Africa

Africa is the world’s second-largest and second-most-populous continent. It covers approximately 30,370,000 km² (11.7 million square miles), approx. 20% of Earth’s total land area, and is home to roughly 1.4 billion people in 54 fully recognised countries. The equator runs directly through the middle of the continent, placing Africa in both the northern and southern hemispheres.

Where is Africa?

Africa sits south of Europe, separated by the narrow Strait of Gibraltar (just 14 km / 8.9 miles wide at its narrowest point). It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Red Sea and Indian Ocean to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Southern Ocean to the south. The Suez Canal cuts Africa off from Asia at its north-eastern corner.

African geography

Africa is famously varied. The northern third is dominated by the Sahara, the largest hot desert on Earth at approx. 9 million km². South of the Sahara is the Sahel, a semi-arid transition belt. The equatorial centre holds tropical rainforests including the Congo Basin (the second-largest rainforest in the world). Eastern Africa is shaped by the Great Rift Valley, with its giant lakes and the towering peaks of Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 m) and Mount Kenya. Southern Africa has the Kalahari and Namib deserts, the Drakensberg mountains, and the dramatic coastline of the Cape of Good Hope. The Nile, the world’s longest river at 6,650 km, flows north through ten African countries.

Regions of Africa

Africa is usually divided into five regions, each with its own character:

• North Africa, Mediterranean coastline, Arabic-speaking, mostly Muslim. Includes Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, and Tunisia.
• West Africa, coastal nations on the Atlantic. Includes Nigeria (Africa’s most populous country), Ghana, Senegal, and Ivory Coast.
• Central Africa, the Congo Basin and rainforest belt. Includes the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, Gabon, and the Central African Republic.
• East Africa, safari country and the Horn of Africa. Includes Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Madagascar.
• Southern Africa, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the small kingdoms of Lesotho and Eswatini.

People, languages, and religions

More than 2,000 languages are spoken across Africa, about a third of the world’s total. The biggest by speaker count are Arabic, Swahili, Hausa, Yoruba, Amharic, and Igbo. English, French, and Portuguese are widely used as official languages, a legacy of European colonisation. The main religions are Christianity (mostly in central and southern Africa) and Islam (mostly in the north and the Sahel), alongside traditional indigenous beliefs.

Wildlife and famous landmarks

Africa is the home of the “Big Five” safari animals, lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros, and Cape buffalo, plus giraffes, hippos, gorillas, cheetahs, and zebras. Famous landmarks include the Pyramids of Giza, the Great Sphinx, Victoria Falls, the Serengeti, the Sahara dunes, Table Mountain, and the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela.

Explore African countries

Pick any of the 54 African countries below for its complete fact file, capital city, population, area, currency, language, religion, geography, famous landmarks, and a flag image.