Map of Somalia : Maps of Countries Worldwide Travel Information Worldwide Travel and Language Community

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Maps of Countries: Map of Somalia

Somalia is a country located in the Somalia_so_africa_horn.html" style="text-decoration:inherit;">Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Somalia_so_africa_ethiopia.html" style="text-decoration:inherit;">Ethiopia to the west, Somalia_so_africa_djibouti.html" style="text-decoration:inherit;">Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Somalia_so_africa_indian.html" style="text-decoration:inherit;">Indian Ocean to the east, and Somalia_so_africa_kenya.html" style="text-decoration:inherit;">Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on the continent, and its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains and highlands. Hot conditions prevail year-round, along with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall.

About 85% of local residents are ethnic Somalis, who have historically inhabited the northern part of the country. Ethnic minority groups make up the remainder of the nation's population, and are largely concentrated in the southern regions.

Somali and Arabic are the official languages of Somalia, both of which belong to the Afro-Asiatic family. Most people in the territory are Muslims, the majority being Sunni.


Italy acquired full control of their parts of the region in 1927. This occupation lasted until 1941, when it was replaced by a British military administration. Northern Somalia would remain a protectorate, while southern Somalia became a United Nations Trusteeship. In 1960, the two regions were united to form an independent Somali Republic under a civilian government. Mohamed Siad Barre seized power in 1969 and established the Somali Democratic Republic. In 1991, Barre's government collapsed as the Somali Civil War broke out.

In the absence of a central government, Somalia's residents reverted to local forms of conflict resolution, consisting of civil law, religious law and customary law. A few autonomous regions, including the Somaliland, Puntland and Galmudug administrations, emerged in the north in the ensuing process of decentralization. The early 2000s saw the creation of fledgling interim federal administrations. The Transitional National Government (TNG) was established in 2000 followed by the formation of its successor the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in 2004, which reestablished national institutions such as the Military of Somalia.

In 2006, the TFG, assisted by Somalia_so_africa_ethiopia.html" style="text-decoration:inherit;">Ethiopian troops, assumed control of most of the nation's southern conflict zones from the newly formed Islamic Courts Union (ICU). The ICU subsequently splintered into more radical groups such as Al-Shabaab, which battled the TFG and its AMISOM allies for control of the region, with the insurgents losing most of the territory that they had seized by mid-2012. In 2011-2012, a Roadmap political process providing clear benchmarks leading toward the establishment of permanent democratic institutions was launched. Within this administrative framework, a new Provisional Constitution was passed in August 2012, which designates Somalia as a federation.

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