualism through
decriminalization of Vodou and other forms of spirituality. In recent years African
traditional culture has become synonymous with rural poverty and subsistence
farming.
