Travels Encyclopedia

Tahiti

2009-03-30T15:19:00.001+04:00

Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. The island had a population of 178,133 inhabitants according to the August 2007 census. This makes it the most populated island of French Polynesia, with 68.6% of the total population. The capital is Papeete, on the northwest coast. Tahiti has also been known as O'tahiti.

Geography
Tahiti is 45km (28mi) at its widest and covers 1,045km² (403.5 sq mi), the highest elevation 2,241m (7,352 ft) (Mount Orohena). Mont Roonui in the southeast is 1332m. The island consists of two roughly round portions centered on volcanic mountains, connected by a short isthmus named after the small town of Taravao, which sits there. The northwestern part is Tahiti Nui ("big Tahiti"), and the southeastern part, much smaller, Tahiti Iti ("small Tahiti") or Taiarapu. Tahiti Nui is heavily populated around the coast (especially around Papeete) and benefits from roads and highways. The interior of Tahiti Nui is almost uninhabited. Tahiti Iti has remained isolated, its southeastern half (Te Pari) accessible only by boat or hiking. A main road winds around the island between the mountains and sea and an interior road climbs past dairy farms and citrus groves with panoramic views. Tahiti has many swift streams, including the Papenoo in the north. Tahiti has lush rain forests.

November through April is the wet season, the wettest month January with 13.2 inches (335mm) in Papeete. August is driest with 1.9 inches (48mm). The average low is 70°F (21°C) and the high 88°F (31 °C) with little seasonal variation. The lowest temperature in Papeete was 61°F (16°C) and the highest 93°F (34°C).

History
Tahiti is estimated to have been settled between AD300 and 800 by Polynesians , although some estimates place the date earlier. The fertile soil combined with fishing provided food.

Although the first European sighting of the islands was by a Spanish ship in 1606, Spain made no effort to trade with or colonize the island. Samuel Wallis, an English sea captain, sighted Tahiti on 18 June 1767, and is considered the first European visitor. The relaxed and contented nature of the people and the characterization of the island as a paradise impressed early Europeans, planting the seed for a romanticization by the West that endures to this day.

Wallis was followed in April 1768 by the French explorer Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, completing the first French circumnavigation. Bougainville made Tahiti famous in Europe when he published Voyage autour du monde. He described the island as an earthly paradise where men and women live happily in innocence, away from the corruption of civilization. His account illustrated the concept of the noble savage, and influenced utopian thoughts of philosophers such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau before the French Revolution.

In April 1769 Captain James Cook visited the island on secret orders from the Lords of the Admiralty to view the Transit of Venus on 2 June. He set up camp at Matavai Bay and stayed on until 9 August. The population was estimated to be 50,000 including all the nearby islands in the chain. After Cook, European ships landed with greater frequency. The best-known was HMS Bounty, whose crew mutinied after leaving Tahiti in 1789. The European influence disrupted traditional society, bringing prostitution, venereal disease, and alcohol. Introduced diseases including typhus, influenza and smallpox killed so many Tahitians that by 1797, the population was only 16,000. Later it was to drop as low as 6,000.

In 1842, a European crisis involving Morocco escalated between France and Great Britain when Admiral Dupetit Thouars, acting independently of the French government, convinced Tahiti's Queen Pomare IV to accept a French protectorate. George Pritchard, a Birmingham-born missionary and acting British Consul, had been away at the time. However he returned to work towards indoctrinating the locals against the Roman Catholic French. In November 1843, Dupetit-Thouars (again on his own initiative) landed sailors on the island, annexing it to France. He then threw Pritchard into prison, subsequently sending him back to Britain.

News of Tahiti reached Europe in early 1844. The French statesman François Guizot, supported by King Louis-Philippe of France, had denounced annexation of the island. However, war between the French and the Tahitians continued until 1847. The island remained a French protectorate until June 29, 1880, when King Pomare V (1842–1891) was forced to cede the sovereignty of Tahiti and its dependencies to France. He was given the titular position of Officer of the Orders of the Legion of Honour and Agricultural Merit of France. In 1946, Tahiti and the whole of French Polynesia became a Territoire d'outre-mer (French overseas territory). Tahitians were granted French citizenship, a right that had been campaigned for by nationalist leader Marcel Pouvana'a A Oopa for many years. In 2003, French Polynesia's status was changed to that of Collectivité d'outre-mer (French overseas community).

Demographics
The people are of Polynesian (Pacific Islander) ancestry, so-called Demis, as well as of European ancestry and the people of East Asian (essentially Chinese) ancestry are concentrated in Tahiti, making up a larger share of the population in Tahiti than in French Polynesia overall (see Demographics section at French Polynesia). Most people from metropolitan France live in Papeete and its suburbs, notably Punaauia where they make up almost 20% of the population.

Dance
The ʻōteʻa, sometimes written as otea, is a traditional dance from Tahiti, where the dancers, standing in several rows, execute different figures. This dance, easily recognized by its "fast hip-shaking," is often confused with the Hawaiian Hula, a generally slower dance which focuses more on the hands than the hips.

The ʻōteʻa is one of the few dances which already existed in pre-European times as a male dance. The hura (Tahitian vernacular for hula), a dance for women, on the other hand has disappeared, and likewise is gone the couple's dance ʻupaʻupa but which may have reemerged as the tāmūrē. Nowadays, however the ʻōteʻa can be danced by men (ʻōteʻa tāne), by women (ʻōteʻa vahine), or by both gender (ʻōteʻa ʻāmui = united ʻō.). The dance is with music only, drums, but no singing. The drum can be one of the different types of the tōʻere, a laying log of wood with a longitudinal slit, which is struck by one or two sticks. Or it can be the pahu, the ancient Tahitian standing drum covered with a shark skin and struck by the hands or with sticks. The rhythm from the tōʻere is fast, from the pahu it is slower. A smaller drum, the faʻatētē can also be used.

The dancers make gestures, reenacting daily occupations of life. For the men the themes can be chosen from warfare or sailing, and then they may use spears or paddles. For women the themes are closer to home or from nature, combing their hair, or the flight of a butterfly for example. But also more elaborate themes can be chosen, for example one where the dancers end up in a map of Tahiti, highlighting important places. In a proper ʻōteʻa the story of the theme should pervade the whole dance.

The ʻōteʻa is considered as Tahiti's best and most spectacular dance, maybe even of whole Polynesia. Especially the costumes are extremely elaborate. Of course the same more dress and the same shaking of the knees for the boys and those of the hips for the girls as in all Tahitian dances (see |tāmūrē) is used here too.

Transport
Faa'a International Airport is the international airport of Tahiti with Air Tahiti Nui being the national airline while Air Tahiti is the main airline for inter-island flights. The Moorea Ferry is also a notable ferry that operates from Papeete. There are also several ferries that transport people and goods throughout the islands.

Source

Portable Paris 2005

2009-03-30T15:07:00.002+04:00

Portable Paris 2005
190 pages | 2004-11-08 | 0764573640 | PDF | 2 Mb

Experience a place the way the locals do. Enjoy the best it has to offer. And avoid tourist traps. At Frommer's, we use 150 outspoken travel experts around the world to help you make the right choices. Frommer's. Your guide to a world of travel experience.

Put the Best of Paris in Your Pocket
• A compact guide on getting to and enjoying the City of Light.
• Outspoken opinions on what's worth your time and what's not.
• Exact prices, so you can plan the perfect trip no matter what your budget.
• Off-the-beaten-path experiences and undiscovered gems, plus new takes on top attractions.
• The best hotels and restaurants in every price range, with candid reviews.

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California 2005

2009-03-30T14:57:00.001+04:00

California 2005
756 pages | 2004-12-03 | 0764571524 | PDF | 8 Mb

Completely updated every year (unlike most of the competition), Frommer's California features detailed reviews and insider info on the state's spectacular beaches, national parks, vineyards, and more. Quite simply, this is the most reliable and comprehensive California guide you can buy. Whether you're looking for a romantic B&B in the Wine Country, the hippest new restaurant in San Francisco, or the best beaches in L.A. and San Diego, Frommer's California will show you the way. The guide is personally researched by longtime residents, and it's full of their candid opinions about the best their state has to offer. They've selected the very best places to stay throughout the state: lavish golf resorts, spas, stunning B&Bs, beachfront motels, and Yosemite's best campgrounds. With Frommer's in hand, you'll see it all -- from the desert to the towering redwoods, from Hollywood to Hearst Castle, from Sea World to Big Sur. You'll even get a color fold-out map!

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Portable London 2005

2009-03-30T14:50:00.002+04:00

Portable London 2005
211 pages | 2004-11-08 | 0764573632 | PDF | 4 Mb

Experience a place the way the locals do. Enjoy the best it has to offer. And avoid tourist traps. At Frommer's, we use 150 outspoken travel experts around the world to help you make the right choices. Your guide to a world of travel experience.

Put the Best of London in Your Pocket
• The lowdown on theater ticket discounts and "The World's Greatest Pub Crawl."
• Outspoken opinions on what's worth your time and what's not.
• Exact prices, so you can plan the perfect trip no matter what your budget.
• Off-the-beaten-path experiences and undiscovered gems, plus new takes on top attractions.
• The best hotels and restaurants in every price range, with candid reviews.

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Shanghai

2009-03-30T14:41:00.001+04:00

Shanghai
284 pages | 2004-12-03 | 0764573055 | PDF | 11 Mb

You'll never fall into the tourist traps when you travel with Frommer's. It's like having a friend show you around, taking you to the places locals like best. Our expert authors have already gone everywhere you might go -- they've done the legwork for you, and they're not afraid to tell it like it is, saving you time and money. No other series offers candid reviews of so many hotels and restaurants in all price ranges. Every Frommer's Travel Guide is up-to-date, with exact prices for everything, dozens of color maps, and exciting coverage of sports, shopping, and nightlife. You'd be lost without us!

Shanghai, the most progressive and international of the mainland cities in China (and also the largest), already attracts millions of visitors annually. Recent projects, new attractions, and a booming nightlife and restaurant scene are making Shanghai an even more popular tourist destination. The world's tallest hotel--the 88-story Grand Hyatt, with the world's highest hotel swimming pool--is emblematic of Shanghai's modern style.

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Santa Fe, Taos & Albuquerque

2009-03-30T14:31:00.001+04:00

Santa Fe, Taos & Albuquerque
315 pages | 2004-11-19 | 0764573063 | PDF | 3 Mb

Experience a place the way the locals do. Enjoy the best it has to offer. Frommer's. The best trips start here.
• Information on the most interesting Native American cliff dwellings and pueblos.
• Outspoken opinions on what's worth your time and what's not.
• Exact prices, so you can plan the perfect trip whatever your budget.
• Off-the-beaten-path experiences and undiscovered gems, plus new takes on top attractions.

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Portable Washington, D.C.

2009-03-30T14:19:00.001+04:00

Portable Washington, D.C.
188 pages | 2004-11-19 | 0764572911 | PDF | 4 Mb

Frommer's Portable Guides offer all the detailed information and insider advice of a Frommer's Complete Guide—but in a concise, pocket-sized format.
Perfect for the short-term traveler who insists on value and doesn't want to wade through or carry a full-size guidebook, this series selects the very best choices in all price categories and takes you straight to the top sights. Get the latest on hotels, restaurants, sightseeing, shopping, and nightlife in a nutshell in these lightweight, inexpensive guides.

This handy, easy-to-carry guide is the perfect companion as you explore the monuments and memorials of the nation's capital. Our author, a longtime resident, knows all the ins and outs, and she'll take you straight to the highlights, from the Smithsonian museums to the White House. She's carefully chosen a great selection of hotels and restaurants in all price categories, and she'll also show you where to find the hottest bars, clubs, and cafes. With detailed maps and lots of insider advice, Frommer's puts the best of D.C. at your fingertips!

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Portable New York City 2005

2009-03-30T14:07:00.001+04:00

Portable New York City 2005
212 pages | 2004-11-05 | 0764571494 | PDF | 3 Mb

• The best little guide to the Big Apple
* With 14.1 billion in tourism revenues in 2002, New York City continues to be one of the most popular destinations in the U.S.
* Covers recent openings, such as the Louis Armstrong Museum, the Skyscraper Museum, and Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall
* Offers the latest on new hotels and changes in the dining scene

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Suzy Gershman's Born to Shop France

2009-03-30T02:02:00.001+04:00

Suzy Gershman's Born to Shop France
334 pages | 2004-10-29 | 0764556916 | PDF | 3 Mb

"Gershman's guide may be the best guide for novice and pro shoppers alike," praises The Washington Post, and you'll agree. For more than ten years, Suzy Gershman has been leading savvy shoppers to the world's best finds. Now Born to Shop France is easier to use and packed with more up-to-date listings than ever before. Inside you'll find:
• The best of the shopping scene, from Paris' designer boutiquest to colorful markets in Provence
• Great gift ideas, even for the friend who has everything-plus the best gifts for less than $15
• The best airfare, hotel, and dining values—so you can maximize your shopping dollars
• Detailed city maps and shopping tours, including Reims, Lyon, and the Riviera

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Portable London 2004

2009-03-30T01:32:00.002+04:00

Portable London 2004
189 pages | 2003-11-17 | 0764539175 | PDF | 3 Mb

Frommer's Portable Guides offer all the detailed information and insider advice of a Frommer's Complete Guide—but in a concise, pocket-sized format.
Perfect for the short-term traveler who insists on value and doesn't want to wade through or carry a full-size guidebook, this series selects the very best choices in all price categories and takes you straight to the top sights. Get the latest on hotels, restaurants, sightseeing, shopping, and nightlife in a nutshell in these lightweight, inexpensive guides.

Thoroughly updated every year (unlike most of the competition), Frommer's Portable London is completely up to date with the latest developments in Europe's hottest city. It's all at your fingertips: a carefully chosen selection of the very best places to stay and dine in all price categories; the top museums, cathedrals, and historic sights; world-class shopping; and the best of London's nightlife, including theater, music clubs, and memorable pubs. With detailed neighborhood maps and valuable logistical tips, Frommer's gives you the best of London at a glance!

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New York City for Free & Dirt Cheap

2009-03-30T01:01:00.003+04:00

New York City for Free & Dirt Cheap
320 pages | 2004-11-05 | 076455932X | PDF | 2.4 Mb

* Written by a local expert and designed for visitors and residents alike, this savvy guide delivers the inside scoop on New York City deals, bargains, and freebies
* Shows how to gain free admission to plays, concerts, TV show tapings, and museums (17 are free every day, and almost all are free at least one day a month)
* Explains where to chow down on cheap eats-happy hours, free gourmet samples, half-price meals-plus free haircuts, classes, and much more

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Top 10 Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Taos

2009-03-30T00:34:00.002+04:00

Top 10 Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Taos
128 pages | 2006-10-16 | 0756615550 | PDF | 9 Mb

Whether you're looking to indulge in the finest cuisine or eat well on a limited budget, stay in the most luxurious hotels or find great deals on hostels and B&Bs, Eyewitness Top 10 Travel Guides provide invaluable information from local experts, all of which will help you discover the best of everything at each destination.

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Budapest

2009-03-30T00:23:00.002+04:00

Budapest
128 pages | 2006-02-02 | 1405314427 | PDF | 5 Mb

From the historic A"buda ruins to the majestic Royal Palace, the "top 10" is your essential guide to exploring the 'Paris of Eastern Europe.' Climb up Castle Hill to Old Town or relax in the thermal waters of Kiraly Baths with this handy quick reference guide. Detailed maps and suggested itineraries give you all the information you need to make the most of your time in this opulent city.

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Virginia, Maryland & Washington, DC

2009-03-30T00:11:00.003+04:00

Virginia, Maryland & Washington, DC
408 pages | 1999-02 |1556508352 | PDF | 2 Mb

A brand new edition of this unique guide to getaways in the tri-state region, including the Baltimore-Washington corridor. Well researched and laid out in easy-to-use sections that profile one trip each, this book covers Virginia's Blue Ridge, the Tidewater, the Shenandoah Valley, Chincoteague, Charlottesville, Central Virginia and the Eastern Shore. Maryland's favorite spots on the coast, in Baltimore and Anapolis, and to the West are also covered. In addition to the best places to stay and the finest spots to dine, the book is packed with things to do that will rekindle a romance... or get one started in the first place. Local cultural festivals, winery visits, carriage tours, balloon rides, plantation tours and more.

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Adventure Guide to Orlando & Central Florida

2009-03-30T00:02:00.004+04:00

Adventure Guide to Orlando & Central Florida
296 pages | 1998-04 | 1556508255 | PDF | 4 Mb

The print edition of this book runs to 300 pages. It's a guide to the 18 counties that make up Central Florida, including the frenetic parts overrun with concrete and kids paid minimum wage to swelter inside animal costumes. But vast tracts of Central Florida have been set aside for adventurers and for the flora and fauna that have been here for eons. The book shows you where to explore wildlife refuges and forests, pristine canoe trails and some of the Southeast's best dive sites. Paddle a river, spank a golf ball, pedal a path or hike a historic trail - it's all here. Includes The Magic Kingdom and Orlando; Daytona Beach and the Kennedy Space Center; Vero Beach, Ft. Pierce and Lake Okeechobee; Kissimmee, St. Cloud, Lakeland; Ocala, Silver Springs; Crystal River, Homosassa Springs; Cedar Key; Tampa, St. Petersburg and the Gulf Beaches.

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Neil E. Schlecht "Spain For Dummies"

2009-03-30T00:00:00.001+04:00

Neil E. Schlecht "Spain For Dummies"
2007-03-26 | ISBN-10: 0470105739 | PDF | 388 pages | 5 MB

Art and architecture lovers, ecotourists, history buffs, gourmands, wine aficionados, culture scholars, outdoor sports fanatics—Spain truly has something for everyone. Its good weather and many varied attractions make it ideal for year-round vacationing. Spain is the home of diverse cultures and traditions. From the stoic independence of the Basques to the progressive architecture and design of the Catalans and the sultry rhythms and sun-drenched siestas of the Andalusians, you’ll discover an intriguing, welcoming country.

This guide gets you going with info on:
The three major areas: Northern Spain, including Barcelona, the Costa Brava, and the Basque Country; Central Spain, including Madrid and Castile, and Southern Spain, including Andalusia, Seville, Cordoba, and Granada
How to get the best seats at a bullfight
Strolling Barcelona’s La Rambia, a vibrant street parade, or tripping along on a tavern and tapas crawl
Racing with beasts at the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona or leisurely strolling the crooked streets in a lively old district such as Cordoba’s Juderia, Salamanca’s old quarter, Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter, Granada’s Albaycin District, and more
Exploring some of the finest art museums in Europe and seeing masterpieces by El Greco, Goya, Picasso, Miro, Dali, Chillida, Titian, Raphael, Botticelli, Rubens, and more
Dining on Catalan haute cuisine in Barcelona, traditional Basque dishes in Bilbao, nueva cocina vasca in SanSebastian, truffles and foie gras in Madrid, regional and traditional French dishes in Cordoba, or tantalizing tapas anywhere
Architecture dating back to the Romans and Moors, including Museo Guggenheim Bilbao, Segovia’s Roman Aqueduct, Avila’s city walls, and Granada’s Alhambra, a place of magic, mystery, and legend
Staying in an opulent easly-20th-century palace, a 16th century convent, a farmhouse estate dating to the tenth century, an intimate inn, or roughing it and backpacking around Spain
Meandering through Andalusia’s pueblos blancos amid the rolling hills and olive groves and near the famous sherry wineries and prancing horses in Jerez and the southern beaches of the Costa de la Lux and Costa del Sol

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Tom Price "Washington, D.C. For Dummies"

2009-03-29T23:53:00.002+04:00

Tom Price "Washington, D.C. For Dummies"
2007-05-29 | ISBN: 047012010X | 338 pages | PDF | 7 Mb

Whether you want to pay homage to history, marvel at the seat of power, take in world-class museums and art galleries, or see the cherry trees in bloom, the nation’s capital offers a wealth of wonderful choices for visitors. With information on the top sights plus some really interesting lesser-known attractions, this friendly guide gives you the scoop on:
The shrines to freedom and the halls of government, including the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Library of Congress, the White House, the Capitol, and more
Three great itineraries and three great day trips
Moving sights such as the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Arlington National Cemetery, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
The after-dark scene, with options ranging from country, rock, and jazz clubs to world-class symphony, dance, opera, and theater
Free shows, including the National Symphony’s summer concerts, the Shakespeare Theatre’s summer performances, concerts by the military bands, and performances at the Kennedy Center
Hotel options ranging from power palaces to charming inns to welcoming B & Bs
Dining, including places the rich and famous feast, great ethnic restaurants, and terrific, affordable delis and bakeries

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Victoria Veilleux, "Cancun & the Yucatan For Dummies"

2009-03-29T23:41:00.001+04:00

Victoria Veilleux, "Cancun & the Yucatan For Dummies"
2007-08-06 | ISBN: 0470120037 | 292 pages | PDF | 3 Mb

The spectacular coastline of Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula is a diverse playground where you can bask on pristine beaches, explore ancient ruins, play golf or tennis, go biking, snorkeling or scuba diving, do serious shopping, or escape to a secluded lagoon. With info on Cancun, Isla Mujeres, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen and the Riviera Maya, plus the nearby ruins, this friendly guide gives you the low down on:
Everything from unique spa experiences to nature preserves and ecoparks
Accommodations ranging from a luxury resort where guests can dabble in a Viking-clad kitchen or where rooms spread out through the jungle to a European-style inn that offers Spanish lessons or a peaceful beachside palapa (thatch-roofed) inn
All kinds of dining options, including fresh seafood, regional specialties such as pork pibil, papadzules, and poc chuc, or Thai, Argentinean, or Italian cuisine
Diving into the clear depths of the Yucatán cenotes (natural wells)
Birding at Isla Contoy, with more than 70 species of birds as well as a host of marine and animal life

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Brian Silverman, "New York City For Dummies"

2009-03-29T23:34:00.001+04:00

Brian Silverman, "New York City For Dummies"
Year 2007 | ISBN: 0471945501 | 338 pages | PDF | 6 Mb

From soaring skyscrapers to rumbling subways, power shopping to bargain-hunting, world-renowned restaurants to neighborhood delis and pizzerias, majestic cathedrals to Times Square—New York has it all. Chances are you can't do it all, but this friendly guide helps you take a big bite out of the Big Apple with:
* Maps and tips for getting around by public transit, plus sights best seen on foot
* A calendar of events for every season
* A shopper's guide, including trendy areas like SoHo, NoHo, and NoLita
* Information about great free attractions, including the Staten Island Ferry
* Sample itineraries to help you make the most of your trip

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China

2009-03-29T23:20:00.000+04:00

China
2007-06-25 | ISBN: 0756629764 |72 pages | PDF | 42 Mb

While Mesopotamia explore the cradle of civilization and Great Scientists reveals the minds that shaped the modern world, China investigates the present-day culture of the most populous country on the planet, and Oil takes a look at the controversial substance responsible for the beginning-and, if we're not careful, the end of life as we know it today.

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Eyewitness Experts: Ancient Egypt

2009-03-29T23:12:00.001+04:00

Eyewitness Experts: Ancient Egypt
2008-02-04 | ISBN: 0756631343 | 72 pages | PDF | 23 Mb

Written by today's experts for the experts of tomorrow, Eyewitness Experts are great big gift packs that blitz the top-selling topics children really love. Open them up and you'll find everything you need to nurture their interest, whether novice or nerd. These are gifts to treasure and return to and grow with.

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The Canadian Snowbird Guide

2009-03-29T22:46:00.002+04:00

The Canadian Snowbird Guide: Everything You Need to Know about Living Part-Time in the USA and Mexico
2007-12-04 | ISBN: 047015375X | 352 pages | PDF | 1 MB

Each year, more than a million Canadians, affectionately dubbed "Snowbirds," migrate to southern climes to enjoy warm weather and sandy beaches. The strong Canadian dollar is making the trip more affordable and attractive than ever. But post-9/11, Canadians face tighter security, higher health costs, and higher fuel costs when traveling to the US. Canadians must budget accordingly. Especially for first-timers, how can they properly plan their trip to ensure a worry-free time away from home?

Among the topics this book includes are: the Snowbird lifestyle; financial planning; what documents you need to enter the US; what types of insurance and coverage are recommended; ensuring you have an up-to-date will; how US tax law applies to Canadians if money is earned or property sold; snowbirding in Mexico and Costa Rica; plus FAQs, checklists, and sources of further information.

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Sudan (officially the Republic of Sudan)

2009-03-29T20:57:00.003+04:00

Sudan (officially the Republic of Sudan) (Arabic: السودان ‎al-Sūdān) is a country in northeastern Africa. It is the largest country in the African continent and, as member of the Arab League, also the largest country in the Arab World and tenth largest in the world by area. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, Kenya and Uganda to the southeast, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west and Libya to the northwest.

The people of Sudan have a long history extending from antiquity, which is intertwined with the history of Egypt, with which it was united politically over several periods. Sudan's modern history has been plagued by civil wars stemming from ethnic, religious, and economic conflict between the Muslim Arab Northern Sudanese (with Nubian roots), and the Christian and animist Nilotic Southern Sudanese.

Sudan is currently ranked as the most unstable country in the world according to the Failed States Index, for its military dictatorship and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Darfur. However, despite its internal conflicts, Sudan has managed to achieve economic growth.

History of Sudan

Early history of Sudan
Archaeological evidence has confirmed that the area in the North of Sudan was inhabited at least 60,000 years ago. A settled culture had appeared in the area around 8000 BC, living in fortified villages, where they subsisted on hunting and fishing, as well as grain gathering and cattle herding while also being shepherds.

The area was known to the Egyptians as Kush and had strong cultural and religious ties to Egypt. In the 8th century BC, however, Kush came under the rule of an aggressive line of monarchs, ruling from the capital city, Napata, who gradually extended their influence into Egypt. About 750 BC, a Kushite king called Kashta conquered Upper Egypt and became ruler of Thebes until approximately 740 BC. His successor, Piankhy, subdued the delta, reunited Egypt under the Twenty-fifth Dynasty, and founded a line of kings who ruled Kush and Thebes for about a hundred years. The dynasty's intervention in the area of modern Syria caused a confrontation between Egypt and Assyria. When the Assyrians in retaliation invaded Egypt, Taharqa (688-663 BC), the last Kushite pharaoh, withdrew and returned the dynasty to Napata, where it continued to rule Kush and extended its dominions to the south and east.
Statue of a Nubian king, Sudan.

In 590 BC, an Egyptian army sacked Napata, compelling the Kushite court to move to Meroe near the Sixth Cataract. The Meroitic kingdom subsequently developed independently of Egypt, and during the height of its power in the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC, Meroe extended over a region from the Third Cataract in the north to Sawba, near present-day Khartoum (the modern capital of Sudan).

The pharaonic tradition persisted among Meroe's rulers, who raised stelae to record the achievements of their reigns and erected pyramids to contain their tombs. These objects and the ruins at palaces, temples and baths at Meroe attest to a centralized political system that employed artisans' skills and commanded the labour of a large workforce. A well-managed irrigation system allowed the area to support a higher population density than was possible during later periods. By the 1st century BC, the use of hieroglyphs gave way to a Meroitic script that adapted the Egyptian writing system to an indigenous, Nubian-related language spoken later by the region's people.

In the 6th century AD, the people known as the Nobatae occupied the Nile's west bank in northern Kush. Eventually they intermarried and established themselves among the Meroitic people as a military aristocracy. Until nearly the 5th century, Rome subsidized the Nobatae and used Meroe as a buffer between Egypt and the Blemmyes. About AD 350, an Axumite army from Abyssinia captured and destroyed Meroe city, ending the kingdom's independent existence.

Christian kingdoms
By the 6th century, three states had emerged as the political and cultural heirs of the Meroitic Kingdom. Nobatia in the North, also known as Ballanah, had its capital at Faras, in what is now Egypt; the central kingdom, Muqurra (Makuria), was centred at Dunqulah, about 150 kilometers south of modern Dunqulah; and Alawa (Alodia), in the heartland of old Meroe, which had its capital at Sawba (now a suburb of modern-day Khartoum). In all three kingdoms, warrior aristocracies ruled Meroitic populations from royal courts where functionaries bore Greek titles in emulation of the Byzantine court.

A missionary sent by Byzantine empress Theodora arrived in Nobatia and started preaching Christianity about AD 540. The Nubian kings became Monophysite Christians. However, Makuria was of the Melkite Christian faith, unlike Nobatia and Alodia.

The spread of Islam
After many attempts at military conquest failed, the Arab commander in Egypt concluded the first in a series of regularly renewed treaties known as Albaqut (pactum) with the Nubians that governed relations between the two peoples for more than 678 years.

Islam progressed in the area over a long period of time through intermarriage and contacts with Arab merchants and settlers. In 1093, a Muslim prince of Nubian royal blood ascended the throne of Dunqulah as king.

The two most important Arabic-speaking groups to emerge in Nubia were the Jaali and the Juhayna. Both showed physical continuity with the indigenous pre-Islamic population. Today's northern Sudanese culture combines Nubian and Arabic elements.

Kingdom of Sinnar
During the 1500s, a people called the Funj, under a leader named Amara Dunqus, appeared in southern Nubia and supplanted the remnants of the old Christian kingdom of Alwa, establishing As-Saltana az-Zarqa (the Blue Sultanate) at Sinnar. The Blue Sultanate eventually became the keystone of the Funj Empire. By the mid 16th century, Sinnar controlled Al Jazirah and commanded the allegiance of vassal states and tribal districts north to the Third Cataract and south to the rainforests. The government was substantially weakened by a series of succession arguments and coups within the royal family. In 1820 Muhammad Ali of Egypt sent 4,000 troops to invade Sudan. The pasha's forces accepted Sinnar's surrender from the last Funj sultan, Badi VII.

Union with Egypt 1821-1885
In 1820, the Egyptian ruler Muhammad Ali Pasha invaded and conquered northern Sudan. Though technically the Wāli of Egypt under the Ottoman Sultan, Muhammad Ali styled himself as Khedive of a virtually independent Egypt. Seeking to add Sudan to his domains, he sent his son Ibrahim Pasha to conquer the country, and subsequently incorporate it into Egypt. This policy was expanded and intensified by Ibrahim's son, Ismail I, under whose reign most of the remainder of modern-day Sudan was conquered. The Egyptian authorities made significant improvements to the Sudanese infrastructure (mainly in the north), especially with regard to irrigation and cotton production.

Mahdist Revolt
In 1879, the Great Powers forced the removal of Ismail and established his son Tewfik I in his place. Tewfik's corruption and mismanagement resulted in the Orabi Revolt, which threatened the Khedive's survival. Tewfik appealed for help to the British, who subsequently occupied Egypt in 1882. The Sudan was left in the hands of the Khedivial government, and the mismanagement and corruption of its officials became notorious.

Eventually, a revolt broke out in Sudan, led by the Sudanese religious leader Muhammad Ahmad ibn as Sayyid Abd Allah, the self-proclaimed Mahdi (Guided One), who sought to purify Islam and end foreign domination in Sudan. His revolt culminated in the fall of Khartoum and the death of the British governor General Gordon (Gordon of Khartoum) in 1885. The Egyptian and British forces withdrew from Sudan leaving the Mahdi to form a short-lived theocratic state.

Mahdist Rule: The Mahdiya
The Mahdiyah (Mahdist regime) did not impose traditional Islamic laws. The new ruler's aim was more political than anything else. This was evident in the animosity he showed towards existing Muslims and locals who did not show loyalty to his system and rule. He authorised the burning of lists of pedigrees and books of law and theology.

The Mahdi maintained that his movement was not a religious order that could be accepted or rejected at will, but that it was a universal regime, which challenged man to join or to be destroyed.

Originally, the Mahdiyah was a jihad state, run like a military camp. Sharia courts enforced Islamic law and the Mahdi's precepts, which had the force of law. Six months after the fall of Khartoum, the Mahdi died of typhus, and after a power struggle amongst his deputies, Abdallahi ibn Muhammad, with the help primarily of the Baqqara Arabs of western Sudan, overcame the opposition of the others and emerged as unchallenged leader of the Mahdiyah. After consolidating his power, Abdallahi ibn Muhammad assumed the title of Khalifa (successor) of the Mahdi, instituted an administration, and appointed Ansar (who were usually Baqqara) as emirs over each of the several provinces.

Regional relations remained tense throughout much of the Mahdiyah period, largely because of the Khalifa's brutal methods to extend his rule throughout the country. In 1887, a 60,000-man Ansar army invaded Ethiopia, penetrating as far as Gondar. In March 1889, king Yohannes IV of Ethiopia, marched on Metemma; however, after Yohannes fell in battle, the Ethiopian forces withdrew. Abd ar Rahman an Nujumi, the Khalifa's general, attempted an invasion of Egypt in 1889, but British-led Egyptian troops defeated the Ansar at Tushkah. The failure of the Egyptian invasion broke the spell of the Ansar's invincibility. The Belgians prevented the Mahdi's men from conquering Equatoria, and in 1893, the Italians repelled an Ansar attack at Akordat (in Eritrea) and forced the Ansar to withdraw from Ethiopia.

Anglo-Egyptian Sudan 1899-1956
In the 1890s, the British sought to re-establish their control over Sudan, once more officially in the name of the Egyptian Khedive, but in actuality treating the country as British imperial territory. By the early 1890s, British, French and Belgian claims had converged at the Nile headwaters. Britain feared that the other imperial powers would take advantage of Sudan's instability to acquire territory previously annexed to Egypt. Apart from these political considerations, Britain wanted to establish control over the Nile to safeguard a planned irrigation dam at Aswan.

Lord Kitchener led military campaigns from 1896 to 1898. Kitchener's campaigns culminated in the Battle of Omdurman. Following defeat of the Mahdists at Omdurman, an agreement was reached in 1899 establishing Anglo-Egyptian rule, under which Sudan was run by a governor-general appointed by Egypt with British consent. In reality, much to the revulsion of Egyptian and Sudanese nationalists, Sudan was effectively administered as a British colony. The British were keen to reverse the process, started under Muhammad Ali Pasha, of uniting the Nile Valley under Egyptian leadership, and sought to frustrate all efforts aimed at further uniting the two countries.

During World War II, Sudan was directly involved militarily in the East African Campaign. Formed in 1925, the Sudan Defence Force (SDF) played an active part in responding to the early incursions (occupation by Italian troops of Kassala and other border areas) into the Sudan from Italian East Africa during 1940. In 1942, the SDF also played a part in the invasion of the Italian colony by British and Commonwealth forces.

From 1924 until independence in 1956, the British had a policy of running Sudan as two essentially separate territories, the north (Muslim) and south (Christian). The last British Governor-General was Sir Robert Howe.

Independence January 1, 1956
The continued British occupation of Sudan fueled an increasingly strident nationalist backlash in Egypt, with Egyptian nationalist leaders determined to force Britain to recognize a single independent union of Egypt and Sudan. With the formal end of Ottoman rule in 1914, Husayn Kamil was declared Sultan of Egypt and Sudan, as was his brother Fuad I who succeeded him. The insistence of a single Egyptian-Sudanese state persisted when the Sultanate was retitled the Kingdom of Egypt and Sudan, but the British continued to frustrate these efforts.

The first real independence attempt was made in 1924 by a group of Sudanese military officers known as the White Flag League. The group was led by first lieutenant Ali Abdullatif and first lieutenant Abdul Fadil Almaz. The latter led an insurrection of the military training academy, which ended in their defeat and Almaz's death after the British army blew up the military hospital where he was garrisoned. This defeat was (allegedly) partially the result of the Egyptian garrison in Khartoum North not supporting the insurrection with artillery as was previously promised.

Even when the British ended their occupation of Egypt in 1936 (with the exception of the Suez Canal Zone), Sudan remained under British occupation. The Egyptian Revolution of 1952 finally heralded the beginning of the march towards Sudanese independence. Having abolished the monarchy in 1953, Egypt's new leaders, Muhammad Naguib, whose mother was Sudanese, and Gamal Abdel-Nasser, believed the only way to end British domination in Sudan was for Egypt to officially abandon its sovereignty over Sudan. Since Britain's own claim to sovereignty in Sudan theoretically depended upon Egyptian sovereignty, the revolutionaries calculated that this tactic would leave Britain with no option but to withdraw. Their calculation proved to be correct, and in 1954 the governments of Egypt and Britain signed a treaty guaranteeing Sudanese independence on January 1, 1956.

Afterwards, the newly elected Sudanese government led by the first prime minister Ismail Al-Azhari, went ahead with the process of Sudanisation of the state's government, with the help and supervision of an international committee. Independence was duly granted and on January 1, 1956, in a special ceremony held at the People's Palace where the Egyptian and British flags were lowered and the new Sudanese flag, composed of green, blue and white stripes, was raised in their place.

First Sudanese Civil War 1955 - 1972
In 1955, the year before independence, a civil war began between Northern and Southern Sudan. The southerners, anticipating independence, feared the new nation would be dominated by the north.

Historically, the north of Sudan had closer ties with Egypt and was predominantly Arab and Muslim while the south was predominantly a mixture of Christianity and Animism. These divisions had been further emphasized by the British policy of ruling the north and south under separate administrations. From 1924, it was illegal for people living north of the 10th parallel to go further south and for people south of the 8th parallel to go further north. The law was ostensibly enacted to prevent the spread of malaria and other tropical diseases that had ravaged British troops, as well as to facilitate spreading Christianity among the predominantly Animist population while stopping the Arabic and Islamic influence from advancing south. The result was increased isolation between the already distinct north and south and arguably laid the seeds of conflict in the years to come.

The resulting conflict, known as the First Sudanese Civil War, lasted from 1955 to 1972. The 1955 war began when Southern army officers mutinied and then formed the Anya-Nya guerilla movement. A few years later the first Sudanese military regime took power under Major-General Abboud. Military regimes continued into 1969 when General Gaafar Nimeiry led a successful coup.[8] In 1972, a cessation of the north-south conflict was agreed upon under the terms of the Addis Ababa Agreement, following talks which were sponsored by the World Council of Churches. This led to a ten-year hiatus in the national conflict.

Second Sudanese Civil War from 1983 - 2005
In 1983, the civil war was reignited following President Gaafar Nimeiry's decision to circumvent the Addis Ababa Agreement. President Gaafar Nimeiry attempted to create a federated Sudan including states in southern Sudan, which violated the Addis Ababa Agreement that had granted the south considerable autonomy. He appointed a committee to undertake “a substantial review of the Addis Ababa Agreement, especially in the areas of security arrangements, border trade, language, culture and religion”. Mansour Khalid a former foreign minister wrote, “Nimeiri had never been genuinely committed to the principles of the Addis Ababa Agreement". In September 1983, the civil war was reignited when President Gaafar Nimeiry's culminated the 1977 revisions by imposing new Islamic laws on all of Sudan, including the non-Muslim south. When asked about revisions he stated “The Addis Ababa agreement is myself and Joseph Lagu and we want it that way… I am 300 percent the constitution. I do not know of any plebiscite because I am mandated by the people as the President”. Southern troops rebelled against the northern political offensive, and launched attacks in June 1983. In 1995, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter negotiated the longest ceasefire in the history of the war to allow humanitarian aid to enter Southern Sudan which had been inaccessible owing to violence. This ceasefire, which lasted almost six months, has since been called the “Guinea Worm Ceasefire.”

Southern Sudan
The Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), based in southern Sudan, was formed in May 1983. Finally, in June 1983, the Sudanese government under President Gaafar Nimeiry abrogated the Addis Ababa Peace Agreement (A.A.A.). The situation was exacerbated after President Gaafar Nimeiry went on to implement Sharia Law in September of the same year.

The war continued even after Nimeiry was ousted and a democratic government was elected with Al Sadig Al Mahdi's Umma Party having the majority in the parliament. The leader of the SPLA John Garang refused to recognize the government and to negotiate with it as representative of Sudan but agreed to negotiate with government officials as representative of their political parties.

In 1989, a bloodless coup brought control of Khartoum into the hands of Omar al-Bashir and the National Islamic Front headed by Dr. Hassan al-Turabi. The new government was of Islamic orientation and later it formed the Popular Defence Forces (al Difaa al Shaabi) and began to use religious propaganda to recruit people, as the regular army was demoralised and under pressure from the SPLA rebels. This worsened the situation in the tribal south, as the fighting became more intense, causing casualties among the Christian and animist minority.

The SPLA started as a Marxist movement, with support from the Soviet Union and the Ethiopian Marxist President Mengistu Haile Meriem. In time, however, it sought support in the West by using the northern Sudanese government's religious propaganda to portray the war as a campaign by the Arab Islamic government to impose Islam and the Arabic language on the Christian south. In 1991 the SPLA was split when Riek Machar withdrew and formed his own faction.

The war went on for more than 20 years, including the use of Russian-made combat helicopters and military cargo planes which were used as bombers to devastating effect on villages and tribal rebels alike. "Sudan's independent history has been dominated by chronic, exceptionally cruel warfare that has starkly divided the country on racial, religious, and regional grounds; displaced an estimated four million people (of a total estimated population of thirty-two million); and killed an estimated two million people." It damaged Sudan's economy and led to food shortages, resulting in starvation and malnutrition. The lack of investment during this time, particularly in the south, meant a generation lost access to basic health services, education, and jobs.

Peace talks between the southern rebels and the government made substantial progress in 2003 and early 2004. The peace was consolidated with the official signing by both sides of the Nairobi Comprehensive Peace Agreement 9 January 2005, granting Southern Sudan autonomy for six years, to be followed by a referendum about independence. It created a co-vice president position and allowed the north and south to split oil deposits equally, but also left both the north's and south's armies in place. John Garang, the south's peace agreement appointed co-vice president died in a helicopter crash on August 1, 2005, three weeks after being sworn in. This resulted in riots, but the peace was eventually able to continue.

The United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) was established under UN Security Council Resolution 1590 of March 24, 2005. Its mandate is to support implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, and to perform functions relating to humanitarian assistance, and protection and promotion of human rights.

In October 2007 the former southern rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) withdrew from government in protest over slow implementation of a landmark 2005 peace deal which ended the civil war.

Darfur conflict and war crimes charges
Just as the long north-south civil war was reaching a resolution, some clashes occurred in the western region of Darfur in the early 1970s between the pastoral tribes. The rebels accused the central government of neglecting the Darfur region economically, although there is uncertainty regarding the objectives of the rebels and whether they merely seek an improved position for Darfur within Sudan or outright secession. Both the government and the rebels have been accused of atrocities in this war, although most of the blame has fallen on Arab militias known as the Janjawid, which are armed men appointed by the Al Saddiq Al Mahdi administration to stop the longstanding chaotic disputes between Darfur tribes. According to declarations by the United States Government, these militias have been engaging in genocide; the fighting has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, many of them seeking refuge in neighbouring Chad. The government claimed victory over the rebels after capturing a town on the border with Chad in early 1994. However, the fighting resumed in 2003.

On September 9, 2004, the United States Secretary of State Colin Powell termed the Darfur conflict a genocide, claiming it as the worst humanitarian crisis of the 21st century. There have been reports that the Janjawid has been launching raids, bombings, and attacks on villages, killing civilians based on ethnicity, raping women, stealing land, goods, and herds of livestock. So far, over 2.5 million civilians have been displaced and the death toll is variously estimated from 200, to 400,000 killed. These figures have remained stagnant since initial UN reports of the conflict hinted at genocide in 2003/2004.

On May 5, 2006, the Sudanese government and Darfur's largest rebel group, the SLM (Sudanese Liberation Movement), signed the Darfur Peace Agreement, which aimed at ending the three-year-long conflict. The agreement specified the disarmament of the Janjawid and the disbandment of the rebel forces, and aimed at establishing a temporal government in which the rebels could take part. The agreement, which was brokered by the African Union, however, was not signed by all of the rebel groups. Only one rebel group, the SLA, led by Minni Arko Minnawi, signed the DPA.

Since the agreement was signed, however, there have been reports of widespread violence throughout the region. A new rebel group has emerged called the National Redemption Front, which is made up of the four main rebel groups that refused to sign the May peace agreement. Recently, both the Sudanese government and government-sponsored Muslim militias have launched large offensives against the rebel groups, resulting in more deaths and more displacements. Clashes among the rebel groups have also contributed to the violence. Recent fighting along the Chad border has left hundreds of soldiers and rebel forces dead and nearly a quarter of a million refugees cut off from aid. In addition, villages have been bombed and more civilians have been killed. UNICEF recently reported that around 80 infants die each day in Darfur as a result of malnutrition.

The people in Darfur are predominantly Black Africans of Muslim belief. While the Janjawid militia is made up of Arabized Black African (Black Arabs); the majority of Arab groups in Darfur remain uninvolved in the conflict. Darfurians — Arab and non-Arab alike — profoundly distrust a government in Khartoum that has brought them nothing but trouble.

The International Criminal Court has indicted State Minister for Humanitarian Affairs Ahmed Haroun and alleged Muslim Janjawid militia leader Ali Mohammed Ali, also known as Ali Kosheib, in relation to the atrocities in the region. Ahmed Haroun belongs to the Bargou tribe, one of the non-Arab tribes of Darfur, and is alleged to have incited attacks on specific non-Arab ethnic groups. Ali Kosheib is an former soldier and a leader of the popular defense forces, and is alleged to be one of the key leaders responsible for attacks on villages in west Darfur.

The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor on Darfur, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, announced on July 14, 2008, ten criminal charges against President Bashir, accusing him of sponsoring war crimes and crimes against humanity. The ICC's prosecutors have claimed that al-Bashir "masterminded and implemented a plan to destroy in substantial part" three tribal groups in Darfur because of their ethnicity. The ICC's prosecutor for Darfur, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, is expected within months to ask a panel of ICC judges to issue an arrest warrant for Bashir.

The Arab League, AU, and even France support Sudan’s efforts to suspend the ICC investigation. They are willing to consider Article 16 of the Rome Statute, which states ICC investigations can be suspended for one year if the investigation endangers the peace process.

Chad-Sudan conflict
The Chad-Sudan conflict officially started on December 23, 2005, when the government of Chad declared a state of war with Sudan and called for the citizens of Chad to mobilize themselves against the "common enemy" — the United Front for Democratic Change, a coalition of rebel factions dedicated to overthrowing Chadian President Idriss Déby (and who the Chadians believe are backed by the Sudanese government), and Sudanese janjawid, who have been raiding refugee camps and certain tribes in eastern Chad. Déby accuses Sudanese President Omar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir of trying to "destabilize our country, to drive our people into misery, to create disorder and export the war from Darfur to Chad."

The incident prompting the declaration of war was an attack on the Chadian town of Adré near the Sudanese border that led to the deaths of either one hundred rebels (as most news sources reported) or three hundred rebels. The Sudanese government was blamed for the attack, which was the second in the region in three days, but Sudanese foreign ministry spokesman Jamal Mohammed Ibrahim denied any Sudanese involvement, "We are not for any escalation with Chad. We technically deny involvement in Chadian internal affairs." The Battle of Adré led to the declaration of war by Chad and the alleged deployment of the Chadian air force into Sudanese airspace, which the Chadian government denies.

The leaders of Sudan and Chad signed an agreement in Saudi Arabia on May 3, 2007 to stop fighting from the Darfur conflict along their countries' 1,000-kilometre (600 mi) border.

Eastern Front
The Eastern Front is a coalition of rebel groups operating in eastern Sudan along the border with Eritrea, particularly the states of Red Sea and Kassala. The Eastern Front's Chairman is Musa Mohamed Ahmed. While the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) was the primary member of the Eastern Front, the SPLA was obliged to leave by the January 2005 agreement that ended the Second Sudanese Civil War. Their place was taken in February 2004 after the merger of the larger Beja Congress with the smaller Rashaida Free Lions, two tribal based groups of the Beja and Rashaida people, respectively. The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), a rebel group from Darfur in the west, then joined.

Both the Free Lions and the Beja Congress stated that government inequity in the distribution of oil profits was the cause of their rebellion. They demanded to have a greater say in the composition of the national government, which has been seen as a destabilizing influence on the agreement ending the conflict in Southern Sudan.

The Eastern Front had threatened to block the flow of crude oil, which travels from the oil fields of the south-central regions to outside markets through Port Sudan. A government plan to build a second oil refinery near Port Sudan was also threatened. The government was reported to have three times as many soldiers in the east to suppress the rebellion and protect vital infrastructure as in the more widely reported Darfur region.

The Eritrean government in mid-2006 dramatically changed their position on the conflict. From being the main supporter of the Eastern Front they decided that bringing the Sudanese government around the negotiating table for a possible agreement with the rebels would be in their best interests.

They were successful in their attempts and on the 19 June 2006, the two sides signed an agreement on declaration of principles.[35] This was the start of four months of Eritrean-mediated negotiations for a comprehensive peace agreement between the Sudanese government and the Eastern Front, which culminated in signing of a peace agreement on 14 October 2006, in Asmara. The agreement covers security issues, power sharing at a federal and regional level, and wealth sharing in regards to the three Eastern states Kassala, Red Sea and Al Qadarif.

Humanitarian needs and 2007 floods
Southern Sudan is acknowledged to have some of the worst health indicators in the world In 2004, there were only three surgeons serving southern Sudan, with three proper hospitals, and in some areas there was just one doctor for every 500,000 people. The humanitarian branch of the United Nations, consisting of several UN agencies coordinated by OCHA, works to bring life-saving relief to those in need. It is estimated by OCHA, that over 3.5 million people in Darfur (including 2.2 million IDPs) are heavily reliant on humanitarian aid for their survival. By contrast, in 2007 OCHA, under the leadership of Éliane Duthoit, started to gradually phase out in Southern Sudan, where humanitarian needs are gradually diminishing, and are slowly but markedly leaving the place to recovery and development activities.

Foreign relations
Sudan has had a troubled relationship with many of its neighbours and much of the international community owing to what is viewed as its aggressively Islamic stance. For much of the 1990s, Uganda, Kenya and Ethiopia formed an ad-hoc alliance called the "Front Line States" with support from the United States to check the influence of the National Islamic Front government. The Sudanese Government supported anti-Uganda rebel groups such as the Lord's Resistance Army. Beginning from the mid-1990s Sudan gradually began to moderate its positions as a result of increased US pressure following the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings and the new development of oil fields previously in rebel hands. Sudan also has a territorial dispute with Egypt over the Hala'ib Triangle. Since 2003, the foreign relations of Sudan have centered on the support for ending the Second Sudanese Civil War and condemnation of government support for militias in the Darfur conflict.

The United States has listed Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism since 1993. U.S. firms have been barred from doing business in Sudan since 1997. In 1998, the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory in Khartoum was destroyed by a US cruise missile strike because of its alleged production of chemical weapons and links to al-Qaeda.

Sudan has extensive economic relations with China. China gets 1/10 of its oil from Sudan, and according to a former Sudanese government minister, China is Sudan’s largest supplier of arms.

On December 23, 2005, Chad, Sudan's neighbour to the west, declared war on Sudan and accused the country of being the "common enemy of the nation [Chad]." This happened after the December 18 attack on Adré, which left about 100 people dead. A statement issued by Chadian government on December 23, accused Sudanese militias of making daily incursions into Chad, stealing cattle, killing people and burning villages on the Chadian border. The statement went on to call for Chadians to form a patriotic front against Sudan. The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) have called on Sudan and Chad to exercise self-restraint to defuse growing tensions between the two countries. On May 11, 2008 Sudan announced it was cutting diplomatic relations with Chad, claiming that it was helping rebels in Darfur to attack the Sudanese capital Khartoum.

On December 27, 2005, Sudan became one of the few states to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.

On June 20, 2006 President Omar al-Bashir told reporters that he would not allow any UN peacekeeping force into Sudan. President al-Bashir denounced any such mission as "colonial forces."

On November 17, 2006, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced that "Sudan has agreed in principle to allow the establishment of a joint African Union and UN peacekeeping force in an effort to solve the crisis in Darfur" - but had stopped short of setting the number of troops involved. Annan speculated that this force could number 17,000. Despite this claim, no additional troops have been deployed as of late December 2006. On July 31, 2007 the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1769, authorizing the deployment of UN forces. Violence continues in the region and on December 15, 2006, prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) stated they would be proceeding with cases of human rights violations against members of the Sudan government. A Sudanese legislator was quoted as saying that Khartoum may permit UN peacekeepers to patrol Darfur in exchange for immunity from prosecution for officials charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.

States and districts
Sudan is divided into twenty-five states (wilayat, sing. wilayah) which in turn are subdivided into 133 districts. The states are:
* Al Jazirah
* Al Qadarif
* Blue Nile
* Central Equatoria
* East Equatoria
* Junqali
* Kassala
* Khartoum
* Lakes
* North Bahr al Ghazal
* North Darfur
* North Kurdufan
* Northern
* Red Sea (al-Bahr al-Ahmar)
* River Nile
* Sennar
* South Darfur
* South Kurdufan
* Unity
* Upper Nile
* Warab
* West Bahr al Ghazal
* West Darfur
* West Equatoria
* White Nile

Geography
Sudan is situated in northern Africa, bordering the Red Sea and it has a coastline of 853 km along the Red Se With an area of 2,505,810 square kilometres (967,499 sq mi), it is the largest country on the continent and the tenth largest in the world. It borders the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya and Uganda. It is dominated by the River Nile and its tributaries.

The terrain is generally flat plains, broken by several mountain ranges; in the west the Jebel Marra is the highest range; in the south is the highest mountain Mount Kinyeti Imatong, near the border with Uganda; in the east are the Red Sea Hills.

The Blue and White Niles meet in Khartoum to form the River Nile, which flows northwards through Egypt to the Mediterranean Sea. Blue Nile's course through Sudan is nearly 800 km long and is joined by the rivers Dinder and Rahad between Sennar and Khartoum. The White Nile within Sudan has no significant tributaries.

The amount of rainfall increases towards the south. In the north there is the very dry Nubian Desert; in the south there are swamps and rainforest. Sudan’s rainy season lasts for about three months (July to September) in the north, and up to six months (June to November) in the south. The dry regions are plagued by sandstorms, known as haboob, which can completely block out the sun. In the northern and western semi-desert areas, people rely on the scant rainfall for basic agriculture and many are nomadic, traveling with their herds of sheep and camels. Nearer the River Nile, there are well-irrigated farms growing cash crops.

There are several dams on the Blue and White Niles. Among them are the Sennar and Roseires on the Blue Nile, and Jebel Aulia dam on the White Nile. There is also Lake Nubia on the Sudanese-Egyptian border.

Rich mineral resources are available in Sudan including: petroleum, natural gas, gold, silver, chromite, asbestos, manganese, gypsum, mica, zinc, iron, lead, uranium, copper, kaolin, cobalt, granite, nickel and tin.

Desertification is a serious problem in Sudan. There is also concern over soil erosion. Agricultural expansion, both public and private, has proceeded without conservation measures. The consequences have manifested themselves in the form of deforestation, soil desiccation, and the lowering of soil fertility and the water table.

The nation's wildlife is threatened by hunting. As of 2001, twenty-one mammal species and nine bird species are endangered, as well as two species of plants. Endangered species include: the waldrapp, northern white rhinoceros, tora hartebeest, slender-horned gazelle, and hawksbill turtle. The Sahara oryx has become extinct in the wild.

In May 2007, it was announced that hundreds of wild elephants have been located on a previously unknown, treeless island in the Sudd swampland region of southern Sudan. The exact location being kept secret to protect the animals from poachers.
Religion in Sudan
religion percent
Sunni Muslim 70%
Indigenous 25%
Christian 5%

Islam is the major religion in Sudan practised mostly in the north by 70% of population. Christians compose only 5% of population and with indigenous beliefs (25%) is practised mostly in south and Khartoum.

Islam predominates in the North, while traditional indigenous beliefs (animism) and Christianity are prevalent in the South. Some Muslim leaders estimate the Muslim population to be more than 32 million, or above 80 percent of the total population. Almost all Muslims are Sunni, although there are significant distinctions between followers of different Sunni traditions, particularly among Sufi brotherhoods. Two popular brotherhoods, the Ansar and the Khatmia, are associated with the opposition Umma and Democratic Unionist Parties, respectively. There is a small Shi'a community.

Traditionalists are believed to be the second largest religious group in the country, although there are reports that many converted to Christianity or followed a syncretic form of these two religious beliefs.

Christians are generally considered the third largest group. The Roman Catholic Church estimates the number of baptized Catholics at six million, including small Melkite and Maronite communities in the north. Anglicans estimate five million followers in the Episcopal Church of Sudan and the dissident Reformed Episcopal Church. There are very small but long established groups of Orthodox Christians in Khartoum and other northern cities, including Coptic Orthodox and Greek Orthodox Christians. There are also Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox communities in Khartoum and eastern Sudan, largely made up of refugees and migrants. Other Christian groups with smaller followings in the country include the Africa Inland Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Sudan Church of Christ, the Sudan Interior Church, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Sudan Pentecostal Church, the Sudan Evangelical Presbyterian Church (in the North), the Presbyterian Church of the Sudan (in the South), and the Seventh-day Adventist Church of Sudan.

Foreign missionary groups operate in both North and South, although Christian missionary activity is limited in the North owing to Shari'a, strong social pressure against proselytizing, and existing laws against apostasy.

Many Christians in the North are descended from pre-Islamic era communities or are trading families that immigrated from Egypt or the Near East before independence (1956). Many Muslims in the South are shopkeepers or small business owners who sought economic opportunities during the civil war. Political tensions have created not only a sense of ethnic and religious marginalization among the minority religious group in each region but also a feeling among the majority that the minority groups control a disproportionate share of the wealth.

Religious identity plays a role in the country's political divisions. Northern Muslims have dominated the country's political and economic system since independence. The NCP draws much of its support from Islamists, Salafis/Wahhabis, and other conservative Arab Muslims in the North. The Umma Party has traditionally attracted Arab followers of the Ansar Sect of Sufism as well as non-Arab Muslims from Darfur and Kordofan. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) includes both Arab and non-Arab Muslims in the North and East, especially those in the Khatmia Sufi brotherhood, as well as some northern Arabic-speaking Christians. Southern Christians generally support the SPLM or one of the smaller southern parties.[73]

Languages
According to the 2005 constitution, Sudan's official languages are Arabic and English:

Article 8:
1. All indigenous languages of Sudan are national languages and shall be respected, developed and promoted.
2. Arabic is a widely spoken national language in Sudan.
3. Arabic, as a major language at the national level and English shall be the official working languages of the national government and the languages of instruction for higher education.
4. In addition to Arabic and English, the legislature of any sub-national level of government may adopt any other national language as an additional official working language at its level.
5. There shall be no discrimination against the use of either Arabic or English at any level of government or stage of education.

Besides the two official ones, there is also Nubian, Ta Bedawie and diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic and Sudanic languages.
According to estimates, Sudan is predominantly Muslim. 70% of the population adheres to Islam. The remainder of the population follows either animist and indigenous beliefs (25%), and 5% of the total population adheres to Christianity. Sudan's largest Christian denominations are the following: the Roman Catholic Church, the Episcopal Church of the Sudan, the Presbyterian Church in the Sudan, and the Coptic Orthodox Church.

Source

Mongolia

2009-03-29T20:44:00.004+04:00

Mongolia (pronounced /mɒŋˈɡoʊliə/; Mongolian: Mongoluls.ogg Монгол улс (help·info), literally Mongol country/nation, ) is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It borders Russia to the north and People's Republic of China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only a few miles from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest city, is home to about 38% of the population. Mongolia's political system is a parliamentary republic.

The area of what is now Mongolia has been ruled by various nomadic empires, including the Xiongnu, the Xianbei, the Rouran, the Gökturks, and others. The Mongol Empire was founded by Genghis Khan in 1206. After the collapse of the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols returned to their earlier patterns. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Mongolia came under the influence of Tibetan Buddhism. At the end of the 17th century, most of Mongolia had been incorporated into the area ruled by the Qing Dynasty. During the collapse of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, Mongolia declared independence, but had to struggle until 1921 to firmly establish de-facto independence, and until 1945 to gain international recognition. As a consequence, it came under strong Russian and Soviet influence: In 1924, the Mongolian People's Republic was declared, and Mongolian politics began to follow the same patterns as Soviet politics of the time. After the breakdown of communist regimes in Eastern Europe in late 1989, Mongolia saw its own Democratic Revolution in early 1990, which led to a multi-party system, a new constitution in 1992, and the - rather rough - transition to a market economy.

At 1,564,116 square kilometres, Mongolia is the nineteenth largest and most sparsely populated independent country in the world, with a population of around 2.9 million people. It is also the world's second-largest landlocked country after Kazakhstan. The country contains very little arable land, as much of its area is covered by steppes, with mountains to the north and west and the Gobi Desert to the south. Approximately 30% of the country's 2.9 million people are nomadic or semi-nomadic. The predominant religion in Mongolia is Tibetan Buddhism, and the majority of the state's citizens are of the Mongol ethnicity, though Kazakhs, Tuvans and other minorities also live in the country, especially in the west.

History

Prehistory
Mongolia has been inhabited for over 800,000 years. Important prehistoric sites are the paleolithic cave drawings of the Khoid Tsenkheriin Agui (Northern Cave of Blue) in Khovd Province, and the Tsagaan Agui (White Cave) in Bayankhongor Province[citation needed]. A neolithic farming settlement has been found in Dornod Province. Contemporary findings from western Mongolia include only temporary encampments of hunters and fishers. The population during the Copper Age has been described as paleomongolid in the east of what is now Mongolia, and as europid in the west.

In the second millennium B.C, during the bronze age, western Mongolia was under the influence of the Karasuk culture. Deer stones and the omnipresent keregsürens (small kurgans) probably are from this era; other theories date the deer stones as 7th or 8th centuries BCE. A vast iron-age burial complex from the 5th-3rd century, later also used by the Xiongnu, has been unearthed near Ulaangom.

Early history
Mongolia, since prehistoric times, has been inhabited by nomads who, from time to time, formed great confederations that rose to prominence. The first of these, the Xiongnu, were brought together to form a confederation by Modu Shanyu in 209 BC. Soon they emerged as the greatest threat to the Qin Dynasty, forcing the latter to construct the Great Wall of China, itself being guarded by up to almost 300,000 soldiers during marshal Meng Tian's tenure, as a means of defense against the destructive Xiongnu raids. After the decline of the Xiongnu, the Rouran, a close relative of the Mongols, came to power before being defeated by the Göktürks, who then dominated Mongolia for centuries. During the seventh and eighth centuries, they were succeeded by Uyghurs and then by the Khitans and Jurchens. By the tenth century, the country was divided into numerous tribes linked through transient alliances and involved in the old patterns of internal strife.

Mongol Empire
In the chaos of the late twelfth century, a chieftain named Temüjin finally succeeded in uniting the Mongol tribes between Manchuria and the Altai Mountains. In 1206, he took the title Genghis Khan, and waged a series of military campaigns - renowned for their brutality and ferocity - sweeping through much of Asia, and forming the Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous land empire in world history. Under his successors it stretched from present-day Poland in the west to Korea in the east, and from Siberia in the north to the Gulf of Oman and Vietnam in the south, covering some 33,000,000 km² (12,741,000 sq mi),[8] (22% of Earth's total land area) and having a population of over 100 million people. After Genghis Khan's death, the empire had been subdivided into four kingdoms or Khanates which eventually split-up after Möngke's death in 1259. One of the khanates, the "Great Khaanate", consisting of the Mongol homeland and China, became the Yuan Dynasty under Kublai Khan grandson of Genghis Khaan. He set up his capital in present day Beijing but after more than a century of power, the Yuan was replaced by the Ming Dynasty in 1368, with the Mongol court fleeing to the north. As the Ming armies pursued the Mongols into their homeland, they successfully sacked and destroyed the Mongol capital Karakorum among other cities, wiping out the cultural progress that was achieved during the imperial period and thus throwing Mongolia back to anarchy.

Post-Imperial period
The next centuries were marked by violent power struggles between various factions, notably the Genghisids and the non-Genghisid Oirads and numerous Chinese invasions (like the five expeditions led by the Yongle Emperor). In the early 15th century, the Oirads under Esen Tayisi gained the upper hand, and even raided China in 1449 in a conflict over Esen's right to pay tribute, capturing the Chinese emperor in the process. However, Esen was murdered in 1454, and the Genghisids recovered. In the mid-16th century, Altan Khan of the Tümed, a grandson of Batumöngke - but no legitimate Khan himself - became powerful. He founded Hohhot in 1557 and his meeting with the Dalai Lama in 1578 sparked the second introduction of Tibetan Buddhism to Mongolia. Abtai Khan of the Khalkha converted to buddhism in 1585 and founded the Erdene Zuu monastery in 1586. His grandson Zanabazar became the first Jebtsundamba Khutughtu in 1640.

The last Mongol Khan was Ligden Khan in the early 17th century. He got into conflicts with the Manchu over the looting of Chinese cities, and managed to alienate most Mongol tribes. He died in 1634 on his way to Tibet, in an attempt to evade the Manchu and destroy the Yellow Hat sect of Buddhism. By 1636, most Inner Mongolian tribes had submitted to the Manchu. The Khalkha eventually submitted to the Qing in 1691, thus bringing all but the west of today's Mongolia under Beijing's rule. After several wars, the Dzungars were virtually annihilated in 1757. Until 1911, the Manchu maintained control of Mongolia with a series of alliances and intermarriages, as well as military and economic measures. Ambans, Manchu "high officials", were installed in Khüree, Uliastai, and Khovd, and the country was subdivided into ever more feudal and ecclesiastical fiefdoms. Over the course of the 19th century, the feudal lords attached more importance to representation and less importance to the responsibilities towards their subjects. In addition the usurous practices of the Chinese traders, along with the collection of imperial taxes in silver instead of animals, resulted in poverty becoming rampant.

Independence
With the fall of the Qing Dynasty, Mongolia declared independence in 1911. The new country's territory was approximately that of the former Outer Mongolia. The 49 hoshuns of Inner Mongolia as well as the Mongolians of the Alashan and Qinghai regions expressed their willingness to join the nascent state, to no avail. In 1919, after the October Revolution in Russia, Chinese troops led by Xu Shuzheng occupied the capital but their dominance was short-lived. The Russian adventurer Baron Ungern who had fought with the Whites against the Red Army in Siberia, led his troops into Mongolia, triumphing over Chinese in Niislel Khüree. He ruled briefly, under the blessing of religious leader Bogd Khan before he was captured and executed by the Red Army assisted by Mongolian units led by Damdin Sükhbaatar. These events led to abolition of the feudal system and ensured the country's political alignment with Bolshevik Russia.

Mongolian People's Republic
In 1924, after the death of the religious leader and king Bogd Khan, a Mongolian People's Republic was proclaimed with support from the Soviets.
In 1928, Khorloogiin Choibalsan rose to power. He instituted collectivisation of livestock, the destruction of Buddhist monasteries and the Mongolia's enemies of the people persecution resulting in the murder of monks and other people. In Mongolia during the 1920s, approximately one third of the male population were monks. By the beginning of the 20th century about 750 monasteries were functioning in Mongolia.[9] The Stalinist purges in Mongolia beginning in 1937, affected the Republic as it left more than 30,000 people dead. Japanese imperialism became even more alarming after the invasion of neighboring Manchuria in 1931. During the Soviet-Japanese Border War of 1939, the USSR successfully defended Mongolia against Japanese expansionism. In August 1945 Mongolian forces also took part in the Soviet Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation in Inner Mongolia. The Soviet threat of seizing parts of Inner Mongolia[citation needed] induced China to recognize Outer Mongolia's independence, provided that a referendum was held. The referendum took place on October 20, 1945, with (according to official numbers) 100% of the electorate voting for independence. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, both countries confirmed their mutual recognition on October 6, 1949.

In January 26, 1952, Yumjaagiin Tsedenbal took power. In 1956 and again in 1962, Choibalsan's personality cult was condemned. Mongolia continued to align itself closely with the Soviet Union, especially after the Sino-Soviet split of the late 1950s. While Tsedenbal was visiting Moscow in August 1984, his severe illness prompted the parliament to announce his retirement and replace him with Jambyn Batmönkh.

Democracy
The introduction of perestroika and glasnost in the USSR by Mikhail Gorbachev strongly influenced Mongolian politics leading to the peaceful Democratic Revolution and the introduction of a multi-party system and market economy. A new constitution was introduced in 1992, and the "People's Republic" was dropped from the country's name. The transition to market economy was often rocky, the early 1990s saw high inflation and food shortages. The first election wins for non-communist parties came in 1993 (presidential elections) and 1996 (parliamentary elections).

Government and politics
This article may need to be updated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information, and remove this template when finished. Please see the talk page for more information.

Mongolia is a parliamentary republic. The parliament is elected by the people and in turn elects the government. The president is elected directly. Mongolia's constitution guarantees full freedom of expression, religion, and others. Mongolia has a number of political parties, the biggest ones being the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) and the Democratic Party (DP).

The MPRP formed the government of the country from 1921 to 1996 (until 1990 in a one-party system) and from 2000 to 2004. From 2004 to 2006, it was part of a coalition with the DP and two other parties, and since 2006 it has been the dominant party in two other coalitions. Both changes of government after 2004 were initiated by the MPRP. The DP was the dominant force in the ruling coalition between 1996 and 2000, and also an approximately equal partner with the MPRP in the 2004-2006 coalition. The next parliamentary elections are set for June 2008.

President
Mongolia's president has a symbolic role, but can block the parliament's decisions, who can then overrule the veto by a 2/3 majority. Mongolia's Constitution provides three requirements for taking office as President: the individual must be a native-born Mongolian, be at least 45 years of age, and have resided in Mongolia for five years prior to taking office. The current President is Nambaryn Enkhbayar.

The State Great Khural
Mongolia uses a unicameral parliamentary system in which the president has a symbolic role and the government chosen by the legislature exercises executive power. The legislative arm, the State Great Khural, has one chamber with 76 seats and is chaired by the speaker of the house. It elects its members every four years by general elections. The State Great Khural is powerful in the Mongolian government with the president being largely symbolic and the prime minister being confirmed from the parliament.

Prime Minister and the Cabinet
The Prime Minister of Mongolia is elected by the State Great Khural. The current prime minister is Sanjaagiin Bayar, who was elected by sixty-seven votes to two on November 22, 2007. The deputy prime minister is Miyeegombyn Enkhbold (since December 5, 2007). There are ministers of each department (finance, defense, labor, agriculture, etc.) and those offices constitute the prime minister's cabinet.

The cabinet is nominated by the prime minister in consultation with the president and confirmed by the State Great Khural.

Foreign relations and military
Mongolia maintains positive relations and has diplomatic missions with many countries such as the United States, Russia, North and South Korea, Japan, and the People's Republic of China. The government has focused a great deal on encouraging foreign investments and trade. Mongolia supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and has sent several successive contingents of 103 to 180 troops each to Iraq. Smaller contingents were also sent to Afghanistan. 200 Mongolian troops are serving in Sierra Leone on a UN mandate to protect the UN's special court set up there. From 2005 to 2006, about 40 troops were deployed with the Belgian and Luxembourgish contingent in Kosovo. On November 21, 2005, George W. Bush became the first-ever sitting U.S. President to visit Mongolia. In 2004, under the Bulgarian chairmanship, The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), invited Mongolia as its newest Asian Partner.

Mongolia has embassies in Almaty, Ankara, Bangkok, Berlin, Beijing, Brussels, Budapest, Cairo, Warsaw, Washington, D.C., Vienna, Vientiane, Havana, Delhi, London, Moscow, Ottawa, Paris, Prague, Pyongyang, Seoul, Sofia, Tokyo, Hanoi, and Singapore, a consulate in Irkutsk and Ulan-Ude, and a diplomatic mission to the United Nations in New York City and to the European Union in Geneva.

Geography and climate
The southern portion of Mongolia is taken up by the Gobi Desert, while the northern and western portions are mountainous
At 1,564,116 km²[14] (603,909 mi²), Mongolia is the world's nineteenth-largest country (after Iran). It is significantly larger than the next-largest country, Peru. It is more than two times larger than the U.S. state of Texas and slightly larger than Spain, France and Germany combined.

The geography of Mongolia is varied with the Gobi Desert to the south and with cold and mountainous regions to the north and west. Much of Mongolia consists of steppes. The highest point in Mongolia is the Khüiten Peak in the Tavan bogd massif in the far west at 4,374 m (14,350 ft). The basin of the lake Uvs Nuur, shared with Tuva Republic in Russia, is a natural World Heritage Site. Most of the country is hot in the summer and extremely cold in the winter, with January averages dropping as low as -30°C (-22°F). The country is also subject to occasional harsh climatic conditions known as zud. Ulan Bator has the lowest average temperature of any national capital in the world. Mongolia is high, cold, and windy. It has an extreme continental climate with long, cold winters and short summers, during which most of its annual precipitation falls. The country averages 257 cloudless days a year, and it is usually at the center of a region of high atmospheric pressure. Precipitation is highest in the north (average of 20 to 35 centimeters per year) and lowest in the south, which receives 10 to 20 centimeters annually. The extreme south is the Gobi, some regions of which receive no precipitation at all in most years.

The name "Gobi" is a Mongol term for a desert steppe, which usually refers to a category of arid rangeland with insufficient vegetation to support marmots but with enough to support camels. Mongols distinguish Gobi from desert proper, although the distinction is not always apparent to outsiders unfamiliar with the Mongolian landscape. Gobi rangelands are fragile and are easily destroyed by overgrazing, which results in expansion of the true desert, a stony waste where not even Bactrian camels can survive.

Administrative Division
Mongolia is divided into 21 aimags (provinces), which are in turn divided into 315 sums (districts). The capital Ulan Bator is administrated separately as a khot (municipality) with provincial status. The aimags are:
* Arkhangai
* Bayan-Ölgii
* Bayankhongor
* Bulgan
* Darkhan-Uul
* Dornod
* Dornogovi
* Dundgovi
* Govi-Altai
* Govisümber
* Khentii
* Khovd
* Khövsgöl
* Ömnögovi
* Orkhon
* Övörkhangai
* Selenge
* Sükhbaatar
* Töv
* Uvs
* Zavkhan

Economy
Mongolia's economy is centered on agriculture and mining. Mongolia has rich mineral resources, and copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold account for a large part of industrial production.

There are currently over 30,000 independent businesses in Mongolia, chiefly centered around the capital city[citation needed]. The majority of the population outside urban areas participate in subsistence herding; livestock typically consists of sheep, goats, cattle, horses, and Bactrian camels. Agricultural crops include wheat, barley, potato, vegetables, tomato, watermelon, sea-buckthorn and fodder crops. GDP per capita in 2006 was $2,100. Although GDP has risen steadily since 2002 at the rate of 7.5% in an official 2006 estimate, the state is still working to overcome a sizable trade deficit. A massive ($11 billion) foreign debt to Russia was settled by the Mongolian government in 2004 with a $250 million payment. Despite growth, the proportion of the population below the poverty line is estimated to be 35.6% in 1998, 36.1% in 2002–2003, 32.2% in 2006, and both the unemployment rate and inflation rate are relatively high at 3.2% and 6.0%, respectively (in 2006) Mongolia's largest trading partner is China. As of 2006, 68.4% of Mongolia's exports went to China, and China supplied 29.8% of Mongolia's imports.

The Mongolian Stock Exchange, established in 1991 in Ulan Bator, is the world's smallest stock exchange by market capitalisation.

Service sector
After the transition shocks of the early 1990s, Mongolian domestic production has picked up again. According to the CIA World Factbook, in 2003, the service sector accounted for 58% of the GDP, with 29% of the labor force of 1.488 million involved.

Foreign investment from other countries (including China, Japan, South Korea, Germany and Russia) has helped to add more paved roads. The most important is a 1000 km north-south road leading from the Russian border at Sükhbaatar to the Chinese border at Zamyn-Üüd. There are several air transport companies in Mongolia, including MIAT, Aero Mongolia, and Eznis Airways.

Petroleum products are mainly (80%) imported from Russia, which makes Mongolia vulnerable to supply side shocks. This is one strong example of the influence of Mongolia's neighbors on its economy.

Infrastructure
Modern transportation began to develop during the People's Republic of Mongolia era helped by the Soviet Union and transportation like the train and airplanes were brought in. The Trans-Siberian Railway crosses through Mongolia and that has been the main infrastructure for transportation of goods between Russia, Mongolia and China for decades. Mongolia has also domestic and international airport throughout the country. The main international airport is the Chinggis Khaan International Airport and direct international flights exist between South Korea, China, Japan, Russia and Germany. MIAT is the largest air carrier in Mongolia that does both domestic and international flights. There are paved roads to some of the larger cities in Mongolia like between Darkhan and Ulaanbaatar. More paved roads are being added, but presently paved road system is relatively lacking compared to other developed countries. Since Mongolia is a landlocked country it doesn't have large ships but they at one point rented a port and a ship in one of foreign country's port.

Demographics
Mongolia's total population as of July 2007 is estimated by U.S. Census Bureau at 2,951,786 people ranking at around 138th in the world in terms of population. But the U.S. Department of State Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs uses the U.N. estimations instead of the U.S. Census Bureau estimations. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Division estimates Mongolia's total population (mid. 2007) as 2,629,000 (11% less then U.S. Census Bureau). But UN estimations are very close to those made by Mongolian National Statistical Office - 2,612,900 (end of June 2007).

It has a very small population relative to its two border neighbors, Russia and the People's Republic of China. Though the majority of Mongolian citizens are of Mongol descent there are small populations of Kazakh, Tuvan, and Tungus peoples. Mongolia's population growth rate is estimated at 1.2% (2007 est.). About 59% of the total population is under age 30, 27% of whom are under 14. This relatively young and growing population has, as in many developing countries, placed strains on Mongolia's economy.

Since the end of socialism, Mongolia has experienced a decline of total fertility rate (children per woman) that is steeper than in any other country in the world, according to recent UN estimations in 1970-1975, fertility was estimated to be 7.33 children per woman, but 2005-2010 prospects are 1.87 (4 times less).

Mongolia has become more urbanized. About 40 percent of the population live in Ulaanbaatar alone, and in 2002 a further 23% lived in Darkhan, Erdenet, the aimag centers and sum-level permanent settlements. Another share of the population lives in the sum centers. In 2002, about 30 percent of all households in Mongolia lived from breeding lifestock. Most herders in Mongolia follow a pattern of nomadic or semi-nomadic pastoralism.

Ethnic Mongols account for about 85% of the population and consist of Khalkha and other groups, all distinguished primarily by dialects of the Mongol language. The Khalkha make up 90% of the ethnic Mongol population. The remaining 10% include Buryats, Durbet Mongols and others in the north and Dariganga Mongols in the east. Turkic peoples (Kazakhs, Tuvans, and Chantuu (Uzbek) constitute 7% of Mongolia's population, and the rest are Tungusic peoples, Chinese, and Russians. Most, but not all, Russians left the country following the withdrawal of economic aid and collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Languages
The official language of Mongolia is Khalkha Mongolian, which uses the Cyrillic alphabet, and is spoken by 90% of the population. A variety of different dialects are spoken across the country. In the west the Kazakh and Tuvan languages, among others, are also spoken. The Russian language is the most frequently spoken foreign language in Mongolia, followed by English, though English has been gradually replacing Russian as the second language.[citation needed] Korean has gained a popularity as tens of thousands of Mongolians work in South Korea. Interest in Chinese, as the language of the second neighbouring power, has been growing. Japanese is also popular among the younger people. A number of older educated Mongolians speak some German, as they studied in the former East Germany, while a few speak other languages from the former Eastern Bloc. Besides that, many younger Mongolians are fluent in the Western European languages as they study or work in foreign countries including Germany, France and Italy.

Mongolian is one of the Mongolic languages. Mongolic is frequently included in the Altaic languages, a group of languages named after the Altay Mountains that also includes the Turkic and Tungusic languages.

Religion
According to the CIA World Factbook; 50% of Mongolia's population follow the Tibetan Buddhism, 40% are listed as having no religion, 6% are Shamanist and Christian, and 4% are Muslim.

But according to the U.S. Department of State, 90% practice Tibetan Buddhism, followed by Islam (6%), then Christianity (4%), and an unknown percentage of Shamanism.

The differences between the CIA World Factbook and the U.S. Department of States estimates for religion are mostly that the nonreligious in the CIA World Factbook estimate are in the Tibetan Buddhism category in the U.S. Department of State estimate. A possible explanation for this is that the flexibility of Buddhism makes it difficult to discern what constitutes a Buddhist, since Buddhism can be embraced in varying degrees, unlike some other religions which clearly demarcate their followers.

Various forms of Tengriism and Shamanism have been widely practiced throughout the history of what is now modern day Mongolia, as such beliefs were common among nomadic people in Asian history. Such beliefs mostly gradually gave way to Tibetan Buddhism, but Shamanism has left a mark on Mongolian religious culture. Indeed, it continues to be practised.

Throughout much of the twentieth century, the communist government ensured that the religious practices of the Mongolian people were largely repressed. Khorloogiin Choibalsan complied with the orders of Joseph Stalin, destroying almost all of Mongolia's over 700 Buddhist monasteries and killing thousands of monks.

The fall of communism in 1991 restored the legality of public religious practice, and Tibetan Buddhism, which had been the predominant religion in the region before the rise of Communism, again rose to become the most widely practiced religion in Mongolia. The end of religious repression in the 1990s also allowed for other religions, such as Islam and Christianity, to spread in the country. According to the Christian missionary group, Barnabas Fund, the number of Christians grew from just 4 in 1989 to around 40,000 as of 2008.

Culture
The main festival is Naadam, which has been organised for centuries, consists of three Mongolian traditional sports, archery, horse-racing (over long stretches of open country, not the short racing around a track practiced in the West), and wrestling. Nowadays it is held on July 11 to July 13 in the honour of the anniversaries of the National Democratic Revolution and foundation of the Great Mongol State. Another very popular activity called Shagaa is the "flicking" of sheep ankle bones at a target several feet away, using a flicking motion of the finger to send the small bone flying at targets and trying to knock the target bones off the platform. This contest at Naadam is very popular and develops a serious audience among older Mongolians. In Mongolia, the khoomei, or throat singing, style of music is popular, particularly in parts of Western Mongolia.

The ornate symbol in the leftmost bar of the national flag is a Buddhist icon called soyombo. It represents the sun, moon, stars, and heavens per standard cosmological symbology abstracted from that seen in traditional thangka paintings.

Architecture
The traditional Mongolian dwelling is known as a yurt (Mongolian: ger). According to Mongolian artist and art critic N. Chultem, yurts and tents were the basis for development of the traditional Mongolian architecture. In the 16th ad 17th centuries, lamaseries were built throughout the country. Many of them started as yurt-temples. When they needed to be enlarged to accommodate the growing number of worshippers, the Mongolian architects used structures with 6 and 12 angles with pyramidal roofs to approximate to the round shape of a yurt. Further enlargement led to a quadratic shape of the temples. The roofs were made in the shape of marquees. The trellis walls, roof poles and layers of felt were replaced by stone, brick, beams and planks, and became permanent.

Chultem distinguished three styles in traditional Mongolian architecture: Mongolian, Tibetan and Chinese as well as combinations of the three. Among the first quadratic temples was Batu-Tsagaan (1654) designed by Zanabazar. An example of the yurt-style architecture is the lamasery Dashi-Choiling in Ulan Bator. The temple Lavrin (XVIII century) in the Erdene Zuu lamasery was built in the Tibetan tradition. An example of a temple built in the Chinese tradition is the lamasery Choijing Lamiin Sume (1904), which is a museum today. The quadratic temple Tsogchin in lamasery Gandan in Ulan Bator is a combination of the Mongolian and Chinese tradition. The temple of Maitreya (disassembled in 1938) is an example of the Tibeto-Mongolian architecture.[38] Dashi-Choiling monastery has commenced a project to restore the temple and the 80 feet (24 m) sculpture of Maitreya.

Music
The music of Mongolia is strongly influenced by Tibetan Buddhism and nomadism. The natives dance the "tsam" to keep away evil spirits and it was seen the reminiscences of shamaning. The traditional music includes a variety of instruments and also the throat-singing technique, khoomei.

Source

John Parker "African History: A Very Short Introduction"

2008-06-04T21:41:00.002+04:00

John Parker "African History: A Very Short Introduction"
2007-03-26 | ISBN: 0192802488 | 144 pages | PDF | 4 Mb

Essential reading for anyone interested in the African continent and the diversity of human history, this Very Short Introduction looks at Africa's past and reflects on the changing ways it has been imagined and represented. Key themes in current thinking about Africa's history are illustrated with a range of fascinating historical examples, drawn from over 5 millennia across this vast continent.

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Republic of Chad

2008-06-03T14:36:00.003+04:00

Chad (French: Tchad; Arabic: تشاد‎), officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west. Due to its distance from the sea and its largely desert climate, the country is sometimes referred to as the "Dead Heart of Africa". Chad is divided into three major geographical regions: a desert zone in the north, an arid Sahelian belt in the centre and a more fertile Sudanese savanna zone in the south. Lake Chad, after which the country is named, is the largest wetland in Chad and the second largest in Africa. Chad's highest peak is the Emi Koussi in the Sahara, and N'Djamena, the capital, is the largest city. Chad is home to over 200 different ethnic and linguistic groups. Arabic and French are the official languages. Islam is the most widely practiced religion.

Beginning in the 7th millennium BC, human populations moved into the Chadian basin in great numbers. By the end of the 1st millennium BC, a series of states and empires rose and fell in Chad's Sahelian strip, each focused on controlling the trans-Saharan trade routes that passed through the region. France conquered the territory by 1920 and incorporated it as part of French Equatorial Africa. In 1960 Chad obtained independence under the leadership of François Tombalbaye. Resentment towards his policies in the Muslim north culminated in the eruption of a long-lasting civil war in 1965. In 1979 the rebels conquered the capital and put an end to the south's hegemony. However, the rebel commanders fought amongst themselves until Hissène Habré defeated his rivals. He was overthrown in 1990 by his general Idriss Déby. Recently, the Darfur crisis in Sudan has spilt over the border and destabilised the nation.

While many political parties are active, power lies firmly in the hands of President Déby and his political party, the Patriotic Salvation Movement. Chad remains plagued by political violence and recurrent attempted coups d'état, and is one of the poorest and most corrupt countries in the world; most Chadians live in poverty as subsistence herders and farmers. Since 2003 crude oil has become the country's primary source of export earnings, superseding the traditional cotton industry.

In the 7th millennium BC, ecological conditions in the northern half of Chadian territory favored human settlement, and the region experienced a strong population increase. Some of the most important African archaeological sites are found in Chad, mainly in the Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti Region; some date to earlier than 2,000 BC. For more than 2000 years, the Chadian Basin has been inhabited by agricultural and sedentary peoples. The region became a crossroads of civilizations. The earliest of these were the legendary Sao, known from artifacts and oral histories. The Sao fell to the Kanem Empire, the first and longest-lasting of the empires that developed in Chad's Sahelian strip by the end of the 1st millennium AD. The power of Kanem and its successors was based on control of the trans-Saharan trade routes that passed through the region. These states, at least tacitly Muslim, never extended their control to the southern grasslands except to raid for slaves.

French colonial expansion led to the creation of the Terretorie Military des Pays et Protectorats du Tchad in 1900. By 1920, France had secured full control of the colony and incorporated it as part of French Equatorial Africa. French rule in Chad was characterised by an absence of policies to unify the territory and sluggish modernisation. The French primarily viewed the colony as an unimportant source of untrained labour and raw cotton; France introduced large-scale cotton production in 1929. The colonial administration in Chad was critically understaffed and had to rely on the dregs of the French civil service. Only the south was governed effectively; French presence in the north and east was nominal. The educational system suffered from this neglect. After World War II, France granted Chad the status of overseas territory and its inhabitants the right to elect representatives to the French National Assembly and a Chadian assembly. The largest political party was the Chadian Progressive Party (PPT), based in the southern half of the colony. Chad was granted independence on August 11, 1960 with the PPT's leader, François Tombalbaye, as its first president.

Two years later, Tombalbaye banned opposition parties and established a one-party system. Tombalbaye's autocratic rule and insensitive mismanagement exacerbated interethnic tensions. In 1965 Muslims began a civil war. Tombalbaye was overthrown and killed in 1975, but the insurgency continued. In 1979 the rebel factions conquered the capital, and all central authority in the country collapsed. Armed factions, many from the north's rebellion, contended for power. The disintegration of Chad caused the collapse of France's position in the country. Libya moved to fill the power vacuum and became involved in Chad's civil war. Libya's adventure ended in disaster in 1987; the French-supported president, Hissène Habré, evoked a united response from Chadians of a kind never seen beforeand forced the Libyan army off Chadian soil.

Habré consolidated his dictatorship through a power system that relied on corruption and violence; an estimated 40,000 people were killed under his rule. The president favoured his own Daza ethnic group and discriminated against his former allies, the Zaghawa. His general, Idriss Déby, overthrew him in 1990.

Déby attempted to reconcile the rebel groups and reintroduced multiparty politics. Chadians approved a new constitution by referendum, and in 1996, Déby easily won a competitive presidential election. He won a second term five years later. Oil exploitation began in Chad in 2003, bringing with it hopes that Chad would at last have some chances of peace and prosperity. Instead, internal dissent worsened, and a new civil war broke out. Déby unilaterally modified the constitution to remove the two-term limit on the presidency; this caused an uproar among the civil society and opposition parties. In 2006 Déby won a third mandate in elections that the opposition boycotted. Ethnic violence in eastern Chad has increased; the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has warned that a genocide like that in Darfur may yet occur in Chad.

In 2006 and in 2008 rebel forces have attempted to take the capital by force, but have on both circumstances failed.

Politics and government

Chad's constitution provides for a strong executive branch headed by a president who dominates the political system. The president has the power to appoint the prime minister and the cabinet, and exercises considerable influence over appointments of judges, generals, provincial officials and heads of Chad's para-statal firms. In cases of grave and immediate threat, the president, in consultation with the National Assembly, may declare a state of emergency. The president is directly elected by popular vote for a five-year term; in 2005 constitutional term limits were removed. This removal allows a president to remain in power beyond the previous two-term limit. Most of Déby's key advisers are members of the Zaghawa ethnic group, although southern and opposition personalities are represented in government. Corruption is rife at all levels; Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index for 2005 named Chad the most corrupt country in the world, and it has fared only slightly better in the following years. In 2007, it scored 1.8 out of 10 on the Corruption Perceptions Index (with 10 being the least corrupt). Only Tonga, Uzbekistan, Haiti, Iraq, Myanmar, and Somalia scored lower. Critics of President Déby have accused him of cronyism and tribalism.

Chad's legal system is based on French civil law and Chadian customary law where the latter does not interfere with public order or constitutional guarantees of equality. Despite the constitution's guarantee of judicial independence, the president names most key judicial officials. The legal system's highest jurisdictions, the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Council, have become fully operational since 2000. The Supreme Court is made up of a chief justice, named by the president, and 15 councillors, appointed for life by the president and the National Assembly. The Constitutional Court is headed by nine judges elected to nine-year terms. It has the power to review legislation, treaties and international agreements prior to their adoption.
The National Assembly makes legislation. The body consists of 155 members elected for four-year terms who meet three times per year. The Assembly holds regular sessions twice a year, starting in March and October, and can hold special sessions when called by the prime minister. Deputies elect a National Assembly president every two years. The president must sign or reject newly passed laws within 15 days. The National Assembly must approve the prime minister's plan of government and may force the prime minister to resign through a majority vote of no confidence. However, if the National Assembly rejects the executive branch's programme twice in one year, the president may disband the Assembly and call for new legislative elections. In practice, the president exercises considerable influence over the National Assembly through his party, the Patriotic Salvation Movement (MPS), which holds a large majority.

Until the legalisation of opposition parties in 1992, Déby's MPS was the sole legal party in Chad. Since, 78 registered political parties have become active. In 2005, opposition parties and human rights organisations supported the boycott of the constitutional referendum that allowed Déby to stand for re-election for a third term amid reports of widespread irregularities in voter registration and government censorship of independent media outlets during the campaign. Correspondents judged the 2006 presidential elections a mere formality, as the opposition deemed the polls a farce and boycotted.

Déby faces armed opposition from groups who are deeply divided by leadership clashes but united in their intention to overthrow him. These forces stormed the capital on April 13, 2006, but were ultimately repelled. Chad's greatest foreign influence is France, which maintains 1,000 troops in the country. Déby relies on the French to help repel the rebels, and France gives the Chadian army logistical and intelligence support for fear of a complete collapse of regional stability.[36] Nevertheless, Franco-Chadian relations were soured by the granting of oil drilling rights to the American Exxon company in 1999.

Educators face considerable challenges due to the nation's dispersed population and a certain degree of reluctance on the part of parents to send their children to school. Although attendance is compulsory, only 68% of boys continue past primary school, and more than half of the population is illiterate. Higher education is provided at the University of N'Djamena.

Humanitarian situation

According to the United Nations, Chad has been affected by a humanitarian crisis since at least 2001. As of 2008, the country hosts over 280,000 refugees from the Sudan's Darfur region, over 55,000 from the Central African Republic, as well as over 170,000 internally displaced persons.[39]

In February 2008 in the aftermath of the battle of N'Djamena, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes expressed "extreme concern" that the crisis would have a negative effect on the ability of humanitarians to deliver life-saving assistance to half a million beneficiaries, most of whom - according to him - heavily rely on humanitarian aid for their survival. UN spokesperson Maurizio Giuliano stated to The Washington Post: "If we do not manage to provide aid at sufficient levels, the humanitarian crisis might become a humanitarian catastrophe".

The UN, under the leadership of Holmes, boosted the humanitarian response in 2007, with the arrival of a field office of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Senior UN official Eliane Duthoit was deployed as head of the OCHA office in the capital N'Djamena, while former World Food Programme official Fatma Samoura became Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator in the eastern town of Abéché.

Regions, departments, and sub-prefectures

Chad is divided into 18 regions. This system came about in 2003 as part of the decentralisation process, when the government abolished the previous 14 prefectures. Each region is headed by a presidentially appointed governor. Prefects administer the 50 departments within the regions. The departments are divided into 200 sub-prefectures, which are in turn composed of 446 cantons. The cantons are scheduled to be replaced by communautés rurales, but the legal and regulatory framework has not yet been completed. The constitution provides for decentralised government to compel local populations to play an active role in their own development. To this end, the constitution declares that each administrative subdivisions be governed by elected local assemblies, but no local elections have taken place, and communal elections scheduled for 2005 have been repeatedly postponed.

Geography

At 1,284,000 square kilometres (496,000 sq mi), Chad is the world's 21st-largest country. It is slightly smaller than Peru and slightly larger than South Africa. Chad is in north central Africa, lying between 8° and 24° north and between 14° and 24° east. Chad is bounded to the north by Libya, to the east by Sudan, to the west by Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon, and to the south by the Central African Republic. The country's capital is 1,600 km (990 mi) from the nearest seaport. Due to this distance from the sea and the country's largely desert climate, Chad is sometimes referred to as the "Dead Heart of Africa".

A heritage of the colonial era, Chad's borders do not coincide wholly with natural boundaries. The dominant physical structure is a wide basin bounded to the north, east and south by mountain ranges. Lake Chad, after which the country is named, is the remains of an immense lake that occupied 330,000 km² (130,000 sq mi) of the Chadian Basin 7,000 years ago. Although in the 21st century it covers only 17,806 km² (6,875 sq mi), and its surface area is subject to heavy seasonal fluctuations, the lake is Africa's second largest wetland. The Emi Koussi, a dormant volcano in the Tibesti Mountains that reaches 3,414 metres (13,435 ft) above sea level, is the highest point in Chad and the Sahara.

Each year a tropical weather system known as the intertropical front crosses Chad from south to north, bringing a wet season that lasts from May to October in the south, and from June to September in the Sahel. Variations in local rainfall create three major geographical zones. The Sahara lies in the country's northern third. Yearly precipitations there are under 50 millimetres (2 in); in fact, Borkou in Chad is the most arid area of the Sahara. Vegetation throughout this belt is scarce; only the occasional spontaneous palm grove survives, the only ones to do so south of the Tropic of Cancer. The Sahara gives way to a Sahelian belt in Chad's centre; precipitation there varies from 300 mm to 600 mm (12–24 in) per year. In the Sahel a steppe of thorny bushes (mostly acacias) gradually gives way to a savanna in Chad's Sudanese zone to the south. Yearly rainfall in this belt is over 900 mm (35 in). The region's tall grasses and extensive marshes make it favourable for birds, reptiles, and large mammals. Chad's major rivers—the Chari, Logone and their tributaries—flow through the southern savannas from the southeast into Lake Chad.

Economy and infrastructure

The United Nations' Human Development Index ranks Chad as the fifth poorest country in the world, with 80% of the population living below the poverty line. The GDP (PPP) per capita was estimated as US$1,500 in 2005. Chad is part of the Bank of Central African States and the Customs and Economic Union of Central Africa (UDEAC). Its currency is the CFA franc. Years of civil war have scared away foreign investors; those who left Chad between 1979 and 1982 have only recently begun to regain confidence in the country's future. In 2000 major direct foreign investment in the oil sector began, boosting the country's economic prospects.

Over 80% of Chad's population relies on subsistence farming and livestock raising for its livelihood. The crops grown and the locations of herds are determined by the local climate. In the southernmost 10 percent of the territory lies the nation's most fertile cropland, with rich yields of sorghum and millet. In the Sahel only the hardier varieties of millet grow, and these with much lower yields than in the south. On the other hand, the Sahel is ideal pastureland for large herds of commercial cattle and for goats, sheep, donkeys and horses. The Sahara's scattered oases support only some dates and legumes. Before the development of oil industry, cotton dominated industry and the labour market and accounted for approximately 80% of export earnings. Cotton remains a primary export, although exact figures are not available. Rehabilitation of Cotontchad, a major cotton company that suffered from a decline in world cotton prices, has been financed by France, the Netherlands, the European Union, and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). The parastatal is now expected to be privatised.

ExxonMobil leads a consortium of Chevron and Petronas that has invested $3.7 billion to develop oil reserves estimated at one billion barrels in southern Chad. Oil production began in 2003 with the completion of a pipeline (financed in part by the World Bank) that links the southern oilfields to terminals on the Atlantic coast of Cameroon. As a condition of its assistance, the World Bank insisted that 80% of oil revenues be spent on development projects. In January 2006 the World Bank suspended its loan programme when the Chadian government passed laws reducing this amount. On July 14, 2006, the World Bank and Chad signed a memorandum of understanding under which the Government of Chad commits 70% of its spending to priority poverty reduction programmes.

Civil war crippled the development of transport infrastructure; in 1987, Chad had only 30 kilometres (19 mi) of paved roads. Successive road rehabilitation projects improved the network to 550 kilometres (342 mi) by 2004. Nevertheless, the road network is limited; roads are often unusable for several months of the year. With no railways of its own, Chad depends heavily on Cameroon's rail system for the transport of Chadian exports and imports to and from the seaport of Douala. An international airport serves the capital and provides regular direct flights to Paris and several African cities. The telecommunication system is basic and expensive, with fixed telephone services provided by the state telephone company SotelTchad. Only 14,000 fixed telephone lines serve all of Chad, one of the lowest telephone density rates in the world. Chad's energy sector has suffered from years of mismanagement by the parastatal Chad Water and Electric Society (STEE), which provides power for 15% of the capital's citizens and covers only 1.5% of the national population. Most Chadians burn biomass fuels such as wood and animal manure for power. Chad's cities face serious difficulties of municipal infrastructure; only 48% of urban residents have access to potable water and only 2% to basic sanitation.

The country's television audience is limited to N'Djamena. The only television station is the state-owned TeleTchad. Radio has a far greater reach, with 13 private radio stations. Newspapers are limited in quantity and distribution, and circulation figures are small due to transportation costs, low literacy rates, and poverty. While the constitution defends liberty of expression, the government has regularly restricted this right, and at the end of 2006 began to enact a system of prior censorship on the media.

Demographics

2005 estimates place Chad's population at 10,146,000; 25.8% live in urban areas and 74.8% in rural ones. The country's population is young: an estimated 47.3% is under 15. The birth rate is estimated at 42.35 births per 1,000 people, the mortality rate at 16.69. The life expectancy is 47.2 years.

Chad's population is unevenly distributed. Density is 0.1/km² (0.3/sq mi) in the Saharan Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti Region but 52.4/km² (135.7/sq mi) in the Logone Occidental Region. In the capital, it is even higher. About half of the nation's population lives in the southern fifth of its territory, making this the most densely populated region. Urban life is virtually restricted to the capital, whose population is mostly engaged in commerce. The other major towns are Sarh, Moundou, Abéché and Doba, which are less urbanised but are growing rapidly and joining the capital as decisive factors in economic growth. Since 2003, 230,000 Sudanese refugees have fled to eastern Chad from war-ridden Darfur. With the 172,000 Chadians displaced by the civil war in the east, this has generated increased tensions among the region's communities.

Polygamy is common, with 39% of women living in such unions. This is sanctioned by law, which automatically permits polygamy unless spouses specify that this is unacceptable upon marriage. Although violence against women is prohibited, domestic violence is common. Female genital mutilation is prohibited, but the practice is widespread and deeply rooted in tradition; 45% of Chadian women undergo the procedure, with the highest rates among Arabs, Hadjarai, and Ouaddaians (90% or more). Lower percentages were reported among the Sara (38%) and the Toubou (2%). Women lack equal opportunities in education and training, making it difficult for them to compete for the relatively few formal-sector jobs. Although property and inheritance laws based on the French code do not discriminate against women, local leaders adjudicate most inheritance cases in favour of men, according to traditional practice.

Chad has more than 200 distinct ethnic groups, which create diverse social structures. The colonial administration and independent governments have attempted to impose a national society, but for most Chadians the local or regional society remains the most important influence outside the immediate family. Nevertheless, Chad's peoples may be classified according to the geographical region in which they live. In the south live sedentary people such as the Sara, the nation's main ethnic group, whose essential social unit is the lineage. In the Sahel sedentary peoples live side-by-side with nomadic ones, such as the Arabs, the country's second major ethnic group. The north is inhabited by nomads, mostly Toubous. The nation's official business languages are French and Arabic, but over 100 languages and dialects are spoken. Due to the important role played by itinerant Arab traders and settled merchants in local communities, Chadian Arabic has become a lingua franca.

Religion in Chad is diverse. The 1993 census found that 54% of Chadians were Muslim, 20% Roman Catholic, 14% Protestant, 10% animist, and 3% atheist. None of these religious traditions is monolithic. Animism includes a variety of ancestor and place-oriented religions whose expression is highly specific. Islam, though characterised by an orthodox set of beliefs and observances, is expressed in diverse ways. Christianity arrived in Chad only with the French; as with Chadian Islam, it syncretises aspects of pre-Christian religious beliefs. Muslims are largely concentrated in northern and eastern Chad, and animists and Christians live primarily in southern Chad and Guéra. The constitution provides for a secular state and guarantees religious freedom; different religious communities generally co-exist without problems.

Culture

Holidays Date English Name
January 1 New Year's Day
May 1 Labour Day
May 25 African Liberation Day
August 11 Independence Day
November 1 All Saints' Day
November 28 Republic Day
December 1 Freedom and Democracy Day
December 25 Christmas

Due to its great variety of peoples and languages, Chad possesses a rich cultural heritage. The Chadian government have actively promoted Chadian culture and national traditions by opening the Chad National Museum and the Chad Cultural Centre. Six national holidays are observed throughout the year, and movable holidays include the Christian holiday of Easter Monday and the Muslim holidays of Eid ul-Fitr, Eid ul-Adha, and Eid Milad Nnabi.

Regarding music, Chadians play instruments such as the kinde, a type of bow harp; the kakaki, a long tin horn; and the hu hu, a stringed instrument that uses calabashes as loudspeakers. Other instruments and their combinations are more linked to specific ethic groups: the Sara prefer whistles, balafones, harps and kodjo drums; and the Kanembu combine the sounds of drums with those of flute-like instruments.

The music group Chari Jazz formed in 1964 and initiated Chad's modern music scene. Later, more renowned groups such as African Melody and International Challal attempted to mix modernity and tradition. Popular groups such as Tibesti have clung faster to their heritage by drawing on sai, a traditional style of music from southern Chad. The people of Chad have customarily disdained modern music. However, in 1995 greater interest has developed and fostered the distribution of CDs and audio cassettes featuring Chadian artists. Piracy and a lack legal protections for artists' rights remain problems to further development of the Chadian music industry.
Millet is the staple food throughout Chad. It is used to make balls of paste that are dipped in sauces. In the north this dish is known as alysh; in the south, as biya. Fish is popular, which is generally prepared and sold either as salanga (sun-dried and lightly smoked Alestes and Hydrocynus) or as banda (smoked larger fish). Carcaje is a popular sweet drink extracted from hibiscus leaves. Alcoholic beverages, though absent in the north, are popular in the south, where people drink millet beer, known as billi-billi when brewed from red millet and as coshate when from white millet.

As in other Sahelian countries, literature in Chad has suffered from an economic, political and spiritual drought that has affected its best known writers. Chadian authors have been forced to write from exile or expatriate status and have generated literature dominated by themes of political oppression and historical discourse. Since 1962, 20 Chadian authors have written some 60 works of fiction. Among the most internationally renowned writers are Joseph Brahim Seïd, Baba Moustapha, Antoine Bangui and Koulsy Lamko. In 2003 Chad's sole literary critic, Ahmat Taboye, published his Anthologie de la littérature tchadienne to further knowledge of Chad's literature internationally and among youth and to make up for Chad's lack of publishing houses and promotional structure.

The development of a Chadian film industry has suffered from the devastations of civil war and from the lack of cinemas, of which there is only one in the whole country. The first Chadian feature film, the docudrama Bye Bye Africa, was made in 1999 by Mahamat Saleh Haroun. His later film Abouna was critically acclaimed, and his Daratt won the Grand Special Jury Prize at the 63rd Venice International Film Festival. Issa Serge Coelo directed Chad's two other films, Daresalam and DP75: Tartina City.

Football is Chad's most popular sport. The country's national team is much followed during international competitions, and Chadian footballers have played for French teams. Basketball and freestyle wrestling are widely practiced, the latter in a form in which the wrestlers don traditional animal hides and cover themselves with dust.

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Samuel Willard Crompton “Pakistan (Modern World Nations)"

2008-06-02T16:28:00.001+04:00

Samuel Willard Crompton “Pakistan (Modern World Nations)"
2002-07 | ISBN: 0791070980 | 112 pages | PDF | 3,7 Mb

Pakistan is one of the world’s most strategically located countries. Sharing borders with India to the east and south, China to the northeast, Afghanistan to the north and west, and Iran to the west, Pakistan sits at one of the great crossroads of history.
Many conquerors and would-be conquerors have traveled through this land, andmany an army has struggled through the mountains of Pakistan and delighted in the open floodplains of the Indus River. But no one conqueror has ever fully gained control over Pakistan. This can be attributed in part to the country’s diverse lands and peoples but also to the large number of foreign conquerors who have struggled to gain ascendancy.

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Charles F. Gritzner “The United States of America (Modern World Nations)"

2008-06-02T16:26:00.001+04:00

Charles F. Gritzner “The United States of America (Modern World Nations)"
2007-11-30 | ISBN: 0791095118 | 142 pages | PDF | 1 Mb

These well known lyrics, written by Katharine Lee Bates, hold as true today as they did in 1893, when the original verses were penned. On a trip from her Massachusetts home to Colorado Springs, Colorado, Bates was awed by the magnificent view of the Great Plains from atop majestic Pikes Peak. The United States of America truly is a beautiful and bountiful land that has been blessed in countless ways by nature, culture, and history. It is also a country of vast natural and cultural extremes. Through time, the United States has experienced and survived a number of hardships. This brief book attempts to paint a geographical portrait of the land that is home to most readers.

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James F. Marran “The Netherlands (Modern World Nations)"

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James F. Marran “The Netherlands (Modern World Nations)"
2003-09 | ISBN: 0791074765 | 150 pages | PDF | 4 Mb

In the beginning, the place was a swamp on the banks of the North Sea that later became an empire. That is how the famous historian and geographer Hendrick Willem van Loon described the Netherlands for a world history he wrote in the early 20th century.
The description was apt even though a bit harsh, perhaps even cruel.
The Netherlands is an appropriate name for a small and tidy country tucked neatly on the shores of the North Sea between Belgium and Germany, because it is indeed a nether, or low, place. In fact, about two-thirds of the country is below the level of the sea.

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Robert A. Harper “Saudi Arabia (Modern World Nations)"

2008-06-02T16:22:00.001+04:00

Robert A. Harper “Saudi Arabia (Modern World Nations)"
2002-08 | ISBN: 0791069354 | 109 pages | PDF | 1,1 Mb

Suppose you are a camel herder in the desert. You and your relatives live in a tent camp. You have no electricity, no plumbing, and you cook over an open fire. You have never seen a train or an automobile. You live mostly on camel’s milk and dates. You cannot read or write. Because you are deeply religious, your children are taught how to live strictly according to God’s law—a law that does not accept change easily.
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S.A.Isiorho “Kuwait (Modern World Nations)"

2008-06-02T16:19:00.001+04:00

S.A.Isiorho “Kuwait (Modern World Nations)"
2002-05 | ISBN: 0791067815 | 117 pages | PDF | 5,3 Mb

“War,” said American writer Ambrose Bierce, “is God’s way of teaching Americans geography.”
Although written nearly a century ago, his observation certainly holds true in regard to Kuwait. This small, little known, Middle Eastern country suddenly was thrust onto the global stage in August 1990, when it was
attacked and overrun by military forces from neighboring Iraq. American and other military forces immediately intervened in defense of Kuwait in what came to be known as the “Gulf War.” As a result of widespread media attention and the active participation of thousands of American troops in the conflict, Americans learned a great deal about Kuwait’s geographic conditions.

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Douglas A. Phillips “Thailand (Modern World Nations)"

2008-06-02T16:15:00.001+04:00

Douglas A. Phillips “Thailand (Modern World Nations)"
2007-03-30 | ISBN: 079109250X | 150 pages | PDF | 3,4 Mb

Sawaddee! Welcome to Thailand! Sawaddee is an all-purpose greeting that can mean good morning, good afternoon, good evening, or good night. By putting your palms gently together under your chin with your head tilted slightly forward, you have greeted your hosts with the wai (form of greeting) that is used in Thailand. If you want to be even more appropriate, use the wai and say “Sawaddee krup” (if you are a man) or “Sawaddee ka” (if you are a woman). With this greeting, you have not only shown respect to your host, but you also have started your amazing adventure into the exploration of Thailand!

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Douglas A. Phillips "Vietnam (Modern World Nations)"

2008-06-02T15:46:00.002+04:00

Douglas A. Phillips "Vietnam (Modern World Nations)"
2006-04-04 | ISBN: 0791088359 | 108 pages | PDF | 3,5 Mb

Vietnam! Even the country’s name invokes strong and varied emotional reactions from many people. For some, it represents a beloved and lost homeland. For others, it is a place where loved ones were lost in a war that some believed in and others did not. For still others, it is a land finally free from colonial powers and outside influences. Vietnam’s place was once center stage in the global Cold War. Its name and history still sharply divide people in the United States, as shown by the 2004 presidential election. How can this slender S-shaped sliver of a country play such an important role in the lives of so many? This is one of many questions that will be answered in this exploration of the people, places, past, and culture of Vietnam.

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Richard A. Crooker “Venezuela (Modern World Nations)"

2008-06-02T15:44:00.002+04:00

Richard A. Crooker “Venezuela (Modern World Nations)"
2006-05-31 | ISBN: 0791088340 | 114 pages | PDF | 4,4 Mb

Venezuela sits prominently along the Atlantic and Caribbean coasts of northern South America. Colombia is to the west, Brazil to the south, and Guyana to the east. Venezuela’s total area, which is medium - sized by South American standards, is roughly the combined size of Texas and Oklahoma. It is about one-tenth the size of Brazil (South America’s largest country) but ten times larger than French Guiana (the continent’s smallest country). Venezuela stretches from 1° to 12° north latitude. Close to the equator, it is a tropical country.

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Tanzania

2008-06-02T15:37:00.003+04:00

Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania
United Republic of Tanzania

Tanzania IPA: /ˌtænzəˈniːə/, officially the United Republic of Tanzania (Swahili: Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda on the north, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the west, and Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique on the south. To the east it borders the Indian Ocean.
The country's name is a portmanteau of Tanganyika, the large mainland territory, and Zanzibar, the offshore archipelago. The two former British colonies united in 1964, forming the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar, which later the same year was renamed the United Republic of Tanzania.
In 1996 government offices were transferred from Dar es Salaam to Dodoma, making Dodoma the country's political capital. Dar es Salaam remains the principal commercial city.

History
History of Tanzania

What is now Tanzania was a colony and part of Germany from the 1880s to 1919. Under the League of Nations, the area became a British Mandate from 1919 to 1961. It served as a military outpost during World War II and provided financial help as well as munitions. Julius Nyerere became Minister of British-administered Tanganyika in 1960 and continued as Prime Minister when Tanganyika became independent in 1961. Tanganyika and neighbouring Zanzibar, which had become independent in 1963, merged to form the nation of Tanzania on April 26, 1964. One-party rule came to an end in 1995 with the first democratic elections held in the country since the 1970s. Having been essentially a socialist state soon after independence, Tanzanian economic aid went hand in hand with structural adjustment conditionalities that deteriorated the nation's economy. This deterioration was due to a sudden shift to capitalism when the societal and economic framework of the nation was a socialist one. During the 80s Tanzanian GDP growth increased (due to SAPs) yet Human Development Indexes lowered. Tanzania still struggles with economic development yet its outlook is positive due to increasing natural resource exports.

Politics of Tanzania

Tanzania's president and National Assembly members are elected concurrently by direct popular vote for five-year terms. The president appoints a prime minister who serves as the government's leader in the National Assembly. The president selects his cabinet from among National Assembly members. The Constitution also empowers him to nominate ten non-elected members of Parliament, who also are eligible to become cabinet members. Elections for president and all National Assembly seats were held in December 2005.

The unicameral National Assembly elected in 2000 has 295 members. These 295 members include the Attorney General, five members elected from the Zanzibar House of Representatives to participate in the Parliament, the special women's seats which are made up of 20% of the seats a particular party has in the House, 181 constituents seats of members of Parliament from the mainland, and 50 seats from Zanzibar. Also in the list are forty-eight appointed for women and the seats for the 10 nominated members of Parliament. At present, the ruling CCM holds about 93% of the seats in the Assembly. Laws passed by the National Assembly are valid for Zanzibar only in specifically designated union matters.

Zanzibar's House of Representatives has jurisdiction over all non-union matters. There are currently seventy-six members in the House of Representatives in Zanzibar, including fifty elected by the people, ten appointed by the president of Zanzibar, five ex officio members, and an attorney general appointed by the president. In May 2002, the government increased the number of special seats allocated to women from ten to fifteen, which will increase the number of House of Representatives members to eighty-one. Ostensibly, Zanzibar's House of Representatives can make laws for Zanzibar without the approval of the union government as long as it does not involve union-designated matters. The terms of office for Zanzibar's president and House of Representatives also are five years. The semiautonomous relationship between Zanzibar and the union is a relatively unusual system of government.

Tanzania has a five-level judiciary combining the jurisdictions of tribal, Islamic, and British common law. Appeal is from the primary courts through the district courts, resident magistrate courts, to the high courts, and Court of Appeals. Judges are appointed by the Chief Justice, except those for the Court of Appeals and the High Court who are appointed by the president. The Zanzibari court system parallels the legal system of the union, and all cases tried in Zanzibari courts, except for those involving constitutional issues and Islamic law, can be appealed to the Court of Appeals of the union. A commercial court was established in September 1999 as a division of the High Court.

Regions of Tanzania and Districts of Tanzania

Tanzania is divided into 26 regions (mkoa), twenty-one on the mainland and five on Zanzibar (three on Unguja, two on Pemba). Ninety-eight districts (wilaya), each with at least one council, have been created to further increase local authority; the councils are also known as local government authorities. Currently there are 114 councils operating in 99 districts; 22 are urban and 92 are rural. The 22 urban units are further classified as city councils (Dar es Salaam and Mwanza), municipal councils (Arusha, Dodoma, Iringa, Kilimanjaro, Mbeya, Morogoro, Shinyanga, Tabora, and Tanga) or town councils (the remaining eleven communities).

Tanzania's regions are: Arusha · Dar es Salaam · Dodoma · Iringa · Kagera · Kigoma · Kilimanjaro · Lindi · Manyara · Mara · Mbeya · Morogoro · Mtwara · Mwanza · Pemba North · Pemba South · Pwani · Rukwa · Ruvuma · Shinyanga · Singida · Tabora · Tanga · Zanzibar Central/South · Zanzibar North · Zanzibar Urban/West

For regions ranked by total area, land area and water area, see List of Tanzanian regions by area.

Geography of Tanzania

At 364,875 mi² (945,087 km²), Tanzania is the world's 31st-largest country (it comes after Egypt). It is comparable in size to Nigeria, and is slightly more than twice the size of the U.S. state of California.

Tanzania is mountainous in the north-east, where Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak, is situated. To the north and west are the Great Lakes of Lake Victoria (Africa's largest lake) and Lake Tanganyika (Africa's deepest lake, known for its unique species of fish). Central Tanzania comprises a large plateau, with plains and arable land. The eastern shore is hot and humid, with the island of Zanzibar lying just offshore.

Tanzania contains many large and ecologically significant wildlife parks, including the famous Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti National Park in the north, and Selous Game Reserve and Mikumi National Park in the south. Gombe National Park in the west is known as the site of Dr. Jane Goodall's studies of chimpanzee behavior.

The government of Tanzania through its department of tourism has embarked on a campaign to promote the Kalambo water falls in south-west Tanzania's region of Rukwa as one of Tanzania's many tourist destinations. The Kalambo falls are the second largest in Africa and are located near the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika.

Environment

Tanzania has considerable land area of wildlife habitat, including much of the Serengeti plain, where the white-bearded wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus mearnsi) and other bovids participate in a large scale annual migration. Up to 250,000 wildebeest perish each year in the long and arduous movement to find forage in the dry season. Tanzania is also home to 130 amphibian and over 275 reptile species, many of them strictly endemic and included in the IUCN Red lists of different countries. Tanzania has developed a Biodiversity Action Plan to address species conservation.

Economy

The economy is mostly based on agriculture, which accounts for more than half of GDP, provides 85% (approximately) of exports, and employs 80% (approximately) of the workforce. Topography and climatic conditions, however, limit cultivated crops to only 4% of the land area. Industry is mainly limited to processing agricultural products and light consumer goods. Tanzania has vast amounts of natural resources including gold deposits and diamonds. Tanzania is also known for the Tanzanite gemstones. Tanzania has dozens of beautiful national parks like the world famous Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, that generate income with a large tourism sector that plays a vital part in the economy. Growth from 1991 to 1999 featured a pickup in industrial production and a substantial increase in output of minerals, led by gold. Commercial production of natural gas from the Songo Songo island in the Indian Ocean off the Rufiji Delta commenced 2004, with natural gas being pumped in a pipeline to the commercial capital Dar es Salaam, with the bulk of it being converted to electricity by the public utility and private operators. A new gas field is being brought on stream in Mnazi Bay.

Recent public sector and banking reforms, and revamped and new legislative frameworks have all helped increase private sector growth and investment. Short-term economic progress also depends on curbing corruption and cutting back on unnecessary public spending.

Prolonged drought during the early years of the 21st century has severely reduced electricity generation capacity (some 60% of Tanzania's electricity supplies are generated by hydro-electric schemes). During 2006 Tanzania suffered a crippling series of "load-shedding" or power rationing because of the shortfall of generated power, largely because of insufficient hydro-electric generation. Plans to increase gas and coal fueled generation capacity are likely to take some years to implement, and growth is forecast to be increased to seven per cent per year, and perhaps eight or more.

There are 3 major airlines in Tanzania, the Air Tanzania Corporation, the PrecisionAir which do local flights -Arusha, Kigoma, Mtwara, Mwanza, Musoma, Shinyanga, Zanzibar) and regional flights to Kigali,Nairobi, Mombasa routes and the third one that does local flights only. There are also several charter aeroplane firms. There are two railway companies: TAZARA caters for service between Dar-es-Salaam and Kapiri-Mposhi, a district of the Central Province in Zambia. The other one is the Tanzania Railways Corporation, which provides services between Dar-es-Salaam and Kigoma, a town on the shores of Lake Tanganyika and between Dar-es-Salaam and Mwanza, a city on the shores of lake Victoria. There is also a service across the Indian Ocean between Dar-es-Salaam and Zanzibar by several modern hydrofoil boats.

Demographics

As of 2006, the estimated population is 38,329,000, with an estimated growth rate of 2%. Population distribution is extremely uneven, with density varying from 1 person per square kilometer (3/mi²) in arid regions to 51 per square kilometer (133/mi²) in the mainland's well-watered highlands, to 134 per square kilometer (347/mi²) on Zanzibar[10]. More than 80% of the population is rural. Tanzania still has a very high unemployment rate,which is about 67%. Dar es Salaam is the largest city and is the commercial capital; Dodoma, located in the center of Tanzania is the new capital and houses the Union's Parliament. Zanzibar Town houses the Zanzibar Parliament.

The African population consists of more than 120 ethnic groups, of which the Sukuma and Nyamwezi, the Hehe and Bena, the Gogo, the Haya, the Makonde, the Chagga and the Nyakyusa have more than 1 million members. Other groups include the Pare, Sambaa or Shambala and Ngoni. The majority of Tanzanians, including such large ethnic groups as the Sukuma and the Nyamwezi, have Bantu origins. Groups of Nilotic or related origin include the nomadic Masai and the Luo, both of which are found in greater numbers in neighboring Kenya. Two small groups speak languages of the Khoisan family peculiar to the people of the Kalahari in southern Africa. Cushitic-speaking peoples, originally from the Ethiopian highlands, reside in a few areas of Tanzania. Other Bantu groups were refugees and immigrants from nearby countries.

Although much of Zanzibar's African population came from the mainland, one group known as Afro-Shirazis claims its origins to be the island's early Persian settlers. Non-Africans residing on the mainland and Zanzibar account for 1% of the total population. In the 1960s and 1970s thousands of Asians emigrated, frequently under duress. Often they attempted to emigrate to the United Kingdom. Their community, including Hindus, Sunni Muslims, Sikhs, Parsis and Goans, has increased in the past decade to 350,000. An estimated 240,000 Arabs and 70,000 Europeans still reside in Tanzania.

Languages

Tanzania has more than 126 tribes and each ethnic group has its own language. No language is de jure official, but Swahili is the de facto official national language, used for inter-ethnic communication and for official matters. After gaining independence, English, the language of colonial administration during the era of British rule, was still used for some official issues, and was thus considered de facto official alongside Swahili. As official usage of English has greatly diminished during the first thirty years following independence, and it was more common to regard Swahili as the only de facto official language. However the political reforms which turned Tanzania away from a closed and socialist environment and a centrally planned economy inevitably resulted in a dramatic opening up of the country. The attendant growth of the private sector and new investment has resulted in English having increasing importance, and there are many schools in which English is the medium of instruction. Universities all use English as the medium of instruction, which often causes problems for students who have previously only taken English as a subject in school. Other spoken languages are Indian languages, especially Gujarati, and Portuguese (both spoken by Mozambican blacks and Goans). Historically German was widely spoken during that colonial period, but few remain alive who remember that period.

Culture

The music of Tanzania stretches from traditional African music to the string-based taarab to a distinctive hip hop known as bongo flava. Famous taarab singers names are Abbasi Mzee, Culture Musical Club, Shakila of Black Star Musical Group. Internationally known traditional artist are Bi Kidude, Hukwe Zawose and Tatu Nane.

Tanzania has its own distinct African rumba music where names of artists/groups like Tabora Jazz, Western Jazz Band, Morogoro Jazz, Volcano Jazz, Simba Wanyika,Remmy Ongala, Ndala Kasheba, NUTA JAZZ, ATOMIC JAZZ, DDC Mlimani Park, Afro 70 & Patrick Balisidya, Sunburst, Tatu Nane and Orchestra Makassy must be mentioned in the history of Tanzanian music.

Tanzania has many writers. The list of writers' names includes well known writers such as Godfrey Mwakikagile, Mohamed Said, Prof. Joseph Mbele, Juma Volter Mwapachu, Prof. Issa Shivji, Jenerali Twaha Ulimwengu, Prof.Penina Mlama, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere, Adam Shafi, Dr. Malima M.P Bundala and Shaaban Robert.

Japanese Culture

2008-02-18T19:10:00.001+03:00

Japanese Culture
May 28, 2000 | ISBN: 0824821521 | 400 pages | PDF | 22 Mb

Thoroughly updated, the fourth edition includes expanded sections on numerous topics, among which are samurai values, Zen Buddhism, the tea ceremony, Confucianism in the Tokugawa period, the story of the forty-seven ronin, Mito scholarship in the early nineteenth century, and mass culture and comics in contemporary times.

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Thanks Smirk for links!

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language by David Crystal

2008-02-18T19:04:00.002+03:00

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language by David Crystal
2003-08-04 | ISBN: 0521530334 | 506 pages | PDF | 40 Mb

This attractive resource is organized thematically in segments covering the history of the English language (Old English, Middle English, Modern English, English in different parts of the world); English vocabulary (its nature, structure, sources, etymology, and the dimensions of the lexicon); English grammar (structure of words and sentences, definitions of the main branches of grammar); spoken and written English; English usage (varieties of discourse and regional, social, and personal usage variations); and how people learn English and new ways to study English. Appendixes include a glossary, a list of symbols and abbreviations, references and addresses, further readings, and indexes of names, items, and topics.

• The most successful general book on the English language (its past, present and future)
• Packed with illustrations, maps, tables and graphics
• Difficult concepts explained in a simple and accessible way

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The CIA World Factbook 2008

2008-02-18T19:02:00.000+03:00

The CIA World Factbook 2008
832 pages | 2007-12 | ISBN:1602390800 | PDF | 47 MB

Chock full of up-to-date coverage of countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, this fascinating reference—intended for use by government officials—should be on the shelf of every school, world traveler, and journalist. For each country, you’ll find: a thorough introduction with historical background; detailed geographical facts, including current environmental issues; and a full description of the people, with information on literacy rates, HIV prevalence, and major infectious diseases. There are also details on conventional political parties, contact information for diplomatic representation, and the nation’s economic status, complete with statistics. A synopsis of transnational issues includes narcotic-related corruption. Along with multiple appendices, this attractive book features pages of beautiful, recently-updated maps, and three high quality fold-out posters.

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Internet English: Www-Based Communication Activities by Christina Gitsaki

2008-02-18T18:57:00.001+03:00

Internet English: Www-Based Communication Activities by Christina Gitsaki
ISBN:019437226X | 70 pages | Djvu | 15,5 Mb

Internet English helps students develop the skills to surf the Internet, while providing a structured framework to practise their conversation skills through communicative tasks. It can be used in traditional or computer-equipped classrooms.

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The Survival Handbook by Peter Darman

2008-02-18T18:54:00.001+03:00

The Survival Handbook by Peter Darman
1996-06-13 | ISBN: 185367236X | 256 pages | PDF | 29 Mb

Provides advice on suriving in hostile environments and includes tips on shelters, traps, weapons, tools, food-finding, signaling, first aid, and other life-saving topics.
I ordered this book over a year and a half ago and since then it never leaves my side when I enter the bush. I enjoy just looking at this book and observing the in depth details and description of everything. This book has many topics. Some of them are, how to tie many different knots, how to make a shelter using the minimal amount of supplies, it shows many ways to build fires and how to gut dear. Another thing i like is it shows what plants are edible and what plants are not. There are many great tips in the book which come from elite military groups such as SAS, Navy SEALs, Green Berets, Rangers, and other great units. This book is honestly one that could save you life. HOOYAH!!!! Thank a War Veteran.

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Vietnam

2007-11-03T13:47:00.000+03:00

Let your senses thrill to the sights, sounds and tastes of Vietnam. Our guide will help you discover the serene landscapes of the Mekong and Red River deltas, dodge cyclists and cyclos in noisy Ho Chi Minh City and drool over exotic local delicacies.

- Over 80 maps of cities, town and regions
- The low-down on the most colourful festivals, best bars and liveliest markets
- Mouth-watering information on Vietnamese food, from noodle soup to grilled gecko
- Top sights and out-of-the-way attractions for every taste
- Detailed language guide

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Shadow of the Silk Road

2007-11-03T13:43:00.000+03:00

Shadow of the Silk Road by Colin Thubron
Publisher: Vintage Books (October 23, 2007) | ISBN-10: 0099437228 | PDF | 2 Mb | 384 pages

In his latest absorbing travel epic, Thubron (In Siberia; Mirror to Damascus) follows the courseor at least the general driftof the ancient network of trade routes that connected central China with the Mediterranean Coast, traversing along the way several former Soviet republics, war-torn Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey. The author travels third-class all the way, in crowded, stifling railroad cars and rattle-trap buses and cars, staying at crummy inns or farmers' houses, subject to shakedowns by border guards and constant harassmenteven quarantineby health officials hunting the SARS virus. Physically, these often monotonously arid, hilly regions of Central Asia tend to go by in a swirl of dun-colored landscapes studded with Buddha shrines in varying states of repair or ruin, but Thubron's poetic eye still teases out gorgeous subtleties in the panorama. Certain themes also color his offbeat encounters with localsmost of them want to get the hell out of Central Asiabut again he susses out the infinite variety of ordinary misery. The conduit by which an entire continent exchanged its commodities, cultures and peoplesThubron finds traces of Roman legionaries and mummies of Celtic tribesmen in western Chinathe Silk Road becomes for him an evocative metaphor for the mingling of experiences and influences that is the essence of travel.

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Bulgaria

2007-11-03T13:29:00.000+03:00

Bulgaria by R.J. Crampton
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (March 12, 2007) | ISBN-10: 0198205147 | PDF | 1,8 Mb | 536 pages

Tracing the evolution of the Bulgarian state and its people, from the beginning of the Bulgarian national revival in the middle of the nineteenth century to the entry of the country into the European Union, Richard Crampton examines key political, social, and economic developments, revealing the history of a country which evolved from a backward and troublesome Balkan state to become a modern European nation. The formation of the first modern Bulgarian state in 1878 played a major role in Bulgaria's evolution, determining its stance in the two World Wars. Seeing the collapse as well as the establishment and evolution of communist rule, Bulgaria survived an often painful journey from monolithic authoritarianism to representative democracy and the market system. This book follows this journey, and analyses the development of Bulgaria's political culture, examining the emergence of radical movements, both agrarian and socialist, as well as looking at the role of religion and the position of minorities. Crampton highlights the problems and dilemmas created by the country's position situated between east and west, problems which might not be entirely solved by the country's admission to the EU.

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Austria, Hungary, and the Habsburgs: Central Europe c.1683-1867

2007-11-03T13:22:00.000+03:00

Austria, Hungary, and the Habsburgs: Central Europe c.1683-1867 by R. J. W. Evans
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (September 11, 2006) | ISBN-10: 0199281440 | PDF | 2 Mb | 368 pages

This book address a number of interrelated themes over two hundred years and more in the political, religious, cultural, and social history of a broad but often neglected swathe of the European continent. It seeks - against the grain of conventional presentations - to apprehend the era from the later seventeenth to the later nineteenth century as a whole, and to demonstrate continuities, as well as casting light on key aspects of the evolution towards modern statehood and national awareness in Central Europe, and the crises of ancien-regime strucutres there in the face of new challenges at home and abroad.
Each of the essays - some of which specially written for this volume, and others available for the first time in English - is intended to be free-standing and accessible on its own; but they are also designed to fit together and demonstrate an overall coherence.
Much attention is devoted to the Austrian or Habsburg lands, especially the interplay of the main territories which comprised them. A central issue here is the evolution of the kingdom of Hungary, from its full acquisition by the Habsburgs at the beginning of the period to the emergence of the dual Austro-Hungarian Monarchy at the end. But the chapters also range more broadly, both territorially and chronologically.

Though much of the scholarship underpinning this masterly exploration may be unfamiliar to many readers, this is a an elegantly written and stimulating collection, which reflects the exploratory and individual character of the essay as a genre.

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National Geographic August 2007

2007-10-25T15:04:00.000+04:00

National Geographic August 2007
PDF - 156 Pages - 38 Mb

The doomed splendor of the Maya unfolded against the backdrop of the rain forests of southern Mexico and Central America. Here, Classic Maya civilization reached improbable heights. To chart a culture whose Preclassic roots reach back 3,000 years, we begin with new evidence suggesting that the arrival of a warlord from central Mexico ushered in an age of magnificence and masterpieces such as the death mask of Palenque's King Pakal.

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HOW TO GET Premium-accounts for Rapidshare, Depositfiles, Easy-Share for FREE

2007-10-25T15:03:00.001+04:00

Probably everyone uses the share-services often?
And not all of you have premium-accounts for these services?
You bristle long wait, slow speed of downloads, but you are not willing (or can not) to buy premium-account?

Then this publication is just for you!
I tell you HOW TO GET Premium-accounts for some share-services for free. Although you have to spend a little time.
You ask me "How is it possible? Could it be complicated?". No, it is not cheating. All are officially: we use partnership programs of these services.

It's no secret that too many such file-share services request a payment from their members. But there are services, which just want to give you a premium account. If you upload files to these services (and other users will download this files, of course).

I'll tell you about three (3) such services:
Rapidshare,
Depositfiles, and
Easy-Share.
First, that for each of these services provides premium account:

Rapidshare (FAQ): To get 1-month RS's premium-account you must collect 10000 points. You will get one point per download if the downloader is a free-user AND your file is bigger than 1 MB AND the downloader has generated less than 5 points in the last hour.
Note: after receiving premium account you need everyone next month for an extension to collect 10,000 points. Otherwise your account will closed. But! Not completely. You will be given one month to collect points. During this month you can upload the files to your account, you will run points, but you can not download files using premium accounts.

Depositfiles (FAQ): To get DF's Gold-Account (Gold-Account is name of DF's premium-account) for a month you need to reach 5000 unique downloads of your files. If you collect 10000 unique downloads of your files, DF give you Gold-Account for 6 months. Read information about some parameters of DF's earn-program.

Easy-Share (FAQ): Your premium account was enabled when you have generated over 15K downloads during last 30 days. It will be active while you have more than 15K downloads during last 30 days.

What’s unique download? It’s downloading of your file from one IP address. Which means that one person can download let’s say 10 files from your account but it will be counted as 1 unique download. To get 10 downloads into your account, your file need to be downloaded by 10 people.

Do not be scared! This is not as much as it seems at first glance. (More you can read about tens share-services here).

Second, now you can decide: what service you want. Or all three services. :)
Done? OK.

First step. Registration.
Rapidshare: For get free collector's account upload any file from Rapidshare's homepage (any small file from your PC). After the upload you will be asked automatically if you want to have a free Collector's Account. After registration you can see you Collector's Zone. If you collect 10000 points then you can exchage this on Premium-account.

Depositfiles: Register free-account for collect points. After registration You can see your Admin Zone. After collect the necessary number of points you automatically get premium-account.

Easy-Share: Register free-account for collect points. After registration You can see your Admin Zone. After collect the necessary number of points you automatically get premium-account.

Second step. You must identify two key parameters:
a. WHAT kind of files to share?
b. WHERE to share?

a. You can easily understand that easiest way is simply look for views/comments of publications on the sites that you visit. :)
b. Be sure to be published in the most visited sites. But the competition is very hard and you need to find the really interesting things. To start you will be easier to publish your link in the not very popular sites. So WHERE you should make your post is depend on you only.

Also note that the prohibited files are removed from these (and other) services without warning.

That is all. Work and get your premium-account!

My personal comments:
1. The best Service Support of all these services - support of Depositfiles. For premium-users ICQ of support is worked as 24/7.
2. Be sure to read about these services on Files Storage Encyclopedia! You learn a lot of new and useful. For example, DF, RS, E-S.
3. For DepositFiles and Easy-Share You can parallel get points for premium-account and earn money.
4. Rapidshare is most popular and quality (for premium-users) share-service of world. It is positive for our task. But and owners of premium-accounts this service very much. And their downloads we would not have nothing but moral meet.
5. Remote-uploads is worked for free-acconts of Rapidshare and Easy-Share. For Depositfiles - only for Gold-users.
...Think. Make your choice.

Try It!
I hope that you enjoy and your life will be simpler!

Now you understand, why so many people use only those file-hosting services for their files!

Of course, you can simply buy premium-account,
but we are not looking for easy ways!
Are you?

If something is unclear, then just ask me about.

GOOD LUCK!

If you want to show this article to other people, then just use this link, please!

Source: (C) Files Storage Encyclopedia, 2007.

Travel Medicine: Tales Behind the Science

2007-10-15T18:51:00.000+04:00

Travel Medicine: Tales Behind the Science by Annelies Wilder-Smith
Publisher: Elsevier Science (June 11, 2007) | ISBN-10: 0080453597 | PDF | 3 Mb | 354 pages

Travel to exotic places is fascinating, and equally so are infections and other dangers of exotic travel. Moreover, one need not be traveling to suffer these maladies; sometimes they travel to you. The enormous global mobility demands a public health response. The result is the concept of travel medicine as a separate discipline. This book describes the evolution of travel medicine, travel vaccines, malaria prophylaxis and infections of adventure and leisure.
This book is unique and different to the standard textbooks on travel medicine. It provides rare insights into many of the behind-the-scenes in travel medicine, personal stories of failures and successes of travel medicine practitioners, the 'real life' tales that unravel the science behind travel medicine. We believe that the best lessons are learned from personal stories.
Not every travel is fun. Some travel is for a cause, be it religious or humanitarian, or be it to escape certain political systems. We have added stories on the tragedies of so-called 'undocumented refugees', and stories written by colleagues who were involved in humanitarian care. Pilgrimages attract large number of 'travelers' and yet we know so little about these pilgrimages. Chapters on the Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian pilgrimages aim to correct this.

Diseases also travel. The spread of global diseases and pandemics is fascinating. This book provides an overview of the pandemics, in particular that of cholera, yellow fever, severe acute respiratory syndrome and influenza. Globalization, migration and health lead to a history of disease and disparity in the global village - our world. And what about the revised International Health Regulations- what do we need to know about them in the context of travel medicine?
In the next millennium, our world will have inherited further global movement. It may even include travel to aerospace. The 'Epilogue' awakes some of our old dreams - the last frontier, space travel
Annelies Wilder-Smith has lived in China, Papua New Guinea, Nepal, New Zealand, and Switzerland. She is currently based in Singapore from where she continues to travel extensively throughout Asia. She is the Head of the Travellers Health ' Vaccination Centre in Singapore, one of the largest travel clinics in Asia. She was in a unique position to do research on W135 meningococcal disease in Hajj pilgrims during the outbreak. She 'lived through' the SARS epidemic in Singapore.
Eli Schwartz is the Director of the Center for Geographic Medicine and Tropical Diseases at Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Aviv University, Israel. Eli is a 'real' tropical medicine specialist. He obtained all his experience in the field, including Nepal, Tibet, and numerous adventure travels to Africa where he prefers to do his studies on the sides of the Omo River.
Marc Shaw is a passionate traveler, doctor, actor and observer of fine humor. His favorite pastime is to be an expedition doctor. This has taken him to exotic places such as Namibia, Mongolia, Pitcairn Islands, and to the Amazon. He is the Director of WORLDWIDE Travellers' Health Centres in New Zealand.
* Unique and rare insights into the behind-the-scenes world of travel medicine including personal stories of both successes and failures from practitioners
* Studies the development of Travel Medicine as a new discipline in response to the overwhelming interest in travel and its ramifications for health
* Provides a history of the International Society of Travel Medicine

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The Ancient Egyptians For Dummies

2007-10-13T19:40:00.000+04:00

The Ancient Egyptians For Dummies by Charlotte Booth
Publisher: For Dummies (August 24, 2007) | ISBN-10: 0470065443 | PDF | 4 Mb | 384 pages

Unravel the history behind of one of the most fascinating ancient civilisations with this engaging, entertaining and educational guide to the ancient Egyptians. With a complete rundown of ancient Egyptian history and culture alongside insights in to the everyday lives of the Egyptians, you'll discover how they kept themselves entertained, the gory details of mummification, the amazing creation of the pyramids, the deciphering of hieroglyphs and much more.

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Strategic Management for Travel and Tourism

2007-10-09T19:19:00.000+04:00

Strategic Management for Travel and Tourism by Nigel Evans
Publisher: Butterworth-Heinemann (January 2003) | ISBN-10: 0750648546 | PDF | 2,3 Mb | 420 pages

'A most comprehensive and accessible text. The authors are to be congratulated for having drawn upon recent research and a wide variety of industry examples to make this an excellent introduction to the concept of business strategy within a travel and tourism context.'
Professor Mike Robinson, Chair of Tourism Studies, Sheffield Hallam University
'This book provides an interesting and useful review of issues, being able to successfully combine the pragmatic with the conceptual in a manner that many will find appealing. It is recommended to those with an interest in these issues.'
Chris Ryan, Professor of Tourism,The University of Waikato, New Zealand

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An Atlas And Survey of Latin American History

2007-10-09T19:11:00.000+04:00

An Atlas And Survey of Latin American History by Michael J. Larosa
Publisher: M.E. Sharpe (October 4, 2006) | ISBN-10: 0765615975 | PDF | 6 Mb | 169 pages

An Atlas and Survey of Latin American History offers a single-volume synthetic portrait of the interactions of physical geography and human history over a long time period in the territory commonly referred to as Latin America. We have adopted a nineteenth-century French definition of Latin America, which means that a territory is “Latin” to the extent that it was colonized by a country with a mostly Latin-derived language (for our purposes, Spanish, Portuguese, and French). By this definition, then, Haiti is Latin America but nearby Jamaica is not.

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The History of the Incas

2007-10-09T19:07:00.000+04:00

The History of the Incas by Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa
Publisher: University of Texas Press; New Ed edition (March 1, 2007) | ISBN-10: 0292714858 | PDF | 8 Mb | 284 pages

The History of the Incas may be the best description of Inca life and mythology to survive Spanish colonization of Peru. Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa, a well-educated sea captain and cosmographer of the viceroyalty, wrote the document in Cuzco, the capital of the Inca Empire, just forty years after the arrival of the first Spaniards. The royal sponsorship of the work guaranteed Sarmiento direct access to the highest Spanish officials in Cuzco. It allowed him to summon influential Incas, especially those who had witnessed the fall of the Empire. Sarmiento also traveled widely and interviewed numerous local lords (curacas), as well as surviving members of the royal Inca families. Once completed, in an unprecedented effort to establish the authenticity of the work, Sarmiento's manuscript was read, chapter by chapter, to forty-two indigenous authorities for commentary and correction.
The scholars behind this new edition (the first to be published in English since 1907) went to similarly great lengths in pursuit of accuracy. Translators Brian Bauer and Vania Smith used an early transcript and, in some instances, the original document to create the text. Bauer and Jean-Jacques Decoster's introduction lays bare the biases Sarmiento incorporated into his writing. It also theorizes what sources, in addition to his extensive interviews, Sarmiento relied upon to produce his history. Finally, more than sixty new illustrations enliven this historically invaluable document of life in the ancient Andes.

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Adventure Guide to Thailand

2007-10-09T19:04:00.000+04:00

Adventure Guide to Thailand by Christopher Evans)
Publisher: Hunter Publishing (May 30, 2006) | ISBN-10: 1588435180 | PDF | 4 Mb | 424 pages

Thailand is the number-one tourist destination in Southeast Asia, with over 13 million visitors per year, 300,000 per month to the island of Phuket alone. This is the best and most comprehensive guide to the country. Loaded with inside information from the resident authors on everything from the secrets of buying food from street vendors to sampling the fabulous cuisine in thousands of great restaurants. Prices are astonishingly low, which adds to the attraction. Two people can dine well for less than $5, including drinks and several courses. The finest hotels, with impeccable service, cost a fraction of what you would pay in Europe or the US. Tips on shopping for silk scarves, exotic jewelry, handicrafts and much more, all at bargain prices. Hikes, bike trips, elephant riding, fishing, kayaking - all the outdoor activities available. Special experiences like Thai massage, visiting some of the 30,000 mystic temples, elephant trekking, sea canoeing, exploring the unspoiled islands. Best of all, the people are open, friendly and welcoming. This guide will introduce you to them.

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Farsi (Persian) Phrasebook

2007-10-09T18:54:00.000+04:00

Lonely Planet Farsi (Persian) Phrasebook by Yavar Dehghani
Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications; Bilingual edition (March 2001) | ISBN-10: 0864425813 | PDF | Mb | 253 pages

National Geographic Traveler, September 2006
"Lonely Planet Phrasebooks. Portable, pocket-size, cheap, and available for almost any country you might want to visit..."

Atlanta Journal-Constitution, May 27, 2004
"...Lonely Planet phrase books have long taken a hip, streetwise approach."

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Marrakesh

2007-10-04T20:22:00.000+04:00

Marrakesh Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 6 Mb | 161 pages

Marrakech or Marrakesh (مراكش Marrakesh), known as the "Red City" or "Al Hamra," is a city in southwestern Morocco in the foothills of the Atlas Mountains.
The possible origin of its name could be from the Tamazight (Berber) words mur (n) akuch, which means Land of God. (The root "mur" is nowadays in the Berber languages used only in the feminine form "tamurt"). The same word "mur/mawr" appears in the country Mauritania, but this interpretation is still unproved to this day, and there are other possibilities that are often invoked.
The name Morocco itself derives from Murrakush. This city is the capital of the Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz region.
Marrakech has the largest traditional market (souk) in Morocco and also has the busiest square in the entire continent of Africa, called Djemaa el Fna. The square bustles with acrobats, story-tellers, water sellers, dancers and musicians by day; and food stalls by night, becoming a huge open-air restaurant.
Like many North African and Middle Eastern cities, Marrakech comprised both an old fortified city (the médina) and an adjacent modern city (called Gueliz). It is served by Ménara International Airport (RAK is the code for the city) and a rail link to Casablanca and the north.
The city is called "Marrakech" in French, "Marrakesh" in English, and "Marrakesch" in German.

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Barbados

2007-10-04T20:16:00.000+04:00

Barbados Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 3 Mb | 163 pages

Barbados (IPA: [bɑrˈbeɪdos]), situated just east of the Caribbean Sea, is an independent island nation in the western Atlantic Ocean. At roughly 13° North and 59° West, the country lies in the southern Caribbean region, where it is a part of the Lesser Antilles island-chain. Its closest island neighbours are St. Vincent and St. Lucia to the west, Grenada to the south-west, and Trinidad and Tobago to the south, with which Barbados now shares a fixed official maritime boundary.
Barbados's total land area is about 430 square kilometres, (166 square miles), and is primarily low-lying, with some higher regions in the island's interior. The organic composition of Barbados is thought to be of non-volcanic origin and is predominantly composed of limestone-coral. The island's climate is tropical, with constant trade winds off the Atlantic Ocean serving to keep temperatures mild. Some more undeveloped areas of the country contain woodland and scrubland. Other parts of the interior which contribute to the agriculture industry are dotted with large sugarcane estates and wide, gently sloping pastures, with many good views down to the sea coast.
Barbados has one of the highest standards of living and literacy rates worldwide. Despite its small size, Barbados's Human Development Index ranking is consistently among the top 50 in the world. For example, in 2006, it was ranked thirty-first in the world, and third in the Americas, behind Canada and the United States. The island is also a major tourist destination.

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Venice

2007-10-04T20:08:00.000+04:00

Venice Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 7 Mb | 199 pages

Founded 1500 years ago on a cluster of mudflats in the centre of the lagoon, Venice rose to become Europeis main trading post between the West and the East, and at its height controlled an empire that extended from the Dolomites to Cyprus. The melancholic air of the place is in part a product of the discrepancy between the grandeur of its history and what the city has become.

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Tenerife

2007-10-04T20:05:00.000+04:00

Tenerife Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 7 Mb | 207 pages

Tenerife, a Spanish island, is the largest of the seven Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. The island's population is 852,945 (2006 census).
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the second biggest city in the archipelago, the capital of the island and the head of the cabildo insular (island government); it is also officially co-capital of the autonomous community of the Canary Islands together with Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, with whom it shares governmental institutions such as Presidency, Parliament and ministries. The island is home to La Laguna University founded in 1792.

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Athens

2007-10-04T16:15:00.000+04:00

Athens Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 6 Mb | 201 pages

In most minds, Athens is a city that happened two-and-a-half thousand years ago, and itis true that even now that past looms large n literally, in the shape of the mighty Acropolis that dominates almost every view, as well as in every visitoris itinerary. Yet Athens is also home to over four million people, more than a third of the Greek population and is very much a city for the twenty-first century, one that has transformed itself for the 2004 Olympics.

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Lisbon

2007-10-04T16:11:00.000+04:00

Lisbon Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 6 Mb | 227 pages

Set across a series of hills overlooking the broad estuary of the Rio Tejo (River Tagus), Lisbonis stunning location and effortless beauty immediately strike most first-time visitors. Itis an instantly likeable place, a big city, with a population of around two million, but one that remains human enough in pace and scale to be easily taken in over a long weekend.

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Paris

2007-10-04T16:06:00.000+04:00

Paris Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 6 Mb | 233 pages

A trip to Paris, famous as the most romantic of destinations, is one of those lifetime musts. The very fabric of the city is elegant, its grand avenues and atmospheric little back-streets lined with harmonious apartment blocks and interspersed by exquisitely designed gardens and squares. The Parisians are no less stylish than their city: a sophisticated, cosmopolitan people renowned for their chic and their hauteur.

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London

2007-10-04T16:01:00.000+04:00

London Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 8 Mb | 245 pages

London is a very big city. In fact,itis Europeis largest capital by far,stretching for more than thirty miles on either side of the River Thames, and with a population of just under eight million. Ethnically and linguistically, itis also Europeis most diverse metropolis, offering cultural and culinary delights from right across the globe.And after sixteen years of being the only major city in the world not to have its own governing body, London finally has an elected assembly and a mayor whois busy tackling longstanding problems such as public transport.

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Amsterdam Directions

2007-10-04T15:55:00.000+04:00

Amsterdam Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 7 Mb | 211 pages

The one-dimensional Amsterdam of tulips, wooden shoes, and 17th-century architecture is the stuff of many a standard guidebook, but with its booming economy, legalized prostitution, and tolerant attitude toward recreational drug use, the city is much more than that. You'll discover the proper way to knock back genever (Dutch gin - the potent national spirit), why Amsterdam is considered the Gay Capital of Europe, plus the inside scoop on the red-light district, complete with advice and warnings.

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San Francisco Directions

2007-10-04T15:50:00.000+04:00

San Francisco Directions
Publisher: RoughGuides | PDF | 5 Mb | 201 pages

One of Americais most beautiful cities, San Francisco sits on a fog-capped, hilly peninsula bounded by the shimmering waters of San Francisco Bay to the east and the crashing waves of the Pacific Ocean to the west. Whether youire drawn in by the natural setting, or the free-spirited, nonconformist ways for which the city is also famous, youill find plenty to keep you occupied once there.

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Europa's Castles

2007-10-04T15:32:00.000+04:00

Europa's Castles
150 JPG - up to 2000x3000 - 312 Mb

4 multi-part archives (RS and DF links) OR 20 separately (NOT multi-part) archives
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Hundreds of Simple Strategies Guaranteed to Save Road Warriors Time and Money

2007-10-04T12:30:00.000+04:00

Guerrilla Travel Tactics: Hundreds of Simple Strategies Guaranteed to Save Road Warriors Time and Money by Jay Conrad Levinson
Publisher: AMACOM/American Management Association (May 2004) | ISBN-10: 0814471706 | PDF | 2 Mb | 272 pages

Guerrilla Travel Tactics is the most comprehensive book ever written on finding travel bargains. It will help any business traveler survive the rigors of the road, optimize logistics, and get the most for every dollar spent on travel.
The individual business traveler will save thousands of dollars per year, and companies whose executives and employees fly frequently could save hundreds of thousands - or more. The bottom line is that travelers and organizations will be spending a fraction of what they normally would, but getting much more for their money.
Guerrilla Travel Tactics is packed with travel tips, bargain strategies, and insider secrets, including how to get the VIP treatment, amenities, and upgrades -- all on a penny-pinching budget. Featuring the authors' practical, proven techniques, it's an absolute must-read whether you travel once a week or once a year.

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Adventure Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains

2007-10-04T12:25:00.000+04:00

Adventure Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains by Blair Howard
Publisher: Hunter Publishing (NJ); 2nd edition (February 2001) | ISBN-10: 1556509057 | PDF | 2,5 Mb | 339 pages

Blair Howard's Adventure Guide To The Great Smoky Mountains covers boating, camping, canoeing, craft hunting, the Great Smoky Mountain National Park (camping, horseback riding, etc. ), fishing, hiking, shopping, snow skiing, and whitewater adventures. Adventure Guide To The Great Smoky Mountains includes information on accommodations in all price ranges, maps for easy planning, and contact details for local information. Adventure Guide To The Great Smoky Mountains is the take-along travel guide for Great Smoky Mountains vacationers, and stay-at-home armchair travelers as well!
This exciting update covers Eastern Tennessee, Western North Carolina and Northern Georgia. Outdoor activities, plus craft hunting and fairs. All the information you need for an activity-filled vacation. Maps. Index. Photos.

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Moscow

2007-10-04T12:18:00.000+04:00

Moscow clipart
150 JPG - up to 6750x3400 - 309 Mb

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Password: jaba

The Backpacker's Handbook

2007-10-04T12:09:00.000+04:00

The Backpacker's Handbook by Chris Townsend
Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 3rd edition (September 12, 2004) | ISBN-10: 0071423206 | PDF | 8,3 Mb | 448 pages

This enormously practical guide includes everything from essential techniques such as map and compass work to the skills needed for more remote wilderness journeys—such as how to ford rivers safely and how to choose a route through untracked terrain. As a gear advisor, this book is unequaled.

You'll find the last word on:
* How to choose packs and footwear—and make sure they fit
* What clothing to take on the trail
* Tents, tarps, stoves, water purifiers, and other gear
* GPS, cell phones, and other electronic devices

Chris Townsend, one of the world's best-known and most experienced rough-terrain hikers, has been backpacking for more than 30 years. His solo treks include a 1,600-mile hike over the length of the Canadian Rockies, a 1,000-mile walk across the Yukon, and a 3,000-mile expedition from Canada to Mexico along the Continental Divide Trail. He is the author of The Advanced Backpacker and Backpacker's Pocket Guide.

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Life on the Ice: No One Goes to Antarctica Alone

2007-10-04T12:03:00.000+04:00

Life on the Ice: No One Goes to Antarctica Alone by Roff Smith (Author)
Publisher: National Geographic (February 1, 2005) | ISBN-10: 0792293452 | linked PNG-files | 15 Mb | 224 pages

Bicycling outside Melbourne, Australia, Smith decided to resurrect a childhood dream of traveling to Antarctica. After receiving a writer's grant permitting a seven-week visit, Smith quit his newspaper job, landed a freelance gig with Time, and headed south. Way south to Mawson, one of four year-round bases. What follows is a magical description of Mawson's last days (the base was to be shut down, with a new, huge complex opening nearby). Smith witnesses the final run of a geriatric sled dog team, the very last time dogs would be used in Antarctica, and the base handover ceremony. The trip had faded to a pleasant memory when the author was asked by National Geographic if he would like to spend the summer traveling all around Antarctica - visiting bases and field camps, the South Pole, even spending five weeks on a yacht exploring the Antarctic Peninsula. Smith is the most exceptional of travel writers: his portraits of people are deeply sympathetic, while his language is at once lyrical and knowledgeable.

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Carnival In Rio

2007-10-04T11:48:00.000+04:00

Carnival In Rio clipart
60 JPG - 3543x2362 - 24 Mb - 300 dpi - 200 Mb

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Mountains of Madness: A Scientist's Odyssey in Antarctica

2007-10-04T11:42:00.000+04:00

Mountains of Madness: A Scientist's Odyssey in Antarctica by John A. Long
Publisher: National Academy Press; 1st edition (February 15, 2001) | ISBN-10: 0309070775 | linked PNG-files | 18 Mb | 250 pages

Antarctica, once the center of the prehistoric supercontinent Gondwana, contains some of the richest and best-preserved fossil deposits in the world. Long, a paleontologist, recounts his two expeditions (in 1988 and 1992) to Antarctica to recover some of these fossils. He relates details ranging from the thrilling to the mundane, describing plane rides to Antarctica, life at the base camp and his actual fieldwork. In a down-to-earth and often funny manner, he conveys a sense of the daily routine of a scientist living at the bottom of the world. At times the lay reader might get bogged down by some of Long's technical lexicon, but for the most part the author successfully intersperses accessible passages about the crew's more banal activitiesDcooking (including some recipes for Antarctic delicacies), celebrating Christmas, and playing in the snowDwith the passages concerning his work. Because these trips constitute Long's introduction to the continent, the book maintains a tone of immediacy and an infectious spirit of discovery, effectively articulating the awe experienced by first-time visitors upon confronting Antarctica's danger and beauty. Long supplements his own words with quotations from a variety of texts ranging from the diaries of famous Antarctic explorers to H.P. Lovecraft's fictional horror tale At the Mountain of Madness, from which this book takes its title.
Although the narrative may not have enough action to satisfy hardcore exploration and adventure readers, it provides an informative, well-written and deliberate account of contemporary paleontological research, and presents some interesting theories on how Antarctica's resources could help solve certain environmental crises. Long's book should appeal to lay and professional readers interested in current scientific and ecological study.

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Holidays, Festivals & Celebrations of the World Dictionary

2007-10-01T20:28:00.000+04:00

Holidays, Festivals & Celebrations of the World Dictionary
Publisher: Omnigraphics, Inc./Thomson Gale, 3rd edition | Number Of Pages: 925 | ISBN/ASIN: 0780809823 | 4 Mb

Revised and expanded, this now-classic compendium describes 2,500 holidays, festivals, commemorations, holy days, feasts and fasts, and other observances from all parts of the world. The entries cover popular, ethnic, religious, and historic events of international, national, regional, and local significance. This multi-purpose dictionary is ideal for schools and public libraries, religious organizations, community affairs groups, and others interested in learning about festive events.
# What's New for the Third Edition Nearly 500 brand-new entries
# Expanded section on calendar systems
# More web sites, e-mail addresses, and other contact information provided in entries
# Perpetual calendar
# Revised General Index combines four indexes for easier use
# Updated Appendices Admission Days and Facts about the States and Territories
# United States Presidents
# Domestic Tourism Information Sources
# International Tourism Information Sources
# Bibliography
# Legal Holidays by State
# Legal Holidays by Country
# Indexes General Index - includes names, keywords, ethnic groups, geographic locations, religions, and subjects
# Chronological Index - lists all holidays and festivals by date
# Special Subject Index - includes separate Ancient/Pagan, Calendar, Folkloric, Historic, Promotional, and Sporting Indexes

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The Natural West

2007-10-01T20:24:00.000+04:00

The Natural West: Environmental History in the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains by Dan L. Flores
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press (March 2003) | ISBN-10: 0806135379 | PDF | 17 Mb | 285 pages

In "The Natural West," Dan Flores asserts that western environmental history cannot be explained by examining place, culture, or policy alone but should be understood within the context of a universal human nature. In this thought-provoking collection of essays, Flores intersperses scientific theory, literature, and personal reflection to explain many of our attitudes toward the environment. Topics range from animals and exploration to the environmental histories of particular western bioregions and, finally, to western restoration as the great environmental theme of the twenty-first century.

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Europe Map

2007-10-01T20:19:00.000+04:00

Europe Map
JPG - 6000x4699 - 11 Mb

Classic political map of Europe features country boundaries, place names, bodies of water, airports, major highways and roads, and much more.
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Frequent Traveler's Guide

2007-10-01T20:16:00.000+04:00

Frequent Traveler's Guide: What Smart Travelers and Travel Agents Know by Alexander Anolik
Publisher: Sourcebooks (March 15, 2005) | ISBN-10: 1572485027 | PDF | 2 Mb | 576 pages

Whether a regional traveler, an international vacationer, or an on-the-road businessperson, this title is a "must have" guide to use and carry before and during all trips.
Organized in an easy-to-use format, the book covers such general travel interests as air, car rental, hotels/motels, cruises, tour packages and rail/bus travel. Each of these interest areas are then divided into sections that cover everything from the initial contract to federal laws that regulate both the industry and the traveler, planning tips, and defending your rights when you determine that you have been misled or mistreated.
Separate sections on international travel, using travel agencies, travel brokers and travel websites are also included. Specific information regarding insurance, currency exchange, travel scams and discrimination in travel are all addressed.

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World Political Map

2007-10-01T20:11:00.000+04:00

World Political Map
JPG - 6000x4190 - 8 Mb

This map features the Winkel Tripel projection to reduce distortion of land masses as they near the poles. Features include subtle border coloring on land, and prevailing winds and ocean currents at sea. Separate insets show the North and South Polar Regions, world vegetation and land use, and world population density.
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Adventure Tourism: The New Frontier

2007-10-01T20:08:00.000+04:00

Adventure Tourism: The New Frontier by John Swarbrooke
Publisher: Butterworth-Heinemann (May 8, 2003) | ISBN-10: 0750651865 | PDF | 5 Mb | 368 pages

Looking at the past, present and future of adventure tourism, Adventure Tourism: the new frontier examines the product, the adventure tourist profile, and issues such as supply, geography and sustainability. International case studies are used to illustrate these issues, including: Gorilla watching holidays,Trekking on Mount Everest, Diving holidays, and Outward Bound packages.
Analysis of the development and nature of adventure tourism accompanies these studies, ensuring that the title is useful both for undergraduate and postgraduate students of tourism and for professionals involved in managing adventure tourism enterprises.
* International case studies, including wilderness tourism in Siberia, rock-climbing based tourism in Spain and mountain tourism in Greece
* Unique treatment of the subject
* A respected team of authors

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Rome

2007-10-01T15:37:00.000+04:00

Frommer's Rome by Darwin Porter
Publisher: Frommer's; 1st edition (December 24, 2004) | ISBN-10: 0764572709 | PDF | 5 Mb | 281 pages

A complete guide to the city's sights, from the Colosseum to the Vatican. With listing that help you build your own itinerary, plus a whole chapter full of detailed walking tours, this in-depth guide is simply much more detailed and comprehensive than its major competition. You'll find authoritative but fun-to-use coverage of all the ancient ruins, amazing artworks, and fascinating churches, with valuable insights that will enrich your trip. We've provided all the background information you need to enjoy and understand what you're seeing.
You'll find candid reviews of a huge selection of accommodations and restaurants in all price ranges. It's all here in one easy-to-use guide, complete with a handy glossary of Italian phrases, a color fold-out map, and an online directory that makes trip-planning a snap!

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South America Map

2007-10-01T15:35:00.000+04:00

South America Map
1 JPG - 4672x6000 - 7 Mb

This classic map of South America shows political boundaries, place names, airports, major roads and highways, and other geographic features for the entire continent.
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North America Map

2007-10-01T15:33:00.000+04:00

North America Map
1 JPG - 4600x6000 - 9 Mb

The political map of North America features trademark National Geographic detail and accuracy. The map shows country boundaries, place names, major highways and roads, bodies of water, and more. An inset map shows the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska.
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National Parks of the American West

2007-10-01T15:31:00.000+04:00

Frommer's National Parks of the American West by Don Laine
Publisher: Frommer's; 5th edition (May 8, 2006) | ISBN-10: 0471769835 | PDF | 10 Mb | 680 pages

A park lover's must-have, the information provided in this behemoth of a book is almost as impressive as the redwoods that grace its cover. With a focus on helping visitors avoid the crowds, National Parks of the American West provides painstakingly researched details on more than 40 national parks, monuments, seashores, and preserves.
There is probably not a question you have that this book doesn't answer: each park listing includes tips from park rangers, ideas especially for kids, excellent maps, entrance fee information, the best driving and walking tours, campground overviews, food and other lodging, contacts for activities and recreation, and interesting sidebars.

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Asia Map

2007-10-01T15:27:00.000+04:00

Asia Map
JPG - 3508x4063 - 6,5 Mb

Detailed cartography includes country boundaries, place names, bodies of water, and more for the entire Asian continent.
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Irreverent Guide to Amsterdam

2007-10-01T15:24:00.000+04:00

Frommer's Irreverent Guide to Amsterdam by George McDonald
Publisher: Frommers; 5 edition (April 9, 2004) | ISBN-10: 0764542966 | PDF | 4,5 Mb | 288 pages

The one-dimensional Amsterdam of tulips, wooden shoes, and 17th-century architecture is the stuff of many a standard guidebook, but with its booming economy, legalized prostitution, and tolerant attitude toward recreational drug use, the city is much more than that. For savvy travelers who want to fully experience the place as the locals live it, Frommer's Irreverent Guide to Amsterdam, 6th Edition is the way to go, offering the lowdown on this hip, cultivated city, where old and new sunnily coexist. You'll discover the proper way to knock back genever (Dutch gin - the potent national spirit), why Amsterdam is considered the Gay Capital of Europe, plus the inside scoop on the red-light district, complete with advice and warnings.

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Global Tourism

2007-10-01T15:20:00.000+04:00

Global Tourism by William F. Theobald
Publisher: Butterworth-Heinemann; 3 edition (July 26, 2004) | ISBN-10: 0750677899 | PDF | 2 Mb | 588 pages

Pressure on national and local governments to rapidly develop their tourism potential to meet demand and produce benefits, makes it more essential than ever to plan carefully and consider the human and environmental impacts of tourism development. That is why, as Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization, I am pleased to see the serious analysis of the problems and prospects of the tourism sector as presented in this third edition.
Now in its third edition, Global Tourism draws on the insight of thirty-nine contributors to chronicle and foresee the effects of tourism on contemporary society. Contributors provide interdisciplinary, international perspectives on the critical questions, problems, and opportunities facing the tourism industry.
Invaluable to academics and professionals alike, Global Tourism offers a comprehensive exploration of the key issues in tourism. Authors draw on their individual insights to assess and critique contemporary tourism and take a view of the future.
Fully revised and re-developed, new chapters examine:
* The future of tourism
* Difference in travel characteristics of significant travel segments
* Sustainability standards in the global economy
* Crisis management in tourist destinations
* Tourism and social identities
* Tourism, mobility, and global communities

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Russia and the Newly Independent Nations Map

2007-10-01T15:16:00.000+04:00

Russia and the Newly Independent Nations Map
JPG - 4961x3059 - 6 Mb

Classic wall map of Russia and the independent states of the former Soviet Union shows thousands of place names, roadways, political boundaries, bodies of water, airports, and many other geographic details.
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Africa Map

2007-10-01T15:15:00.000+04:00

Africa Map
JPG - 3508x4590 - 6 Mb

Africa Political map accurately shows country boundaries, place names, and bodies of water for the entire continent. Includes a helpful inset map of surrounding islands.
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The History of the Conquest of Mexico

2007-10-01T15:07:00.000+04:00

The History of the Conquest of Mexico by William H. Prescott
Publisher: Modern Library; New Ed edition (October 13, 1998) | ISBN-10: 0679602992 | PDF | 1 Mb | 1005 pages

This book was first published as a three-volume work in 1843 by a blind man whonever visited Mexico. Considered authoritative at the time, Prescott's artistic prose would be classified as historical fiction today, and nolonger politically correct or scientifically accurate. With preciseand slow diction, narrator Kerry Shale mispronounces the majority ofthe abundant Spanish and N&Náhuatl words, as well as many Englishterms. These shortcomings of content and performance, furthercompromised by a choppy abridgment, result in a disappointingproduction.

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