Information
Country: AlgeriaContinent: Africa
Algeria, Africa
Overview
Algeria, the largest country in Africa, stretches from sun-baked Sahara dunes to cool Mediterranean shores, and brims with rich cultures and centuries of history.The country sits in North Africa, with the blue stretch of the Mediterranean to the north, Tunisia and Libya just beyond its northeast edge, Niger lying to the southeast, Mali and Mauritania to the southwest, and Western Sahara and Morocco along its western border.Algeria, with its deep cultural roots, sweeping deserts, and layered past, offers far more than a checklist of places to see.Algeria’s landscape stretches from the breezy, sunlit shores of the Mediterranean to the endless golden sands of the Sahara in the south.The country’s split into several major regions, including the Northern Highlands and the Tell Atlas, where rugged mountains rise above broad, green plains.The northern coast runs along the Mediterranean, where winters feel damp and cool, summers turn hot and dry, and the air stays milder than in the sun-scorched southern desert.This stretch of coast is crowded with people, and cities like Algiers-the capital-sit right on the edge where the streets meet the sea.The Sahara covers more than four-fifths of Algeria, stretching out in endless waves of hot, wind-shaped dunes.The Sahara may be unforgiving, but nomadic tribes still cross its endless dunes, where wind carves sharp ridges into some of the planet’s most remote and striking landscapes.In summer, temperatures can climb past 40°C (104°F), hot enough to make the pavement shimmer in the heat.In the south, the Tassili n'Ajjer and the Hoggar Mountains tower over the desert, their sheer cliffs and wide plateaus casting long shadows across the sand.The Tassili n’Ajjer is best known for its ancient rock art-faded ochre figures and animals etched into sandstone-and for the archaeological treasures that reveal the deep history of human life in the region.Saharan Oasis: In the vast sweep of desert, pockets like Timimoun and Ouargla shimmer with palm trees and cool water, offering life in the heart of the dry expanse.For centuries, these oases have sustained trade and human life, offering cool water and patches of green in a landscape baked dry by the sun.Algeria is home to about 45 million people, most of them of Arab-Berber heritage, with voices that carry the rhythms of both cultures.The Berber people have lived in North Africa for centuries, and their vibrant language and traditions-like intricate carpet weaving-remain a vital part of the country’s identity.Arabic is the official language, while Berber (Tamazight) gained national status in 2002, the year new street signs began showing both scripts side by side.French is still heard everywhere in Algeria, a legacy of its years under French rule that lasted until 1962.Most people live along the northern coast, especially near the capital, Algiers, where more than 3 million residents crowd streets lined with white buildings and sea views.Algeria’s home to many ethnic groups-among them the Tuareg, Kabyle, and Mozabite-each carrying its own language and traditions, from desert caravan songs to mountain festivals.History and Politics Algeria has endured wave after wave of conquest, colonization, and fierce resistance, from dusty desert strongholds to crowded coastal cities, forging the political landscape it knows today.Ancient History: People have lived in what’s now Algeria since prehistoric times, leaving traces like stone tools scattered across the desert.In the 3rd century BCE, it was the heart of the Numidian Kingdom, and centuries later, Roman banners flew over its stone walls.The Romans shaped the region in lasting ways, building roads of solid stone and laying out bustling towns that still echo their design.Islamic Era: In the 7th century, Islam swept into Algeria, reshaping its culture, society, and faith-mosques soon rose where market stalls once stood.Over the centuries, the country fell under the rule of several Islamic powers, from the Aghlabids to the Fatimids, and later the Ottomans, whose banners once fluttered above its coastal forts.The Ottomans held the region from the early 1500s until well into the 1800s, their banners flying over bustling markets and sunbaked streets.In 1830, France seized control of Algeria, folding it into its empire as a province with French flags flying over Algiers.The French stayed for over 130 years, a period when Algeria’s politics, economy, and daily life were shaken to the core-markets fell silent, and protests filled the streets.From 1954 to 1962, the Algerian War of Independence shook the country, as the National Liberation Front (FLN) drove a fierce nationalist movement that ended with Algeria breaking free from France in 1962.After independence, Algeria embraced socialism under Ahmed Ben Bella’s leadership, then later under Houari Boumédiène, whose speeches often echoed in crowded Algiers squares.In the late 20th century, the country grappled with political unrest, economic hardship, and bitter internal clashes that sometimes spilled into the streets.In the 1990s, the brutal Algerian Civil War raged between government forces and Islamic militant groups, leaving streets scarred and tens of thousands dead.Since the early 2000s, Algeria’s politics have steadied under Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who led the country from 1999 to 2019, a period when the capital’s streets often felt calmer than in decades past.Widespread anger over political corruption, deep economic inequality, and the absence of real democratic reforms has fueled major protests in recent years, including the massive 2019 demonstrations where crowds filled the streets and forced Bouteflika to step down.Algeria still struggles with limited political freedom, uneven economic growth, and a fragile social order that can feel as tense as a crowded street before a storm.Algeria’s economy leans heavily on its huge oil and natural gas reserves, which bring in most of the country’s export earnings and fill government coffers.The country holds some of the world’s biggest oil reserves, and nearly 95% of its export earnings come from energy-mostly thick, black crude.Still, the economy has struggled to break its reliance on oil and gas, leaving Algeria exposed whenever global energy prices swing, like when crude drops overnight after a market shock.Farming plays a vital role, especially up north, where the warm Mediterranean air ripens wheat, barley, citrus, and even olives for rich, golden oil.The mining industry also fuels the economy, drawing on Algeria’s wealth of minerals such as phosphates, iron ore, and zinc-pulled from the earth in dusty, sun‑baked pits.In recent years, Algeria has pushed to boost industry, expand its infrastructure, and broaden its economy-building new rail lines and factories-all to cut its reliance on fossil fuels.Still, the country struggles with high youth unemployment, rising prices, and the hard work of building a stronger, more varied economy-like weaving new threads into an old, fraying fabric.Algeria’s culture is rich and varied, shaped by Arab, Berber, Ottoman, and French influences-you can hear it in the swirl of languages in a bustling market.Music, dance, and literature shape the heart of Algerian culture, and raï-a lively folk sound born in its streets-has found fans all over the world.Algerian cinema has a long, vibrant tradition, with films that grapple with national identity, trace the arc of history, and capture the grit and silence of life during war.Algerian cooking draws on Mediterranean, Arab, and Berber traditions, serving up favorites like fluffy couscous, slow-simmered tagine, and smoky mechoui-tender roast lamb with crisp edges.The country’s traditional clothing-like the flowing djellaba and the warm, hooded burnous-reflects its deep cultural roots.
