Andalusia Andalusia Andalusia ' onMouseout='HidePop("6006")' href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Selim_I">Selim I
Selim I , also known as "the Excellent," "the Brave" or the best translation "the Stern", Yavuz in Turkish, the long name is Yavuz Sultan Selim; October 10 1465/1466/1470 September 22, 1520) was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to 1520...
sent him 6000 soldiers and 2000 janissary with which he liberated most of the Algerian territory taken by the Spanish, from Annaba to Mostaganem. Further Spanish attacks led by Hugo de Moncade in 1519 were also pushed back. In 1541
Charles VCharles V may refer to:* Charles V of France , called the Wise* Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor , ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, Spain and the Netherlands* Charles V, Duke of Lorraine...
the emperor of the
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period under a Holy Roman Emperor. The first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire was Otto I, crowned in 962. The last was Francis II, who abdicated and dissolved the Empire in 1806 during...
attacked Algiers with a convoy of 65 warships, 451 ships and 23000 battalion including 2000 riders, but it was a total failure, and the Algerian leader Hassan Agha became a national hero. Algiers then became a great military power.
Algeria was made part of the
Ottoman EmpireThe Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299 to November 1, 1922 The Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِیَّهِ عُثْمَانِیَّه Dawlet-il ʿAliyyat-il ʿOs̠māniyye, Modern Turkish:...
by Barbaros Hayreddin Pasa and his brother Aruj in 1517. They established Algeria's modern boundaries in the north and made its coast a base for the Ottoman corsairs; their
privateerA privateer was a private warship authorized by a country's government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping. Strictly, a privateer was only entitled by its state to attack and rob enemy vessels during wartime. Privateers were part of naval warfare of some nations from the 16th to the...
ing peaking in Algiers in the 1600s. Piracy on
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
vessels in the Mediterranean resulted in the
FirstThe First Barbary War , also known as the Barbary Coast War or the Tripolitan War, was the first of two wars fought between the United States of America and the North African states known collectively as the Barbary States...
(1801–1805) and
Second Barbary WarThe Second Barbary War was the second of two wars fought between the United States and the Ottoman Empire's North African regencies of Algiers, Tripoli, and Tunis, known collectively as the Barbary States...
s (1815) with the United States. The pirates forced the people on the ships they captured into
slaverySlavery is a form of forced labor in which people are considered to be the property of others. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to receive compensation...
; additionally when the pirates attacked coastal villages in southern and Western Europe the inhabitants were forced into
slaveryThe Arab slave trade was the practice of slavery in the Arab World, namely West Asia, North Africa, East Africa and certain parts of Europe during their period of domination by Arab leaders. The trade was focused on the slave markets of the Middle East and North Africa...
.
The Barbary pirates, also sometimes called Ottoman corsairs or the Marine Jihad (الجهاد البحري), were Muslim pirates and privateers that operated from North Africa, from the time of the
CrusadesThe Crusades were a series of religiously-sanctioned military campaigns waged by much of Latin Christian Europe, particularly the Franks of France and the Holy Roman Empire. The specific crusades to restore Christian control of the Holy Land were fought over a period of nearly 200 years, between...
until the early 19th century. Based in North African ports such as
TunisTunis is the capital of the Tunisian Republic and also the Tunis Governorate, with a population of 1,200,000 in 2008 and over 3,980,500 in the greater Tunis area...
in Tunisia,
TripoliTripoli is the largest and capital city of Libya.Tripoli has a population of 1.69 million...
in Libya, Algiers in Algeria,
SaléSalé is the twin city to Rabat, capital of Morocco. Today it is home to just over 900,000 people, mostly impoverished factory workers. It was once a self-contained, self-ruled Republic with international scope, situated on the mouth of the Bou Regreg river on the Atlantic coast...
and other ports in Morocco, they preyed on
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
and other non-
IslamIslam Islam Islam ( al-’islām,
[There are ten pronunciations of Islam in English, differing in whether the first or second syllable has the stress, whether the s is or , and whether the a is pronounced as in father, as in cat, or (when the stress is on the i) as in the a of sofa...]
ic shipping in the western
Mediterranean SeaThe Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by the Levant. The sea is technically a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it...
.
Their stronghold was along the stretch of northern Africa known as the
Barbary CoastThe Barbary Coast, or Barbary, was the term used by Europeans from the 16th until the 19th century to refer to the Maghreb, the middle and western coastal regions of North Africa—what is now Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. The name is derived from the Berber people of north Africa...
(a medieval term for the
MaghrebThe Maghreb , also rendered Maghrib , meaning "place of sunset" or "western" in Arabic, is a region in North Africa. The term is generally applied to all of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, but in older Arabic usage pertained only to the area of the three countries between the high ranges of the...
after its
BerberBerbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the...
inhabitants), but their predation was said to extend throughout the Mediterranean, south along
West AfricaWest Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries distributed over an area of approximately 5 million square km:*Benin...
's Atlantic seaboard, and into the
North AtlanticThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres , it covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface and about one-quarter of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to the Atlas of Greek...
as far north as
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
and the United States. They often made raids, called
Razzias, on European coastal towns to capture Christian slaves to sell at slave markets in places such as
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
,
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia...
,
IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran is a country in Western Asia. The name Iran has been in use natively since the Sassanid period and came into international use from 1935, before which the country was known internationally as Persia...
, Algeria and Morocco. According to Robert Davis, from the 16th to 19th century, pirates captured 1 million to 1.25 million
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
ans as slaves. These slaves were captured mainly from seaside villages in
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
,
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
and
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
, and from farther places like
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
or
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
,
IrelandIreland is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islets. To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain...
, the
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
,
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
,
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
,
ScandinaviaScandinavia is a geographical region in northern Europe that includes, and is named after, the Scanian Province. It consists of the kingdoms of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark...
and even
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
,
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
,
Southeast AsiaManila
Bangkok
Ho Chi Minh City
Kuala Lumpur
Singapore
Yangon
Bandung
Hanoi
Surabaya
Taichung
Kaohsiung
Medan|-|}...
and North America.
The impact of these
attacks was devastating – France, England, and
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
each lost thousands of ships, and long stretches of coast in Spain and Italy were almost completely abandoned by their inhabitants. Pirate raids discouraged settlement along the coast until the 19th century.
The most famous corsairs were the Ottoman
BarbarossaBarbarossa may refer to:In history:*Emperor Barbarossa or Frederick I , Holy Roman Emperor**Barbarossa city, the nickname for five cities in Germany*Barbarossa I or Oruç Reis , an Ottoman-Turkish privateer and Bey of Algiers...
("Redbeard") brothers—Hayreddin (Hızır) and his older brother Oruç Reis—who took control of Algiers in the early 16th century and turned it into the centre of Mediterranean piracy and privateering for three centuries, as well as establishing the
Ottoman EmpireThe Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299 to November 1, 1922 The Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِیَّهِ عُثْمَانِیَّه Dawlet-il ʿAliyyat-il ʿOs̠māniyye, Modern Turkish:...
's presence in North Africa which lasted four centuries.
Other famous Ottoman privateer-admirals included
Turgut ReisTurgut Reis was a Turkish privateer and Ottoman admiral as well as Bey of Algiers; Beylerbey of the Mediterranean; and first Bey later Pasha of Tripoli...
(known as Dragut in the West),
KurtoğluKurtoğlu Muslihiddin Reis was a Turkish privateer and Ottoman admiral, as well as the Sanjak Bey of Rhodes. He played an important role in the Ottoman conquests of Egypt and Rhodes during which he commanded the Ottoman naval forces...
(known as
CurtogoliKurtoğlu Muslihiddin Reis was a Turkish privateer and Ottoman admiral, as well as the Sanjak Bey of Rhodes. He played an important role in the Ottoman conquests of Egypt and Rhodes during which he commanded the Ottoman naval forces...
in the West),
Kemal ReisKemal Reis was a Turkish privateer and Ottoman admiral. He was also the paternal uncle of the famous Ottoman admiral and cartographer Piri Reis who accompanied him in most of his important naval expeditions....
,
Salih ReisSalih Reis was a Turkish privateer and Ottoman admiral.In 1529, together with Aydın Reis, he took part in the Turkish-Spanish War near the Isle of Formentera, during which the Ottoman forces destroyed the Spanish fleet, whose commander, Rodrigo Portundo, died in combat.In 1538 he commanded the...
, Nemdil Reis and Koca Murat Reis. Some Barbary corsairs, such as
Jan JanszoonFor the cartographer, see Johannes Janssonius.Jan Janszoon van Haarlem was the first President and Grand Admiral of the Corsair Republic of Salè, Governor of Oualidia, and a Dutch pirate who was considered one of the most notorious of the Barbary pirates from the 17th century; the most famous of...
and
John WardJohn Ward may refer to:*John Ward , English pirate and Barbary Corsair*John Ward , English madrigal composer*John Ward, 1st Earl of Dudley, , British statesman, 1st Earl of Dudley...
, were renegade Christians who had converted to Islam.
In 1544, Hayreddin captured the island of
IschiaIschia is a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples. The roughly trapezoidal island lies about 30 km from Naples and measures around 10 km east to west and 7 km north to south with a coastline and a surface area of...
, taking 4,000 prisoners, and enslaved some 9,000 inhabitants of
LipariLipari is the largest of the Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the north coast of Sicily, and the name of the island's main town...
, almost the entire population. In 1551,
Turgut ReisTurgut Reis was a Turkish privateer and Ottoman admiral as well as Bey of Algiers; Beylerbey of the Mediterranean; and first Bey later Pasha of Tripoli...
enslaved the entire population of the Maltese island
GozoGozo is an island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Southern European country of Malta; after the island of Malta itself, it is the second-largest island in the archipelago...
, between 5,000 and 6,000, sending them to Libya. In 1554, pirates sacked
ViesteVieste is a town and comune in the province of Foggia, in the Apulia region of southeast Italy.thumb|left|200px|Cathedral of Vieste.A renowned marine resort in Gargano, Vieste has often received Blue Flags for the purity of its waters from the Foundation for Environmental Education.The town is...
in southern Italy and took an estimated 7,000 slaves. In 1555, Turgut Reis sacked
BastiaBastia , is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France on the island of Corsica. It is also a city and the capital of the department...
,
CorsicaCorsica is the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
, taking 6000 prisoners.
In 1558, Barbary corsairs captured the town of
CiutadellaCiutadella de Menorca or just Ciutadella is a town and a municipality on the western side of Minorca, one of the Balearic Islands -History:...
(Minorca), destroyed it, slaughtered the inhabitants and took 3,000 survivors to
IstanbulIstanbul is the largest city in Turkey and fifth largest city proper in the world with a population of 12.6 million. Istanbul is also a megacity, as well as the cultural and financial centre of Turkey. The city covers 39 districts of the Istanbul province...
as slaves. In 1563, Turgut Reis landed on the shores of the province of
GranadaGranada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain.- Overview :The city of Granada is placed at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, Beiro, Darro and Genil, at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
, Spain, and captured coastal settlements in the area, such as
AlmuñécarAlmuñécar is a municipality in the Spanish Autonomous Region of Andalusia on the Costa del Sol between Nerja and Motril . It has a subtropical climate...
, along with 4,000 prisoners. Barbary pirates often attacked the
Balearic IslandsThe Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula....
, and in response many coastal watchtowers and fortified churches were erected. The threat was so severe that the island of
FormenteraFormentera is the smallest and southernmost island of the Illes Pitiüses group and belongs to the Balearic Islands autonomous community . It is long and is located approximately south of Ibiza in the Mediterranean Sea...
became uninhabited.
From 1609 to 1616,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
lost 466 merchant ships to Barbary pirates. In the 19th century, Barbary pirates would capture ships and enslave the crew. Latterly American ships were attacked. During this period, the pirates forged affiliations with Caribbean powers, paying a "license tax" in exchange for safe harbor of their vessels. One American slave reported that the Algerians had enslaved 130 American seamen in the Mediterranean and Atlantic from 1785 to 1793.
French rule
On the pretext of a slight to their consul, the French invaded Algiers in 1830. The conquest of Algeria by the French was long and particularly violent, and it resulted in the disappearance of about a third of the Algerian population.
Between 1830 and 1847 50,000 French people had emigrated to Algeria, but the conquest was slow due to intense resistance from such people as Emir Abdelkader, Ahmed Bey and
Fatma N'SoumerLalla Fadhma n'Soumer, in Kabyle Lla Faḍma n Sumer was an important figure of the Kabyle resistance movement during the first years of the French colonial conquest of Algiers...
. Indeed, the conquest was not technically complete until the early 1900s when the last
TuaregThe Tuareg are a Berber nomadic pastoralist people. They are the principal inhabitants of the Saharan interior of North Africa...
were conquered by General Guilain P. Denoeux.
Meanwhile, however, the French made Algeria an integral part of France, a status that would end only with the collapse of the
Fourth RepublicThe Fourth Republic was the republican government of France between 1946 and 1958, governed by the fourth republican constitution. It was in many ways a revival of the Third Republic, which was in place before World War II, and suffered many of the same problems...
in 1958. Tens of thousands of settlers from France, Spain,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
, and
MaltaMalta , officially the Republic of Malta , is a densely populated developed European country in the European Union. The Southern European island nation is an archipelago that includes the inhabited islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino, along with a number of smaller, uninhabited islands...
moved in to farm the Algerian coastal plain and occupied significant parts of Algeria's cities.
These settlers benefited from the French government's confiscation of communal land, and the application of modern agricultural techniques that increased the amount of arable land. Algeria's social fabric suffered during the occupation: literacy plummeted, while land development uprooted much of the population.
Starting from the end of the 19th century, people of European descent in Algeria (or natives like
Spanish peopleSpanish people or Spaniards constitute the nationality and ethnic group of natives of Spain, a European country in the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. The Spanish nationality is in essence made up of regional nationalities, reflecting the complex history of Spain...
in
OranOran is a major city on the Mediterranean coast in northwestern Algeria. The name comes from the Berber word Uhran meaning The Lions....
), as well as the native Algerian
JewThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
s (typically Sephardic in origin), became full French citizens. After Algeria's 1962 independence, they were called
Pieds-NoirsPied-Noir , plural Pieds-Noirs, pronounced , is a term used to refer to colonists of Algeria until the end of the Algerian War in 1962....
; ("Pieds Noirs" meaning "black feet", referring to the black shoes the Europeans wore on their feet). In contrast, the vast majority of
Muslim:A Muslim , , is an adherent of the religion of Islam. The feminine form is Muslimah . Literally, the word means "one who submits ". Muslim is the participle of the same verb of which Islam is the infinitive. Muslims believe that there is only one God, translated in Arabic as Allah...
Algerians (even veterans of the French army) received neither French citizenship nor the right to vote.
Post-independence
In 1954, the
National Liberation FrontThe National Liberation Front is a socialist political party in Algeria. It was set up on November 1, 1954 as a merger of other smaller groups, to obtain independence for Algeria from France....
(FLN) launched the
Algerian War of IndependenceThe Algerian War, also known as the Algerian War of Independence or in , was a conflict between France and Algerian independence movements from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria gaining its independence from France...
which was a
guerrillaGuerrilla warfare is the irregular warfare warfare and combat in which a small group of combatants use mobile military tactics in the form of ambushes and raids to combat a larger and less mobile formal army....
campaign. By the end of the war, newly elected President
Charles de GaulleCharles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II...
, understanding that the age of empires was ending, held a
plebisciteA referendum , ballot question, or plebiscite is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal...
, offering Algerians three options. In a famous speech (4 June 1958 in Algiers) de Gaulle proclaimed in front of a vast crowd of Pieds-Noirs "Je vous ai compris" (I have understood you). Most Pieds-noirs then believed that de Gaulle meant that Algeria would remain French. The poll resulted in a landslide vote for complete independence from France. Over one million people, 10% of the population, then fled the country for France and in just a few months in mid-1962. These included most of the 1,025,000
Pieds-Noirs, as well as 81,000
HarkiHarki is the generic term for Muslim Algerians serving as auxiliaries with the French Army, during the Algerian War from 1954 to 1962...
s (pro-French Algerians serving in the French Army). In the days preceding the bloody conflict, a group of Algerian Rebels opened fire on a marketplace in Oran killing numerous innocent civilians, mostly women.
Algeria's first president was the FLN leader
Ahmed Ben BellaMohamed Ahmed Ben Bella was the first President of Algeria.-Youth:...
. He was overthrown by his former ally and defence minister,
Houari BoumédienneHouari Boumediène served as Algeria's Chairman of the Revolutionary Council from 19 June 1965 until 12 December 1976, and from then on as President of Algeria to his death on 27 December 1978.- Background :Mohamed Ben Brahim Boukharouba was born near...
in 1965. Under Ben Bella the government had already become increasingly
socialistSocialism refers to various theories of economic organization advocating public or direct worker ownership and administration of the means of production and allocation of resources, and a society characterized by equal access to resources for all individuals with a method of compensation based on...
and
authoritarianAuthoritarianism describes a form of government characterized by an emphasis on the authority of state in a republic or union. It is a political system controlled by typically non-elected rulers who usually permit some degree of individual freedom....
, and this trend continued throughout Boumédienne's government. However, Boumédienne relied much more heavily on the army, and reduced the sole legal party to a merely symbolic role.
AgricultureAgriculture is the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of human civilization, with the husbandry of domesticated animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more densely populated and...
was
collectivisedCollective farming is an organization of agricultural production in which the holdings of several farmers are run as a joint enterprise. A collective farm is essentially an agricultural production cooperative in which members-owners engage jointly in farming activities...
, and a massive industrialization drive launched.
OilAn oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and is hydrophobic but soluble in organic solvents. Oils have a high carbon and hydrogen content and are nonpolar substances. The general definition above includes compound classes with otherwise unrelated chemical structures,...
extraction facilities were nationalized. This was especially beneficial to the leadership after the
1973 oil crisisThe 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC proclaimed an oil embargo" in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military" during the Yom Kippur war; it lasted until March 1974...
. However, the Algerian economy became increasingly dependent on oil which led to hardship when the price collapsed during the
1980s oil glutThe 1980s oil glut was a surplus of crude oil caused by falling demand following the 1973 and 1979 energy crises. The world price of oil, which had peaked in 1980 at over US$35 per barrel, fell in 1986 from $27 to below $10...
.
In foreign policy, while Algeria shares much of its history and cultural heritage with neighbouring Morocco, the two countries have had somewhat hostile relations with each other ever since Algeria's independence. Reasons for this include Morocco's disputed claim to
portions of western Algeriaright|thumb|Greater Morocco Map.Greater Morocco is a label historically used by some Moroccan anti-colonial political leaders agitating against French rule, to refer to wider territories historically associated with the Moroccan Sultan, current usage most frequently occurs in a critical context...
(which led to the
Sand WarThe Sand War or Sands War occurred along the Algerian-Moroccan border in October 1963, and was a Moroccan attempt to claim the Tindouf and the Bechar areas that France had annexed to French Algeria a few decades earlier.- Background :...
in 1963), Algeria's support for the
Polisario FrontThe Polisario, Polisario Front, or Frente Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro is a Sahrawi rebel movement working for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco...
for its right to
self-determinationSelf-determination is defined as free choice of one’s own acts without external compulsion; and especially as the freedom of the people of a given territory to determine their own political status. In other words, it is the right of the people of a nation to decide how they want to be governed...
, and Algeria's hosting of Sahrawi refugees within its borders in the city of
TindoufTindouf is the main town in Tindouf Province, Algeria. It is close to several Algerian military bases, and also to the Western Sahara, which contains several Sahrawi refugee camps operated by the Polisario Front. There is an airport outside Tindouf, north-west of the town, with regular Air Algérie...
.
Within Algeria, dissent was rarely tolerated, and the state's control over the
mediaMass media denotes a section of the media specifically designed to reach a very large audience such as the population of a nation state. The term was coined in the 1920s with the advent of nationwide radio networks, mass-circulation newspapers and magazines. However, some forms of mass media such...
and the outlawing of political parties other than the FLN was cemented in the repressive constitution of 1976.
Boumédienne died in 1978, but the rule of his successor,
Chadli BendjedidChadli Bendjedid was President of Algeria from February 9, 1979 to January 11, 1992. He served in the French Army as a noncommissioned officer and fought in Indo-China when the rebellion began there in 1954. He defected to the National Liberation Front at the beginning of the Algerian War of...
, was little more open. The state took on a strongly bureaucratic character and
corruptionPolitical corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
was widespread.
The modernization drive brought considerable
demographicDemography is the statistical study of all populations. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic population, that is, one that changes over time or space...
changes to Algeria. Village traditions underwent significant change as
urbanizationUrbanization is the physical growth of urban areas from rural areas as a result of population immigration to an existing urban area. Effects include change in density and administration services. While the exact definition and population size of urbanized areas varies amongdifferent countries,...
increased. New industries emerged and agricultural employment was substantially reduced.
EducationEducation in its broadest sense is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability of an individual...
was extended nationwide, raising the
literacyLiteracy is a concept claimed and defined by a range of different theoretical fields. In everyday terms, "literacy" is typically described as the ability to read and write...
rate from less than 10% to over 60%. There was a dramatic increase in the fertility rate to 7–8 children per mother.
Therefore by 1980, there was a very youthful population and a housing crisis. The new generation struggled to relate to the cultural obsession with the war years and two conflicting protest movements developed: communists, including Berber identity movements; and Islamic 'intégristes'. Both groups protested against one-party rule but also clashed with each other in universities and on the streets during the 1980s. Mass protests from both camps in autumn 1988 forced Bendjedid to concede the end of one-party rule.
Algerian political events (1991–2002)
Elections were planned to happen in 1991. In December 1991, the
Islamic Salvation FrontThe Islamic Salvation Front is an outlawed Islamist political party in Algeria.-Goals:...
won the
first roundThe Algerian National Assembly elections of 1991 were cancelled by a military coup after the first round, triggering the Algerian Civil War; the military expressed concerns that the FIS, which was almost certain to win more than the 2/3 majority of seats required to change the Algerian...
of the country's first multi-party elections. The military then intervened and cancelled the second round. It forced then-president Bendjedid to resign and banned all political parties based on religion (including the Islamic Salvation Front). A political conflict ensued, leading Algeria into the violent
Algerian Civil WarThe Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups which began in 1991. It is estimated to have cost between 150,000 and 200,000 lives....
.
More than 160,000 people were killed between 17 January 1992 and June 2002. Most of the deaths were between militants and government troops, but a great number of civilians were also killed. The question of who was responsible for these deaths was controversial at the time amongst academic observers; many were claimed by the
Armed Islamic GroupThe Armed Islamic Group is a Muslim organisation that wants to overthrow the Algerian government and replace it with an Islamic state...
. Though many of these massacres were carried out by Islamic extremists, the Algerian regime also used the army and foreign mercenaries to conduct attacks on men, women and children and then proceeded to blame the attacks upon various Islamic groups within the country.
Elections resumed in 1995, and after 1998, the war waned. On 27 April 1999, after a series of short-term leaders representing the
militaryA military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. As an adjective the term "military" is also used to refer to any property or aspect of a military...
,
Abdelaziz BouteflikaAbdelaziz Bouteflika has been the President of Algeria since 1999.- Family :Abdelaziz Bouteflika was born on March 2, 1937 in Oujda, French Morocco. He was the first child of his mother and the second child of his father...
, the current president, was elected.
Post war
By 2002, the main guerrilla groups had either been destroyed or surrendered, taking advantage of an
amnestyAmnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent persons. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the offense. The word has the same root as amnesia...
program, though sporadic fighting continued in some areas (See Islamic insurgency in Algeria (2002–present)).
The issue of Amazigh languages and identity increased in significance, particularly after the extensive
KabyleThe Kabyles The Kabyles The Kabyles (Iqvaylyen or Leqvayel in Kabyle, are a Berber people whose traditional homeland is highlands of Kabylie (or Kabylia) in northeastern Algeria....
protests of 2001 and the near-total boycott of local elections in
KabylieKabylie or Kabylia , is a historic and ethnic region in the north of Algeria.It is part of the Tell Atlas and is located at the edge of the Mediterranean Sea...
. The government responded with concessions including naming of Tamazight (Berber) as a national language and teaching it in schools.
Much of Algeria is now recovering and developing into an emerging economy. The high prices of oil and
gasThis page is about the physical properties of gas as a state of matter. For the uses of gases, and other meanings, see Gas .A gas is one of four states of matter. Near absolute zero, a substance exists as a solid...
are being used by the new government to improve the country's
infrastructureInfrastructure can be defined as the basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function....
and especially improve
industryAn industry is the manufacturing of a good or service within a category. Although industry is a broad term for any kind of economic production, in economics and urban planning industry is a synonym for the secondary sector, which is a type of economic activity involved in the manufacturing of raw...
and agricultural land. Recently, overseas investment in Algeria has increased.
Geography
Most of the coastal area is hilly, sometimes even mountainous, and there are a few natural harbours. The area from the coast to the
Tell AtlasThe Tell Atlas is a mountain chain over 1,500 kilometers in length, belonging to the Atlas mountain ranges in North Africa, stretching from Morocco, through Algeria to Tunisia. It parallels the Mediterranean coast...
is fertile. South of the Tell Atlas is a
steppeIn physical geography, a steppe is a biome region characterised by grassland plain without trees . The prairie can be considered a steppe. It may be semi-desert, or covered with grass or shrubs or both, depending on the season and latitude...
landscape, which ends with the
Saharan AtlasThe Saharan Atlas of Algeria is the eastern portion of the Atlas Mountains. Not as tall as the Grand Atlas of Morocco they are far more imposing than the Tell Atlas range that runs closer to the coast. The tallest peak in the range is the high Djebel Aissa....
; further south, there is the
SaharaThe Sahara , , "The Greatest Desert") is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometres , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean...
desert.
The
Ahaggar MountainsThis article is about the Ahaggar Mountains. For the tribe, see Ahaggar Tuareg Tribe.The Ahaggar Mountains , also known as the Hoggar, are a highland region in central Sahara, or southern Algeria near the Tropic of Cancer...
, also known as the Hoggar, are a highland region in central Sahara, southern Algeria. They are located about south of the capital, Algiers and just west of
TamanghassetTamanrasset is an oasis city and capital of Tamanrasset Province in southern Algeria, in the Ahaggar Mountains. It is the chief city of the Algerian Tuareg...
.
Algiers,
OranOran is a major city on the Mediterranean coast in northwestern Algeria. The name comes from the Berber word Uhran meaning The Lions....
,
ConstantineConstantine is the capital of Constantine Province in north-eastern Algeria. Slightly inland, it is about 80 kilometers from the Mediterranean coast....
, and
AnnabaAnnaba is a city in the northeastern corner of Algeria near the river Seybouse and the Tunisian border. It is located in Annaba Province. With a population of 258,058 , it is the fourth largest city in Algeria...
are Algeria's main cities.
Tropic of Cancer in the torrid zone
In this region even in winter, midday desert temperatures can be very hot. After sunset, however, the clear, dry air permits rapid loss of heat, and the nights are cool to chilly. Enormous daily ranges in temperature are recorded.
The highest temperature recorded in Tiguentour is 140.9 °F (60.5 °C) but this temperature is unofficial and is not recognized by any of the global meteorological organizations. The hottest recognized reading is 135 degrees Fahrenheit at Tindouf. The highest official temperature was 50.6 degrees Celsius at In Salah.
Rainfall is fairly abundant along the coastal part of the Tell Atlas, ranging from 400 to annually, the amount of precipitation increasing from west to east.
PrecipitationIn meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that is deposited on the Earth's surface. The main forms of precipitation include rain, snow, ice pellets, and graupel...
is heaviest in the northern part of eastern Algeria, where it reaches as much as in some years.
Farther inland, the rainfall is less plentiful.
Prevailing windsIn meteorology, prevailing winds are winds that blow predominantly from a single general direction over a particular point on the Earth's surface. The dominant winds are the trends in direction of wind with the highest speed over a particular point on the Earth's surface...
that are easterly and north-easterly in summer change to westerly and northerly in winter and carry with them a general increase in precipitation from September through December, a decrease in the late winter and spring months, and a near absence of rainfall during the summer months. Algeria also has
ergsAn erg is a large, relatively flat area of desert covered with wind-swept sand with little or no vegetative cover. The term takes its name from the Arabic word erg , meaning "dune field"...
, or sand dunes between mountains, which in the summer time when winds are heavy and gusty, temperatures can get up to .
Politics
The head of state is the
President of AlgeriaThe President is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Algerian armed forces.-Powers:The President is the chairman of the Council of Ministers and the High Security Council. The President is elected to a five year term and is constitutionally...
, who is elected for a five-year term. The president, as of a constitutional amendment passed by the Parliament on November 11, 2008, is not limited to any term length. Algeria has universal
suffrageSuffrage is the civil right to vote, or the exercise of that right. It is also called political franchise or simply the franchise. Suffrage may apply to elections, but also extends to initiatives and referendums...
at 18 years of age. The President is the head of the Council of Ministers and of the High Security Council. He appoints the
Prime MinisterThe Prime Minister is the head of government of Algeria.The Prime Minister is appointed by the President of Algeria, along with other ministers and members of the government that the new Prime Minister recommends. The People's National Assembly must approve the legislative program of the new...
who is also the head of government. The Prime Minister appoints the Council of Ministers.
The Algerian
parliamentA parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French parlement, the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at...
is bicameral, consisting of a lower chamber, the
National People's Assembly (APN), with 380 members; and an upper chamber, the
Council Of Nation, with 144 members. The APN is elected every five years.
Under the 1976
constitutionA constitution is a set of rules for government—often codified as a written document—that establishes principles of an autonomous political entity. In the case of countries, this term refers specifically to a national constitution defining the fundamental political principles, and establishing the...
(as modified 1979, and amended in 1988, 1989, and 1996) Algeria is a multi-party state. The Ministry of the Interior must approve all parties. To date, Algeria has had more than 40 legal political parties. According to the constitution, no political association may be formed if it is "based on differences in religion, language, race, gender or region."
Foreign relations and military
The military of Algeria consists of the
People's National ArmyThe People's National Army is the land force of the Military of Algeria,the largest of the Maghreb countries.The People's National Army's equipment is provided by Russia, China,and other various countries....
(ANP), the
Algerian National NavyThe Algerian National Navy is the naval branch of the Military of Algeria. The navy operates from 3 bases at Algiers, Annaba and Mers-el-Kébir on the Mediterranean coast. It consists of 6,600 personnel with most of its equipment provided by Russia...
(MRA), and the
Algerian Air ForceThe Algerian Air Force is the aerial arm of the Algerian People's Military.- Inventory :In 2006 a large contract with Russia provided for over 80 top modern fighters, yet to be delivered...
(QJJ), plus the Territorial Air Defense Force. It is the direct successor of the
Armée de Libération NationaleThe Armée de Libération Nationale or ALN was the armed wing of the nationalist Front de Libération National during the Algerian War of Independence...
(ALN), the armed wing of the nationalist National Liberation Front, which fought French colonial
occupationBelligerent military occupation occurs when the control and authority over a territory passes to a hostile army.-Military occupation and the laws of war:...
during the Algerian War of Independence (1954–62). The commander-in-chief of the military is the president, who is also Minister of National Defense.
Total military personnel include 147,000 active, 150,000 reserve, and 187,000 paramilitary staff (2008 estimate). Service in the military is compulsory for men aged 19–30, for a total of eighteen months (six training and twelve in civil projects). The total military expenditure in 2006 was estimated variously at 2.7% of GDP (3,096 million), or 3.3% of GDP.
Algeria is a leading military power in North Africa and has its force oriented toward its western (Morocco) and eastern (Libya) borders. Its primary military supplier has been the former
Soviet UnionThe Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The name is a translation of the , tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik, abbreviated СССР, SSSR. The common short name is Soviet Union, from , Sovetskiy Soyuz...
, which has sold various types of sophisticated equipment under military trade agreements, and the
People's Republic of ChinaThe People's Republic of China , commonly known as China, is the largest country in East Asia and the most populous in the world with over 1.3 billion people, approximately one-fifth of the world's population...
. Algeria has attempted, in recent years, to diversify its sources of military material. Military forces are supplemented by a 70,000-member
gendarmerieA gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military body charged with police duties among civilian populations. The members of such a body are called gendarmes. The term maréchaussée may also be used but is now uncommon.-Etymology:The word gendarme comes from Old French gens d'armes, meaning men-at-arms...
or rural police force under the control of the president and 30,000-member
Sûreté nationale or metropolitan
policeA police service is a public force empowered to enforce the law and provide security through the legitimized use of force.The term is most commonly associated with police services of a state that are authorized to exercise the police power of that state within a defined legal or territorial area of...
force under the Ministry of the Interior.
In 2007, the Algerian Air Force signed a deal with Russia to purchase 49 MiG-29SMT and 6 MiG-29UBT at an estimated $1.9 Billion. They also agreed to return old
aircraftA fixed-wing aircraft, usually called an airplane, aeroplane or plane, is an aircraft capable of flight using forward motion that causes air to pass over its wings to generate lift. Planes include jet engine and propeller driven vehicles propelled forward by thrust, as well as unpowered aircraft...
purchased from the Former USSR. Russia is also building two
636-typeThe Kilo class is the NATO reporting name for a military diesel-electric submarine that is made in Russia. The original version of the vessels were designated Project 877 Paltus in Russia. There is also a more advanced version, designated as Improved Kilo in the west, and Project 636 Varshavyanka...
diesel submarines for Algeria.
As of October 2009 it was reported that Algeria cancels weapons deal over Israeli parts.
Arab Maghreb Union
Tensions between Algeria and Morocco in relation to the
Western SaharaWestern Sahara is a territory of North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly consisting of...
have put great obstacles in the way of tightening the
Arab Maghreb UnionThe Arab Maghreb Union is a Pan-Arab trade agreement aiming for economic and political unity in North Africa....
and the yearned
Great Maghreb Sultanate, which was nominally established in 1989 but carried little practical weight with its coastal neighbors.
Provinces and districts
Algeria is divided into 48
provinces||-Algeria is currently divided into 48 wilayas , 553 daïras and 1541 baladiyahs...
(
wilayas), 553
districtsThe provinces of Algeria are divided into 553 districts . The capital of a district is called a district seat...
(
daïraA daïra is an administrative division of a wilaya in Algeria and in Western Sahara. Another translieration of the word is Daerah.*Daïra of Algeria*Daïra of Western Sahara-See also:* Provinces of Algeria...
s) and 1,541 municipalities (
baladiyahBaladiyah is a type of Arabic administrative division that can be translated as municipality or district. The plural is baladiyat .See municipalities of Algeria where Baladiyah is used to refer to tertary level administration divisions, and municipalities of Lebanon, municipalities of Qatar where...
s). Each province, district, and municipality is named after its seat, which is usually the largest city.
According to the Algerian constitution, a province is
a territorial collectivity enjoying some economic freedom.
The
People's Provincial AssemblyThe People's Municipal Assembly is the political body governing the provinces of Algeria. It is composed of an assembly elected on universal suffrage for five years. This assembly further elects a president, the president of the People's Provincial Assembly...
is the political entity governing a province, which has a "president", who is elected by the members of the assembly. They are in turn elected on
universal suffrageUniversal suffrage consists of the extension of the right to vote to adult citizens as a whole, though it may also mean extending said right to minors and noncitizens...
every five years. The "Wali" (
PrefectPrefect is a magisterial title of varying definition....
or
governorA governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
) directs each province. This person is chosen by the Algerian President to handle the PPA's decisions.
The administrative divisions have changed several times since independence. When introducing new provinces, the numbers of old provinces are kept, hence the non-alphabetical order. With their official numbers, currently (since 1983) they are:
1 AdrarAdrar is a province of southwestern Algeria, named after its capital Adrar. It is the second-largest province, with an area of 427,368 km². It had 402,197 inhabitants at the 2008 population census....
2 ChlefChlef is a wilaya in Algeria, and has about 1 million inhabitants. Its capital is Chlef. Another locality is Ténès, on the Mediterranean Sea.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 13 districts and 35 municipalities...
3 LaghouatLaghouat is a province in central Algeria. The name means "the oases". The capital is Laghouat. Other localities include Aflou, Ain Madhi, Kourdane and Makhareg.-Administrative division:...
4 Oum el-Bouaghi
5 BatnaBatna is a wilaya of Algeria. Capital is Batna. Localities in this province include Barika, Merouana and Timgad. Belzma National Park is there.- Administrative divisions :It is made up of 22 districts and 61 municipalities...
6 BéjaïaBéjaïa is a province of Algeria. The capital city is Béjaïa. Gouraya National Park is there. A population of the endangered primate, Barbary Macaque is found within this the province's Gouraya National Park; this canid has a severely restricted and disjunctive range.-Administrative divisions:It is...
7 BiskraBiskra is a wilaya of Algeria. The capital city is Biskra.Tolga is one of famous Dairas of this Wilaya. Other localities include Lichoua, Sidi Okba, Sidi Khaled, El-Kantara and Ouled Djellal.- Administrative division :...
8 Béchar
9 BlidaBlida is a province in Algeria. Its capital is Blida. Chréa National Park is situated here.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 10 districts and 25 municipalities...
10 Bouira-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 12 districts and 45 municipalities. The districts are:*Aïn Bessem*Bechloul*Bir Ghbalou*Bordj Okhriss*Bouïra*El Hachimia*Haïzer*Kadiria*Lakhdaria*M'Chedellah*Souk El Khemis*Sour El Ghozlane-Communes:...
11 TamanghassetTamanrasset or Tamanghasset is the largest province in Algeria. It was named after its province seat: Tamanrasset. The Province has two national parks, more than any other in Algeria...
12 TébessaTébessa is a wilaya of Algeria. Tébessa is also the name of the capital, which in ancient times it was known as Theveste. Another important city is El Ouenza.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 12 districts and 28 municipalities...
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13 TlemcenTlemcen is a province in north-western Algeria. Tlemcen National Park is there.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 20 districts and 53 municipalities...
14 TiaretTiaret is a wilaya of Algeria. The capital is Tiaret.-Administrative division:The province is made up of 14 districts and 42 municipalities...
15 Tizi OuzouTizi Ouzou is a province in Algeria, named after its capital.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 21 districts and 67 municipalities...
16 Algiers
17 DjelfaDjelfa is a wilaya of Algeria. Its capital is Djelfa.It was first established by the administrative reorganization of 1974, and is home to over 1.2 million inhabitants. Localities in this province include Tadmit, El Khemis, and Selmana....
18 JijelJijel is a province in Algeria in the eastern Mediterranean cost. The capital is Jijel . Taza National Park is there.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 11 districts and 28 municipalities...
19 SétifSétif Province is a province in north-eastern Algeria. Its capital and largest city is Sétif, the next largest city is El Eulma. There is also the World Heritage Site of Djémila there.-Administrative divisions:...
20 SaïdaSaïda is a wilaya of Algeria, named after its capital.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 6 districts and 16 municipalities. The districts are:*Aïn El Hadjar*El Hassasna*Ouled Brahim*Saïda*Sidi Boubekeur*Youb-Commune:*Aïn El Hadjar...
21 SkikdaSkikida is a province of Algeria, on its eastern Mediterranean coastline.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 13 districts and 38 municipalities...
22 Sidi Bel AbbesSidi Bel Abbès is one of the provinces of Algeria. Its name is derived from the name of its capital, the city of Sidi Bel Abbès. It is situated in the northwestern part of the country.-Administrative divisions:...
23 AnnabaAnnaba is a small province in the north-eastern corner of Algeria. Its capital, Annaba is Algeria's main port for mineral exports.-Administrative divisions:The province is divided into 6 districts,:*Annaba*Aïn El Berda*El Hadjar*Berrahal*Chetaïbi...
24 GuelmaGuelma Province is a province in eastern Algeria. Its namesake is its seat and most populous municipality: Guelma.-History:Its civilians suffered heavy casualties during the 1945 Sétif massacre by the French Army. The province itself was established on 1974. Before that, it was part of Annaba...
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25 ConstantineConstantine is one of the 48 provinces of Algeria, whose capital is the city of the same name.- Adminsitrative divisions :The province is divided into 6 districts, they are :*Aïn Abid*El Khroub*Hamma Bouziane*Ibn Ziad...
26 MédéaMédéa is a wilaya of Algeria. The capital is Médéa.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 19 districts and 64 municipalities. The districts are:*Aïn Boucif*Aziz*Béni Slimane*Berrouaghia*Chahbounia*Chellelet El Adhouara*El Azizia*El Omaria...
27 MostaganemMostaganem is a wilaya of Algeria. The capital is Mostaganem. Other localities include Ain Nouissi, Ain Tadles, Tazgait and Stidia.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 10 districts and 32 municipalities. The districts are:*Achacha*Aïn Nouïssy...
28 M'SilaM'Sila is a wilaya of Northern Algeria. It has a population of 1 million people and an area of 18,718 km², while its capital, also called M'sila, home to M'Sila University, has a population of about 100,000. Some localities in this wilaya are Bou Saada and Maadid. Chott El Hodna, a salt...
29 Mascara
30 OuarglaOuargla is a province in eastern Algeria. Its capital is Ouargla. Other localities include Temacine, Touggourt, and Hassi Messaoud.-History:...
31 OranOran is a province in Algeria whose seat is the city of the same name.-Geography:It is located in the northwestern part of the country. Its population is 1,443,052 and it covers a total area of 2,114 km²...
32 El BayadhEl Bayadh is a province in Algeria, named after its capital El Bayadh.-Administrative divisions:The province is divided into 8 districts, which are further divided into 22 municipalities they are:*Boualem*Bougtob*Boussemghoun*Brézina*Chellala*El Abiodh Sidi Cheikh*El...
33 IlliziIllizi is a province in the south-eastern corner of Algeria named after its eponymous seat.It borders Libya to the east, Ouargla Province to the north and, Tamanghasset Province to the east and south.-Administrative divisions:...
34 Bordj Bou ArréridjBordj Bou Arréridj is a province and in the east Algeria around 200 km away from the capital Algiers. It is notable for its many electronic industries . Its capital is Bordj Bou Arreridj. Other localities include Bir Kasd Ali and Glela.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 10 districts...
35 BoumerdèsBoumerdès is a province of northern Algeria, between Algiers and Tizi-Ouzou, with its capital at the coastal city of Boumerdès just east of Algiers.-Administrative divisions:...
36 El Tarf |
37 TindoufTindouf, also written Tinduf, is the westernmost province of Algeria, having a population of 58,193 as of the 2008 census. Despite the barren landscape, Tindouf is a resource-rich province, with important quantities of iron ore located in the Gara Djebilet area close to the border with Mali...
38 TissemsiltTissemsilt is the province n° 38 of Algeria with the capital being Tissemsilt. Théniet El Haâd National Park is there.-Administrative divisions:The province is made up of 8 districts and 22 municipalities...
39 El OuedEl Oued is a Saharan province of Algeria dominated by Oued Souf. It was named after its eponymous capital.Notable towns include El Oued itself and Guemar, Debila, and Robbah.-Administrative division:...
40 Khenchela-Administrative division:The province is made up of 8 districts and 21 municipalities respectively:*Khenchela as a district and capital of state.*Aïn Touila located 20 km northeastern of capital of state....
41 Souk Ahras
42 TipasaTipaza or Tipasa is a wilaya on the coast of Algeria, Its capital is Tipasa, 50 km west of the capital of Algeria.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 10 districts and 28 municipalities...
43 MilaMila is a wilaya of Algeria, whose capital is Mila. Other localities include Telerghma, Grarem Gouga, Hamala and Rouached.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 13 districts and 32 municipalities...
44 Aïn DeflaAïn Defla is a wilaya in northern Algeria. It is located to the southwest of Algiers, the capital. Localities in Ain Delfa include Miliana, Hammam Righa, and Aïn Torki.-Administrative divisions:...
45 NaamaNaâma is a province of Algeria named after its provincial seat, the town of Naâma. There is an airport in Mécheria; and a big sabkha.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 7 districts and 12 municipalities...
46 Aïn TémouchentAïn Témouchent is a province in northwestern Algeria, named after its capital: Aïn Témouchent.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 8 districts and 28 municipalities...
47 GhardaïaGhardaïa is a wilaya in eastern Algeria, named after its capital Ghardaïa. The M'Zab Valley, located there, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.-Administrative divisions:The province is made up of 9 districts and 13 municipalities...
48 RelizaneRelizane is a wilaya of Algeria. Relizane is the capital. Other localities include Bendaoud, Bouzegza, Hamri, Kalaa, Mazouna and Zemmoura.-Administrative divisions:It is made up of 13 districts and 38 municipalities...
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Economy
The fossil fuels energy sector is the backbone of Algeria's economy, accounting for roughly 60% of budget revenues, 30% of
GDPThe gross domestic product or gross domestic income is a basic measure of a country's economic performance and is the market value of all final goods and services made within the borders of a country in a year...
, and over 95% of export earnings. The country ranks fourteenth in
petroleumPetroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid found in rock formations in the Earth consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights, plus other organic compounds.The term "petroleum" was first used in the treatise De Natura Fossilium, published in...
reserves, containing of proven oil reserves with estimates suggesting that the actual amount is even more. The U.S.
Energy Information AdministrationThe United States Energy Information Administration , created by Congress in 1977, is the independent statistical agency within the U.S. Department of Energy...
reported that in 2005, Algeria had 160 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of proven
natural gasNatural gas is a gas consisting primarily of methane. It is found associated with fossil fuels, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is created by methanogenic organisms in marshes, bogs, and landfills...
reserves (4,502 billion cubic metres), the eighth largest in the world.
Algeria’s financial and economic indicators improved during the mid-1990s, in part because of policy reforms supported by the
International Monetary FundThe International Monetary Fund is an international organization that oversees the global financial system by following the macroeconomic policies of its member countries, in particular those with an impact on exchange rates and the balance of payments...
(IMF) and
debtDebt is that which is owed; usually referencing assets owed, but the term can also cover moral obligations and other interactions not requiring money. In the case of assets, debt is a means of using future purchasing power in the present before a summation has been earned...
rescheduling from the
Paris ClubThe Paris Club is an informal group of financial officials from 19 of the world's richest countries, which provides financial services such as debt restructuring, debt relief, and debt cancellation to indebted countries and their creditors...
. Algeria’s finances in 2000 and 2001 benefited from an increase in
oilAn oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and is hydrophobic but soluble in organic solvents. Oils have a high carbon and hydrogen content and are nonpolar substances. The general definition above includes compound classes with otherwise unrelated chemical structures,...
prices and the government’s tight fiscal policy, leading to a large increase in the trade surplus, record highs in foreign exchange reserves, and reduction in foreign debt.
The government's continued efforts to diversify the economy by attracting foreign and domestic
investmentInvestment or investing is a term with several closely-related meanings in business management, finance and economics, related to saving or deferring consumption. Investing is the active redirection of resources: from being consumed today, to creating benefits in the future; the use of assets to...
outside the energy sector have had little success in reducing high
unemploymentUnemployment occurs when a person is available to work and seeking work but currently without work. The prevalence of unemployment is usually measured using the unemployment rate, which is defined as the percentage of those in the labor force who are unemployed...
and improving living standards, however. In 2001, the government signed an Association Treaty with the
European UnionThe European Union is an economic and political union of 27 Member States, located primarily in Europe. Committed to regional integration, the EU was established by the Treaty of Maastricht on 1 November 1993 upon the foundations of the pre-existing European Economic Community...
that will eventually lower tariffs and increase trade. In March 2006, Russia agreed to erase $4.74 billion of Algeria's
SovietThe Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The name is a translation of the , tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik, abbreviated СССР, SSSR. The common short name is Soviet Union, from , Sovetskiy Soyuz...
-era debt during a visit by President
Vladimir PutinVladimir Vladimirovich Putin was the second President of Russia and is the current Prime Minister of Russia as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus...
to the country, the first by a Russian leader in half a century. In return, president Bouteflika agreed to buy $7.5 billion worth of combat planes, air-defense systems and other arms from Russia, according to the head of Russia's state arms exporter Rosoboronexport.
Algeria also decided in 2006 to pay off its full $8bn (£4.3bn) debt to the
Paris ClubThe Paris Club is an informal group of financial officials from 19 of the world's richest countries, which provides financial services such as debt restructuring, debt relief, and debt cancellation to indebted countries and their creditors...
group of rich creditor nations before schedule. This will reduce the Algerian foreign debt to less than $5bn in the end of 2006. The
Paris ClubThe Paris Club is an informal group of financial officials from 19 of the world's richest countries, which provides financial services such as debt restructuring, debt relief, and debt cancellation to indebted countries and their creditors...
said the move reflected Algeria's economic recovery in recent years.
Agriculture
Algeria has always been noted for the fertility of its soil. 25% of Algerians are employed in the agricultural sector.
A considerable amount of
cottonCotton is a soft, staple fiber that grows in a form known as a boll around the seeds of the cotton plant, a shrub native to tropical and subtropical regions around the world, including the Americas, India and Africa. The fiber most often is spun into yarn or thread and used to make a soft,...
was grown at the time of the United States'
Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
, but the industry declined afterwards. In the early years of the twentieth century efforts to extend the cultivation of the plant were renewed. A small amount of
cottonCotton is a soft, staple fiber that grows in a form known as a boll around the seeds of the cotton plant, a shrub native to tropical and subtropical regions around the world, including the Americas, India and Africa. The fiber most often is spun into yarn or thread and used to make a soft,...
is also grown in the southern oases. Large quantities of dwarf palm are cultivated for the leaves, the fibers of which resemble
horsehairThe mane is the hair that grows from the top of the neck of a horse or other equine, reaching from the poll to the withers, and includes the forelock or foretop. It is thicker and coarser than the rest of the horse's coat, and naturally grows to roughly cover the neck...
. The
oliveThe Olive is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin, from Lebanon, Syria and the maritime parts of Turkey and northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea...
(both for its fruit and oil) and
tobaccoTobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as an organic pesticide, and in the form of nicotine tartrate it is used in some medicines. In consumption it most commonly appears in the forms of smoking, chewing, snuffing, or...
are cultivated with great success.
More than are devoted to the cultivation of cereal grains. The
Tell AtlasThe Tell Atlas is a mountain chain over 1,500 kilometers in length, belonging to the Atlas mountain ranges in North Africa, stretching from Morocco, through Algeria to Tunisia. It parallels the Mediterranean coast...
is the grain-growing land. During the time of French rule its productivity was increased substantially by the sinking of
artesian wellsAn artesian aquifer is a confined aquifer containing groundwater that will flow upward through a well, called an artesian well, without the need for pumping...
in districts which only required water to make them fertile. Of the crops raised,
wheatWheat is a worldwide cultivated grass from the Fertile Crescent region of the Near East. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
,
barleyBarley is a cereal grain derived from the annual grass Hordeum vulgare. It serves as a major animal feed crop, with smaller amounts used for malting and in health food. It is used in soups, stews and barley bread in various countries, such as Scotland and in Africa...
and
oatThe common oat is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name . While oats are suitable for human consumption as oatmeal and rolled oats, one of the most common uses is as livestock feed. Oats make up a large part of the diet of horses and are regularly fed to...
s are the principal cereals. A great variety of
vegetableA vegetable is an edible plant or part of a plant. However, the word is not scientific, and its meaning is largely based on culinary and cultural tradition. Therefore the application of the word is somewhat arbitrary and subjective. For example, some people consider mushrooms to be vegetables,...
s and
fruitThe term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate seeds, and the presence of seeds indicates that a structure is most likely a fruit, though not all seeds come from...
s, especially
citrusCitrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the family Rutaceae, originating in tropical and subtropical southeast regions of the world. The most well known examples are the orange, the lemon, the grapefruit, and the lime. The Latin word citrus was borrowed from ancient Greek kedros...
products, are exported. Algeria also exports
figFIG may refer to:*Common fig, a large, deciduous shrub native to southwest Asia and the eastern Mediterranean region.*Ficus, a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs in the family Moraceae.-Acronym:* Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique...
s, dates,
esparto grassEsparto, or esparto grass, also known as "halfah grass" or "needle grass", Macrochloa tenacissima and Stipa tenacissima, is a perennial grass grown in northwest Africa and southern Spain employed for crafts .-Esparto paper:It is also used for fiber production for paper making...
, and
corkCork material is an impermeable, buoyant material, a subset of generic cork tissue that is harvested for commercial use primarily from Quercus suber that is endemic to southwest Europe and northwest Africa...
. It is the largest
oatThe common oat is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name . While oats are suitable for human consumption as oatmeal and rolled oats, one of the most common uses is as livestock feed. Oats make up a large part of the diet of horses and are regularly fed to...
market in Africa.
Algeria is known for Bertolli's
olive oilOlive oil is a fruit oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. The wild olive tree originated in Asia Minor and spread from there as far as southern Africa, Australia, Japan and China. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and...
spread, although the spread has an Italian background.
Demographics
The population of Algeria is 35,190,000 (jan 2009 est.).
About 70% of Algerians live in the northern, coastal area; the minority who inhabit the
SaharaThe Sahara , , "The Greatest Desert") is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometres , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean...
are mainly concentrated in
oasesIn geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
, although some 1.5 million remain
nomadNomadic people are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. There are an estimated 30-40 million nomads in the world. Many cultures have traditionally been nomadic, but traditional nomadic behavior is increasingly rare in...
ic or partly nomadic. Almost 30% of Algerians are under 15. Algeria has the fourth lowest
fertility rate in the
Greater Middle EastThe Greater Middle East is a political term coined by the Bush administration to englobe together various countries, pertaining to the Muslim world, specifically Iran, Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Various Central Asian countries and the lower Caucasus and Cyprus and Greece are sometimes also...
after
CyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country situated in the eastern Mediterranean, south of Turkey and west of Syria and Lebanon....
,
TunisiaTunisia , officially the Tunisian Republic , is a country located in North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and Libya to the southeast. Tunisia is located southwest of the island of Sicily and south of Sardinia. Its size is almost 165,000 km² with an estimated population of just...
, and
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
.
99% of Algerians are classified ethnically as
ArabArab people or Arabs are an ethnic group whose members identify along linguistic, cultural or genealogical grounds...
or
BerberBerbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the...
by unofficial sources and according to their native language, whether it is a predominantly Arab dialect or a predominantly Berber dialect (because all Algerian dialects are in fact an Arabic-Berber mix, none is pure Arabic or pure Berber), but this doesn't really reflect the real ancestry of Algerians, which is mostly a mixed ancestry made of Berber and different European and Middle Eastern populations that have invaded northwest Africa at different periods of history and mixed with its inhabitants; these groups include Arabs, Turks, Vandals, Phenicians, Romans, Greeks, Egyptians. Thus, the spoken language bares no indication of the true ancestry of those who speak it.
Europeans account for less than 1% of the population, inhabiting almost exclusively the largest metropolitan areas. However, during the colonial period there was a large (15.2% in 1962) European population, consisting primarily of
French peopleFrench people can refer to:* The legal residents and citizens of France, regardless of ancestry. For a legal discussion, see French nationality law.* People whose ancestors lived in France or the area that later became France....
, in addition to Spaniards in the west of the country, Italians and
MalteseThe Maltese are an ethnic group associated with the Southern European nation of Malta, and with the Maltese language. Malta is an island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea...
in the east, and other Europeans in smaller numbers. Known as
pieds-noirsPied-Noir , plural Pieds-Noirs, pronounced , is a term used to refer to colonists of Algeria until the end of the Algerian War in 1962....
, European colonists were concentrated on the coast and formed a majority of the population of
OranOran is a major city on the Mediterranean coast in northwestern Algeria. The name comes from the Berber word Uhran meaning The Lions....
(60%) and important proportions in other large cities like
AlgiersAlgiers is the capital and largest city of Algeria, and the second largest city in the Maghreb . According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630...
and
AnnabaAnnaba is a city in the northeastern corner of Algeria near the river Seybouse and the Tunisian border. It is located in Annaba Province. With a population of 258,058 , it is the fourth largest city in Algeria...
. Almost all of this population left during or immediately after the country's independence from France.
Housing and medicine continue to be pressing problems in Algeria. Failing infrastructure and the continued influx of people from rural to urban areas has overtaxed both systems. According to the UNDP, Algeria has one of the world's highest per housing unit occupancy rates for housing, and government officials have publicly stated that the country has an immediate shortfall of 1.5 million housing units.
Women make up 70 percent of Algeria's lawyers and 60 percent of its judges. Women dominate medicine. Increasingly, women are contributing more to household income than men. Sixty percent of university students are women, according to university researchers.
It is estimated that 95,700 refugees and
asylumRight of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or Church sanctuaries...
-seekers have sought refuge in Algeria. This includes roughly 90,000 from Morocco and 4,100 from former
PalestinePalestine is a conventional name used, among others, to describe a geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands.As a geographical term, Palestine can also refer to 'ancient Palestine,' an area...
. There are currently 35,000
ChineseOverseas Chinese are people of Chinese birth or descent who live outside the territories administered by the rival governments of the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China...
migrant workers in Algeria.
Ethnic groups
Ethnic composition of Algeria is mixed
ArabArab people or Arabs are an ethnic group whose members identify along linguistic, cultural or genealogical grounds...
and
BerberBerbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the...
. No official figures can be given, because Algerian law forbids population censuses based on ethnic, religious and linguistic criteria. The Algerian representative for Human Rights, M. Semichi mentioned in 1993 that there were 13–14 million Berbers in Algeria, which would amount to nearly 60% (of a population estimated at that moment as 23 million); he speaks about 7 million people in Kabylie, "8-9 million in the Aurès, in the east of the country" and 1 million in the south. The Aurès region has around 3 million or, if defined very broadly, up to 5 million inhabitants.
The Berber people, identified as speakers of a Berber language, are divided into several groups,
KabyleThe Kabyles The Kabyles The Kabyles (Iqvaylyen or Leqvayel in Kabyle, are a Berber people whose traditional homeland is highlands of Kabylie (or Kabylia) in northeastern Algeria....
in the mountainous north-central area,
ChaouiThe Chaouis are a Berber people who live mainly in the Aurès Region and Aurès Mountains. They call themselves Icawiyen and speak the Chaouia language.- Bibliographie :...
in the eastern
Atlas MountainsThe Atlas Mountains are a mountain range across a northern stretch of Africa extending about 2,500 km through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The highest peak is Jbel Toubkal, with an elevation of in southwestern Morocco. The Atlas ranges separate the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines...
,
MozabiteThe Mozabite people are a Berber ethnic group living in M'zab , in the northern Sahara. They speak Tumzabt. Most of them are Ibadi Muslims...
s in the
M'zabThe M'zab or Mzab, , is a region of the northern Sahara, in the Ghardaïa wilaya "province" of Algeria, around 500 km south of Algiers.-Geology:...
valley, and
TuaregThe Tuareg are a Berber nomadic pastoralist people. They are the principal inhabitants of the Saharan interior of North Africa...
in the far south, while the Arab Algerians make up the rest of the country.
Languages
Arabic is spoken as a native language by more than 60 % of the population; of these, over 65% speak
Algerian ArabicAlgerian Arabic is the variety or varieties of Arabic spoken in Algeria. In Algeria, as elsewhere, spoken Arabic differs from written Arabic; Algerian Arabic has a Berber component, a vocabulary with many new words and loanwords from Berber, Turkish, Spanish, and French, and like all Arabic...
and around 11%
HassaniyaHassānīya Arabic is an Arabic variety originally spoken by the Beni Hassān Bedouin tribes, who extended their authority over most of Mauritania and the Western Sahara between the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries. It has almost completely replaced the Berber languages spoken in this region...
. Algerian Arabic is spoken as a second language by many Berbers. However, in the media and on official occasions the spoken language is Standard Arabic.
The Berbers (or Imazighen) speak one of the various dialects of Tamazight and add up to around 45% of the population. Arabic remains Algeria's only
official languageAn official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other territory. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
, although Tamazight has recently been recognized as a
national languageA national language is a language which has some connection—de facto or de jure—with a people and perhaps by extension the territory they occupy. The term is used variously. A national language may for instance represent the national identity of a nation or country...
.
French is the most widely studied
foreign languageA foreign language is a language not spoken by the people of a certain place: for example, not only English but also Late Old Japanese is a foreign language in Japan. It is also a language not spoken in the native country of the person referred to, i.e. an English speaker living in Japan can say...
in the country, and the great majority of Algerians speak it fluently, though it is usually not spoken in daily circumstances. Since
independenceIndependence is the self-government of a nation, country, or state by its residents and population, or some portion thereof, generally exercising sovereignty....
, the government has pursued a policy of linguistic Arabization of
educationEducation in its broadest sense is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability of an individual...
and bureaucracy, with some success, although many
universityA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
courses continue to be taught in French. Recently, schools have started to incorporate French into the curriculum as early as children start to learn Arabic. French is also used in media and commerce.
Religion
IslamIslam Islam Islam ( al-’islām,
[There are ten pronunciations of Islam in English, differing in whether the first or second syllable has the stress, whether the s is or , and whether the a is pronounced as in father, as in cat, or (when the stress is on the i) as in the a of sofa...]
is the predominant religion, followed by more than 90 percent of the country's population. This figure includes all these born in families considered of Muslim descent.
Officially Algerians are Muslims at nearly 100%, however atheists or other kinds of non-believers are not counted in the statistics.
Nearly all Algerians belong to the Sunni Islam, with the exception of some 200,000 ibadis in the M'zab Valley in the region of
GhardaiaGhardaïa is the capital city of Ghardaïa Province, Algeria. The city has a population of 104 645 .-Culture:...
.
There are also some 150,000
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
s in the country, among whom 10,000 Catholics and 80,000 to 130,000 evangelical Protestants (mainly pentecostal), according to the
Protestant Church of AlgeriaThe Protestant Church of Algeria is a small religious body formed in 1972 by the union of several smaller Protestant denominations in Algeria. The church has about 350,000 members, mainly in the northern coastal region of the country...
's leader Mustapha Krim.
Algeria had an important Jewish community until the 1960s, but there is no active Jewish community today, although a very small number of
JewThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
s continue to live in Algiers.
Health
In 2002 Algeria had inadequate numbers of physicians (1.13 per 1,000 people), nurses (2.23 per 1,000 people), and dentists (0.31 per 1,000 people). Access to “improved water sources” was limited to 92 percent of the population in urban areas and 80 percent of the population in rural areas. Some 99 percent of Algerians living in urban areas, but only 82 percent of those living in rural areas, had access to “improved sanitation.” According to the World Bank, Algeria is making progress toward its goal of “reducing by half the number of people without sustainable access to improved drinking water and basic sanitation by 2015.” Given Algeria’s young population, policy favors preventive health care and clinics over hospitals. In keeping with this policy, the government maintains an immunization program. However, poor sanitation and unclean water still cause
tuberculosisTuberculosis is a common and often deadly infectious disease caused by mycobacteria...
,
hepatitisHepatitis implies injury to the liver characterized by the presence of inflammatory cells in the tissue of the organ. The name is from ancient Greek hepar , the root being hepat- , meaning liver, and suffix -itis, meaning "inflammation"...
,
measlesMeasles is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
,
typhoid feverTyphoid fever, also known as enteric fever, Salmonella typhi or commonly just typhoid, is an illness. Common worldwide, it is transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with feces from an infected person. The bacteria then perforate through the intestinal wall and are phagocytosed...
,
choleraCholera, sometimes known as Asiatic or epidemic cholera, is an infectious gastroenteritis caused by enterotoxin-producing strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Transmission to humans occurs through eating food or drinking water contaminated with Vibrio cholerae from other cholera patients...
, and
dysenteryDysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the feces. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal....
. The poor generally receive health care free of charge.-
Algeria
Education
Education is officially compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 15. In the year 1997, there was an outstanding amount of teachers and students in primary schools. About 30 % of the adult population of the country are illiterate.
In Algeria there are 43 universities, 10 colleges, and 7 institutes for higher learning. The University of Algiers (founded in 1909) has about 267,142 students. The Algerian school system is structured into Basic, General Secondary, and Technical Secondary levels:
Basic: Ecole fondamentale (Fundamental School)
Length of program: 9 years
Age range: 6 to 15
Certificate/diploma awarded: Brevet d'Enseignement Moyen B.E.M.
General Secondary: Lycée d'Enseignement général (School of General Teaching), lycées polyvalents (General-Purpose School)
Length of program: 3 years
Age range: 15 to 18
Certificate/diploma awarded: Baccalauréat de l'Enseignement secondaire
(Bachelor's Degree of Secondary School)
Technical Secondary: Lycées d'Enseignement technique (Technical School)
Length of program: 3 years
Certificate/diploma awarded: Baccalauréat technique (Technical Bachelor's Degree)
Culture and Sports
Modern Algerian literature, split between Arabic and French, has been strongly influenced by the country's recent history.
Famous novelists of the twentieth century include
Mohammed DibMohammed Dib was an Algerian author who wrote over 30 novels, as well as numerous short stories, poems, and children's literature in the French language. He is probably Algeria's most prolific and well-known writer...
,
Albert CamusAlbert Camus was a French author, philosopher, and journalist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957. He is often cited as a proponent of existentialism , but Camus himself refused this particular label...
, and
Kateb YacineKateb Yacine was an Algerian writer notable for his novels and plays, both in French and Algerian Arabic dialect, and his advocacy of the Algerian Berber cause.-Biography:...
, while
Assia DjebarAssia Djebar is the pen-name of Fatima-Zohra Imalayen , an Algerian novelist, translator and filmmaker. Most of her works deal with the obstacles faced by women, and she is noted for her feminist stance...
is widely translated. Among the important novelists of the 1980s were
Rachid MimouniRachid Mimouni was an Algerian writer, teacher and human rights activist....
, later vice-president of Amnesty International, and
Tahar DjaoutTahar Djaout was an Algerian journalist, poet, and fiction writer. He was assassinated by the rebel Armed Islamic Group because of his support of secularism and opposition to what he considered fanaticism. He was attacked on May 26, 1993, as he was leaving his home in Bainem, Algeria. He died on...
, murdered by an Islamist group in 1993 for his secularist views.
In philosophy and the humanities,
Jacques DerridaJacques Derrida was a French philosopher born in Algeria, who is known as the founder of deconstruction. His voluminous work had a profound impact upon literary theory and continental philosophy...
, the father of
deconstructionDeconstruction is the name given by French philosopher Jacques Derrida to an approach which rigorously pursues the meaning of a text to the point of undoing the oppositions on which it is apparently founded, and to the point of showing that those foundations are irreducibly complex, unstable or ...
, was born in
El BiarEl Biar is a suburb of Algiers, Algeria. It is located in the administrative constituency of Bouzaréah in the Governorate of Greater Algiers. As of the 1998 census, it has a population of 52,582 inhabitants...
in Algiers;
Malek BennabiMalek Bennabi was a prominent Algerian thinker . He wrote about human society, particularly Muslim society with a focus on the reasons behind the fall of muslim society....
and
Frantz FanonFrantz Fanon was a psychiatrist, philosopher, revolutionary, and author from Martinique. He was influential in the field of post-colonial studies and was perhaps the pre-eminent thinker of the 20th century on the issue of decolonization and the psychopathology of colonization...
are noted for their thoughts on
decolonizationDecolonization refers to the undoing of colonialism, the establishment of governance or authority through the creation of settlements by another country or jurisdiction. The term generally refers to the achievement of independence by the various Western colonies and protectorates in Asia and...
;
Augustine of HippoAugustine of Hippo , Bishop of Hippo Regius, also known as St. Augustine or St. Austin, was an Algerian Berber philosopher and theologian....
was born in Tagaste (modern-day
Souk AhrasSouk Ahras is a province in Algeria, named after its capital, Souk Ahras. It stands on the border between Algeria and Tunisia.- Geography :Souk ahras is situated in the extreme north east of Algeria, it is 4360 km².Its borders are:...
); and
Ibn KhaldunIbn Khaldūn or Ibn Khaldoun Ibn Khaldūn or Ibn Khaldoun Ibn Khaldūn or Ibn Khaldoun (full name, , , (May 27, 1332 AD/732 AH – March 19, 1406 AD/808 AH) was a North African polymath — an astronomer, economist, historian, Islamic scholar, Islamic theologian, hafiz, jurist, lawyer,...
, though born in
TunisTunis is the capital of the Tunisian Republic and also the Tunis Governorate, with a population of 1,200,000 in 2008 and over 3,980,500 in the greater Tunis area...
, wrote the Muqaddima while staying in Algeria.
Algerian culture has been strongly influenced by
IslamIslam, the religion of almost all of the Algerian people, pervades most aspects of life. The vast majority of citizens are Sunni Muslims. Islam provides the society with its central social and cultural identity and gives most individuals their basic ethical and attitudinal orientation...
, the main religion. The works of the Sanusi family in pre-colonial times, and of Emir Abdelkader and Sheikh Ben Badis in colonial times, are widely noted. The Latin author
ApuleiusLucius Apuleius Platonicus was a Latin prose writer remembered most for his bawdy picaresque novel, the Metamorphoses, otherwise known as The Golden Ass...
was born in
MadaurusM'Daourouch is a municipality in Souk Ahras Province, Algeria, occupying the site of the former Roman town of Madauras, Madaure, or Madaura which is now a Roman Catholic titular see in the former Roman province of Numidia....
(Mdaourouch), in what later became Algeria.
In painting, Mohammed Khadda and M'Hamed Issiakhem have been notable in recent years.
The most popular sports in the country are football, athletics and handball. One of the biggest events in Algerian sports was the 1982 national football team's defeat of
West GermanyWest Germany is a common English name for the period of the Federal Republic of Germany between its' formation in May 1949 to German reunification in October 1990, when the German Democratic Republic was dissolved and the five states on its territory joined the Federal Republic of Germany,...
in Gijon, Spain by a goal from
Lakhdar BelloumiLakhdar Belloumi was a former Algerian football player and manager, he is considered as the best Algerian player of all time.-International career:...
. But because of conflicts, and the poor conditions in Algeria through the 1990s and continuing in some areas of the country today many athletes have left Algeria for countries they could earn more in, usually France. Retired football great
Zinedine ZidaneZinedine Yazid Zidane is a retired French professional footballer. Considered one of the greatest players of all time, Zidane played for club teams in France, Italy and Spain, and was a member of the French national team...
as well as young prodigies
Karim BenzemaKarim Benzema is a French footballer who currently plays as a striker for the Spanish club Real Madrid and the French national team.Benzema came through the youth academy at Lyon and has been capped at senior level for France...
and
Samir NasriSamir Nasri in Marseille is a French international footballer of Algerian descent who currently plays his club football for the English Premier League side Arsenal. A naturally right-footed player, he generally plays on the left side of midfield for Arsenal but has also been used all over the...
are all second-generation Algerian immigrants but born in France.
In athletics, Algeria has produced several world champions including
Noureddine MorceliNoureddine Morceli is a retired Algerian athlete, winner of the 1500 m run at the 1996 Summer Olympics....
,
Hassiba BoulmerkaHassiba Boulmerka is a former Algerian middle distance athlete. In 1992, she became the first Algerian to win an Olympic title....
, Jabir-Said Guerni, and Benida Berrah.
UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Algeria
There are several
UNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945...
World Heritage Sites in Algeria including
Al Qal'a of Beni HammadAl Qal'a of Beni Hammad is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Algeria. It is located in the mountains northeast of M'Sila, near the town of Bechara , about 225 km southeast of Algiers. It was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1980. The site was the first capital of the Hammadid empire. It...
, the first capital of the
HammadidThe Hammadids, an offshoot of the Zirids, were a Berber dynasty who ruled an area roughly corresponding to modern Algeria for about a century and a half , until they were destroyed by the Almohads...
empire;
TipasaTipaza is a town on the coast of Algeria, capital of the Tipaza province. The modern town, founded in 1857, is remarkable chiefly for its sandy beach, and Roman ruins.-Ancient history:...
, a Phoenician and later Roman town; and
DjémilaDjemila is a mountain village in Algeria, near the northern coast east of Algiers, where some of the best preserved Berbero-Roman ruins in North Africa are found. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it was inscribed as such in 1982...
and
TimgadTimgad was a Roman colonial town in North Africa founded by the Emperor Trajan around 100 A.D. The full name of the town was Colonia Marciana Ulpia Traiana Thamugadi. Trajan commemorated the city after his mother Marcia, father Marcus Ulpius Traianus and his eldest sister Ulpia Marciana...
, both
RomanAncient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea, it became one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
ruins; M'Zab Valley, a limestone valley containing a large urbanized
oasisIn geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
; also the
CasbahThe Casbah is specifically the citadel of Algiers and the traditional quarter clustered around it. The Casbah is specifically the citadel of Algiers and the traditional quarter clustered around it. The Casbah is specifically the citadel of...
of Algiers is an important citadel. The only natural World Heritage Sites is the
Tassili n'AjjerTassili n'Ajjer is a mountain range in the Sahara desert in southeast Algeria, North Africa. It extends about 500 km from east-south-east to , and the highest point is Adrar Afao, 2158 m, at...
, a mountain range.
See also
- Geography of Algeria
Algeria comprises 2,381,741 square kilometers of land, more than four-fifths of which is desert, in northern Africa, between Morocco and Tunisia. It is the second largest country in Africa, after Sudan. Its Arabic name, Al Jazair , derives from the name of the capital Algiers , after the small...
- Rail transport in Algeria
Rail transport in Algeria is operated by the SNTF , the official railway of Algeria.- Railway links to adjacent countries :...
- Transport in Algeria
- Railways :There are a total of 3,973 km of railways: 2,888 km is standard gauge, with 283 km of that being electrified and 215 km of that being double tracked...
External links
Government
General information