If I have ever seen magic, it has been in Africa.
– John Hemingway
Africa is the second largest continent just after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth’s total surface area and 20% of its land area. Off the coasts of Africa a number of islands are associated with the continent. Madagascar, one of the largest islands in the world, is the most significant.
The continent is cut almost equally in two by the Equator, so that most of Africa lies within the tropical region, bounded on the north by the Tropic of Cancer and on the south by the Tropic of Capricorn.
There are 54 countries and ten territories and two de facto independent states with limited or no recognition. Sudan used to be the largest country in Africa until it was split into Sudan and South Sudan. Now Algeria is the biggest by territory and Nigeria is the most populous one.
Africa contains an enormous wealth of resources, including some of the world’s largest reserves of precious metals and ores. Its resource diversity is matched by its broad biodiversity. The world’s tallest, largest and fastest animals all come from Africa. They are the giraffe, African elephant and cheetah, respectively.
Eastern Africa, is widely accepted as the place of origin of humans and the Hominidae (great apes). Early human civilizations, such as Ancient Egypt and Phoenicia emerged in North Africa.
Following a long and complex history of civilizations, migration and trade, Africa hosts a large diversity of ethnicities, cultures and languages. There are at least 3,000 distinct ethnic groups and around 2,000 different languages are spoken and each of them has different dialects. #funfact