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People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
الجمهورية الجزائرية الديمقراطية الشعبية  (Arabic)
"al-Jumhūriyya al-Jazāʾiriyya ad-Dīmuqrāṭiyya ash-Shaʿbiyya"
[note 1]
Flag Emblem
Motto:  بالشّعب وللشّعب  (Arabic)
"By the people and for the people"
Anthem: "Kassaman"
"We Pledge"
and largest city
Official languages Arabic[3]
National languages Berber
Demonym Algerian
Government Semi-presidential republic
 -  President Abdelaziz Bouteflika
 -  Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal
 -  Berber kingdom of Numidia from 202 BC 
 -  Roman Republic from 46 BC 
 -  Vandal Kingdom from 430 
 -  Rustamid dynasty from 767 
 -  Zirid dynasty from 973 
 -  Hammadid dynasty from 1014 
 -  Abdalwadid dynasty from 1235 
 -  Ottoman Empire  from 1516 
 -  French rule from 1830 
 -  Independence from France 3 July 1962 (recognized by France) 
 -  Independence from France 5 July 1962 (declared by Algeria) 
 -  Total 2,381,741 km2 (10th)
919,595 sq mi
 -  Water (%) negligible
 -  2010 estimate 36,423,000[4]
 -  1998 census 29,100,867
 -  Density 14.6/km2 (204th)
37.9/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $251.705 billion[5]
 -  Per capita $6,965[5]
GDP (nominal) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $157.759 billion[5]
 -  Per capita $4,366[5]
Gini (1995) 35.3[6]
HDI (2011) Increase 0.698[7]
medium · 96th
Currency Algerian dinar (DZD)
Time zone CET (UTC+01)
Drives on the right
Calling code 213
Internet TLD .dz, الجزائر.
Modern Standard Arabic is the official language.[8]
Tamazight is spoken by one third of the population and has been recognized as a "national language" by the constitutional amendment since 8 May 2002.[9] Algerian Arabic (or Darja) is the language used by the majority of the population. Although French has no official status, Algeria is the second Francophone country in the world in terms of speakers[10] and French is still widely used in the government, the culture, the media (newspapers) and the education system (since primary school), due to Algeria's colonial history and can be regarded as the de facto co-official language of Algeria. The Kabyle language, the most-spoken Berber language in the country, is taught and is partially co-official (with a few restrictions) in parts of Kabylia.
Algeria on a world map

Algeria (official name: People's Democratic Republic of Algeria) is a country in the Western part of North Africa. The capital city is Algiers. It is the largest country in Africa. The name is from the city of Algiers. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea in the north, Tunisia in the northeast, Libya in the east, Niger in the southeast, Mauritania and Mali in the southwest, Western Sahara in the west and Morocco in the northwest.

History[change | change source]

Algeria has had people since 10.000 BC. This can be seen in Tassili National Park. By 600-BC, Phoenician were at Tipasa. Muslim Arabs came to Algeria in the mid-7th century. Many people chose this religion.

The famous mathematician, Fibonacci (1170—1250) lived in Algeria as a teenager. This is where he learned the Hindu-Arabic number system and realized it was simpler to use.

In the 1500s and 1700s the Spanish Empire ruled a lot of Algeria. Algeria was made part of the Ottoman Empire in 1517.

Pirates worked from the Barbary Coast. They took people to sell as slaves.

France ruled Algeria starting in 1830. In 1954, the National Liberation Front (Front de Libération Nationale or FLN) wanted freedom from France. They fought a war. It became independent from France in July 5, 1962. In 1963 Ahmed Ben Bella became the first President of Algeria.

The Algerian Civil War started in 1991. It ended in 2002. After many people protested, like in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, the government stopped the state of emergency on 24 February 2011.

Geography[change | change source]

A large part of southern Algeria is the Sahara Desert. The Aures and Nememcha mountain ranges are in the north. The highest point is Mount Tahat (3,003 m).

Languages[change | change source]

Official languages are Arabic and Berber. French is widely spoken too.

Population[change | change source]

Algeria's population is about 39.5 million people. There are over 40 cities with more than 100,000 people.

Divisions[change | change source]

There are 48 provinces (since 1983) in Algeria, they are:

1 Adrar
2 Chlef
3 Laghouat
4 Oum el-Bouaghi
5 Batna
6 Béjaïa
7 Biskra
8 Béchar
9 Blida
10 Bouira
11 Tamanghasset
12 Tébessa
13 Tlemcen
14 Tiaret
15 Tizi Ouzou
16 Algiers
17 Djelfa
18 Jijel
19 Sétif
20 Saïda
21 Skikda
22 Sidi Bel Abbes
23 Annaba
24 Guelma
25 Constantine
26 Médéa
27 Mostaganem
28 M'Sila
29 Mascara
30 Ouargla
31 Oran
32 El Bayadh
33 Illizi
34 Bordj Bou Arréridj
35 Boumerdès
36 El Tarf
37 Tindouf
38 Tissemsilt
39 El Oued
40 Khenchela
41 Souk Ahras
42 Tipasa
43 Mila
44 Aïn Defla
45 Naama
46 Aïn Témouchent
47 Ghardaïa
48 Relizane

UNESCO World Heritage Sites[change | change source]


References[change | change source]

  1. (28 November 1996). Constitution of Algeria, Art. 11 (in Arabic).Office of President of Algeria. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  2. (28 November 1996). Constitution of Algeria Art. 11. Office of President of Algeria. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  3. (28 November 1996). Constitution of Algeria Art. 3. Office of President of Algeria. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  4. Staff (2010) (PDF format; requires Adobe Reader). Population and HIV/AIDS 2010. Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. ISBN 978-92-1-151474-2 . Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Database (September 2011). "5. Report for Selected Countries and Subjects". World Economic Outlook Database. International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
  7. "Human Development Report 2011. Human Development Index Trends". United Nations. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
  8. Staff (10 April 2010). "Présentation de l'Algérie" (["Presentation of Algeria"]) (in French). French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  9. "L'Algérie crée une académie de la langue amazigh" (in French).
  10. "La mondialisation, une chance pour la francophonie" (in French).
  11. UNESCO. "UNESCO World Heritage Centre". Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  1. In Algeria, Tamazight has been constitutionally recognized as a national language. The Algerian government recognizes that the varieties of Berber languages in Algeria are national and regional languages which must be presereved. Algeria's official name in Berber is as follows: Tagduda Tamegdayt Taɣerfant tazzayrit;