Geography of Africa. Geographic description of Africa

Africa is the second largest continent, located in all four hemispheres. The area of ​​Africa is 30 million km2.

Extreme points of Africa:

• northern: Cape Ras-Engela (38°N, 10°E);
• southern: Cape Agulhas (35° S, 20° E);
• western: Cape Almadi 1 (5°N, 17°W);
• eastern: Cape Ras Hafun (11°N, 51°E).

From the west, Africa is washed by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, from the east - by the Indian Ocean, from the north - by the waters, from the northeast - by the Red. Previously, it was connected by an isthmus 120 km wide, now the Suez Canal passes through it. It is separated from the mainland by the Strait of Gibraltar.

The coast of Africa is relatively weakly indented, there is a large Gulf of Guinea in the west and Aden in the east, a large peninsula - peninsula. Location: Madeira, Cape Verde, etc. East of the mainland is large island- besides it, there are clusters of small islands - Comoros, etc.

The specificity of the relief of Africa is in large numbers plains and plateaus. Most of the north of the mainland is occupied with the highlands of Ahaggar and Tibesti. There are two noticeable mountain ranges: the Atlas Mountains in the north and the Cape Mountains in the south. The East African Plateau is located in eastern Africa. This relief structure is explained by the fact that most of the mainland is located on a single ancient African-Arabian platform, which separated in ancient times from the common continent - Gondwana. Northern and southern mountain ranges formed in the zone of collision of this platform with other large plates.

Lakes in Africa are quite large, formed in the faults of the rock and therefore very narrow, long and deep: ( maximum depth- 1400 m), (700 m). Lake, on the contrary, is shallow, fed mainly by precipitation, during dry periods its area is greatly reduced.

Since most of the mainland is located in tropical, subequatorial and belts, it is warm here. Summer and winter average monthly temperatures differ slightly, seasons differ in the amount of precipitation: summer is the rainy season, while drought occurs in winter. There are tropical forests - a basin, the east coast of Africa, where up to 3000 mm falls. precipitation. There are dry areas - savannahs, deserts.

The natural zones of Africa are expressed quite clearly and are arranged accordingly. At the equator and in the Congo, a zone of humid equatorial forests has formed. Here there is a huge variety of trees and shrubs, layering is well expressed. Reds are forming. Monkeys, medium-sized ungulates, and many birds live in the forests.

Equatorial forests almost immediately turn into savannahs - a special species with single trees encountered. This natural zone in Africa occupies a vast area. There are many herbs here, acacias, baobabs are found from trees. Soils are formed red-brown. There are many large ungulates (giraffes, buffaloes, antelopes, zebras, rhinos), there are also predators (lions, cheetahs, hyenas).

An equally large natural zone is tropical deserts, represented by two large deserts: the Namib in the south and the Sahara in the north. The Sahara Desert is a huge desert located in the northern part of the mainland. The dry trade winds that prevail here raise sand particles, so sandstorms are not uncommon for the desert, literally paralyzing all life. even in the shade it rises to +50°С, the sand heats up to +70°С. At night, the temperature drops sharply, can drop to 0°C. In this regard, survival is very difficult, people live exclusively in oases that arise due to the proximity of groundwater. Most animals are nocturnal, hiding in burrows during the day.

The zone of subtropical hard-leaved evergreen forests stretches in two narrow strips on the northern and south coast mainland. Beeches, oaks, citrus fruits, many coniferous plants and shrubs grow here. Animals are mostly medium-sized: foxes, small deer, wild boars.

In the XIX-XX centuries, Europeans actively destroyed unique nature Africa, cutting down valuable forests, exterminating animals. Many species died out on their own due to the destruction of their natural habitat. This has led to the fact that the territories occupied by forests are sharply reduced, but the territories of deserts, on the contrary, are increasing. To preserve and increase the populations of wild animals are created, many of them have become world famous - Kruger, Serengeti.

Africa Objects of geographical nomenclature. Grade 7 Authors-compilers: Team "Astyr" (Astyrovskaya secondary school), team "Researchers" (secondary school 118), team "Seeker" (Siberian secondary school), team "Pozitiff" (Sherbakul secondary school 1), organizers of the project "Fascinating toponymy"

List of nomenclature objects Seas: Mediterranean, Red.MediterraneanRed Gulfs: Guinea, Aden.GuineanAden Straits: Gibraltar, Bab el-Mandeb, Mozambique, Suez Canal.GibraltarBab el-Mandeb MozambiqueSuez Canal Islands: Madagascar, Canary.MadagascarCanary Peninsula: Somalia. Somalia Landforms: mountains: Atlas, Draconian, Cape; East African Plateau, Ethiopian Highlands; Volcanoes: Kilimanjaro, Kenya. Atlas Draconic Cape East African Plateau Ethiopian Highlands Kilimanjaro Kenya Rivers: Nile, Congo, Niger, Zambezi, Victoria Falls, Orange, Limpopo, Senegal.

Red Sea Sea of ​​the Indian Ocean, between Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. The name is associated with the color orientation of the peoples of the East, according to which the southern side was designated in red. For ancient Assyria and Babylon, the entire western part of the Indian Ocean, which was called Rubrugi, was in the south. "Red Sea". Content

Strait of Gibraltar Strait between the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula and northwestern part of Africa, connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The Phoenicians were known as the "pillars of Hercules." In the 8th century the rock on the shore of the strait began to be called in Spanish Hibraltar - "Tariq Mountain", and in Russian - Gibraltar. In honor of her and the name of the strait. Content

The Orange River in South Africa flows into the Atlantic Ocean. He surveyed the river and put it on the map in 1777 - 1779. Scottish officer R. Gordon. He also appropriated the name in honor of the Dutch Oran dynasty - "Oran River", but the Dutch oranje also has the meaning "orange". Therefore, when translating the name into Russian, a mistake was made. This name has taken root in Russia. Content

The continent of Africa is the second largest on the planet after Eurasia. It occupies more than twenty percent of all land and is located almost entirely in the hemisphere in the south.

The mainland is washed by several oceans: the Atlantic and Indian. The territory is divided among fifty-five countries.

African countries and their capitals

African countries are usually divided into five groups. The list looks like this:

In terms of economic indicators, the most developed and richest is South Africa, located in the south of the mainland. At the same time, residents of many states, in particular the central part of the mainland, are below the poverty line, in particular the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi - the poorest countries in Africa.

The largest country in terms of territory is Algeria, and the smallest is Mayotte. The most numerous is Nigeria, and the lowest population on the islands is the Seychelles.

African states gained their sovereignty in the middle of the twentieth century. Majority modern titles appeared at the same time.

For example, until 1985, Côte d'Ivoire was called the Ivory Coast, and Djibouti until 1977 had an official status and name in the form of the French Territory of Afar and Issa. Similar changes affected almost half of the territorial units of the mainland.

Characteristics of Africa

The area is twenty-nine million square meters. km. The distribution from the north down is eight thousand kilometers, and from the west to the left - seven and a half.

Physical map of Africa (click to enlarge)

There are several options for the origin of the name. The most common ones are:

1. Afri - people who lived near Carthage, later the Romans began to call the whole area, and then the continent Africa.
2. From the Latin aprica, sunny.
3. From the Greek afkn - without cold.

Note: Africa is considered to be the ancestral home of Homo sapiens, it is there that the remains of ancient ancestors, in particular hominids and sahelanthropes, were found.

The continent has long attracted Europeans, as the history of discovery has shown, active study began in the fifteenth century, when Vasco da Gama circled Africa on his way to India.

From the late nineteenth to the mid-twentieth centuries, the mainland was divided among the great powers:

• the north is part of the Ottoman Empire;
• south - Spain, Portugal and other colonizers.

After World War II, the map changed as the wave of independence began. Today there are several territories on the African continent under the control of Europeans, in particular the Canary Islands, Madeira, the Chagos Archipelago.

Extreme points of Africa

The following image tells well which point is the northernmost, southernmost, which is the easternmost, and where the westernmost is located:

Population

More than one billion people live on the mainland today. Along with this, there is the greatest increase in the number and life expectancy. Demographic estimates predict a doubling of the population over the next thirty years.

There are two main races in Africa:

• negroid - in the center;
• Caucasoid - mainly in the north and in the Republic of South Africa.

The most common people are Arabs. The population density is low compared to Europe and Asia. To date, interethnic conflicts continue.

Its useful to note: the level of urbanization in the countries is low, but its rate is the highest in the world.

As for religion, the world's leading ones are mostly widespread, but all other religious movements are also represented. Traditional beliefs are still prevalent in the central part.

Climatic zones

Africa is considered the warmest continent, here is the warmest place - Dallol. The entire territory is distributed in warm climatic zones.

The main ones and their characteristics:

1. Equatorial - heavy rains and in fact there is no change of season, here is a constant summer.
2. Subequatorial - two main seasons, rainy summer, winter is characterized by dry trade winds.
3. Tropical - almost no precipitation, deserts are common.

Minerals

Africa is rich in minerals, which come at a high price.

In particular, the main ones are:

• gold;
• oil.

The northern coast is also rich in manganese, iron ores and phosphorites.

Flora and fauna

The organic world of Africa is characterized by exceptional diversity.

In tropical areas, there are a variety of large animals, in particular, rhinos, elephants, lions, zebras, monkeys and others.

On the continent live large birds like flamingos, ibises.

The north is dominated by lizards and snakes that have adapted to the climate of the Sahara. The business card of the south of the mainland is the "big five": buffalo, lion, leopard, elephant and rhinoceros.

Climatic conditions North Africa contributed to the adaptation of many plant species. In the south, there are over two and a half thousand flowering plants - this is almost ten percent of the world's wealth.

Geographic features

atlas mountains

The main objects of African geography include:

• Atlas mountains;
• Basins of the Congo (lowest point) and the Nile;
• Rift Valley;
• Ethiopian and Ahaggar highlands;
• deserts - Kalahari, Namib and Sahara.

In addition to the oceans, the mainland is washed by one sea - the Red and Suez Canals.

Rivers and seas

One of the longest rivers in the world is located in Africa.

The length of the Nile is almost seven thousand kilometers.

Other major rivers include:

• Niger;
• Congo;
• Zambezi, Limpopo and Orange.

Africa is also rich in large lakes: Victoria, Nyasa, Tanganyika and Chad. The latter is the largest salt body of water, which is located inside the mainland.

Plains

Plains in Africa are represented by plateaus (East African) and pits (Chad, Congo, Kalahari).

Plateaus are high plains, along with them, pits are low.

Mountains of Africa

Mostly Africa is a mainland on the plains, it has enough mountains:

• Atalas - in the north;
• Ahagar and Tibeste - in the Sahara Desert;
• the Ethiopian highlands - in the east;
• Caps and Draconians - in the south.

The highest point is Mount Kilimanjaro, its height is five thousand nine hundred meters.

In conclusion, I would like to focus on the concepts of "mainland" and "continent". There are only six continents on Earth, all of them are well known. But there are only four continents.

"Continent" in Latin means "continuous". Since Eurasia and Africa are connected together by the Suez Canal, they are not separated from each other, therefore they are not separately continents.

Africa is a unique continent that combines the diversity of flora and fauna. Most of the states are at the stage of economically developing countries, partly due to the long colonization of the region.