Somalia flag
Official name: Somali Republic
Capital: Mogadishu
Area: 637,700 sq km, 246,200 sq mi
Population: 9,379,907 (2008 estimate)
Population growth rate: 2.81 percent (2008 estimate)
Population density: 15 persons per sq km, 39 persons per sq mi (2008 estimate)
Urban/rural distribution:
Share urban 35 percent (2003 estimate)
Share rural 65 percent (2003 estimate)
Largest cities: Mogadishu, Hargeysa
Languages: Somali (official), Arabic, Italian, English, Bantu
Religious affiliations:
Muslim (Islam is the official religion; almost all Sunni Muslim) 99 percent
Christian 1 percent
Life expectancy:
Total 49.2 years (2008 estimate)
Female 51.1 years (2008 estimate)
Male 47.4 years (2008 estimate)
Literacy rate:
Total 24.1 percent (1995)
Female 14 percent (1995)
Male 36.1 percent (1995)
Total number of military personnel 225,000 (1996)
Introduction:
Somalia, republic in East Africa, occupying the tip of the Horn of Africa. The dry, sparsely populated country has been in a state of civil war and anarchy since 1991, when the central government was overthrown. Somalia is bounded on the north by the Gulf of Aden, on the east and south by the Indian Ocean, on the southwest by Kenya, on the west by Ethiopia, and on the northwest by Djibouti. The total area is 637,700 sq km (246,200 sq mi). Mogadishu is the capital and largest city.
Somalia has a long coastline, extending for 3,025 km (1,880 mi), but it has few natural harbors. A sandy coastal plain borders on the Gulf of Aden in the north. A series of mountain ranges, with average elevations between about 915 and 2,135 m (about 3,000 and 7,000 ft), dominates the northern part of the country. Shimbiris, the highest peak in Somalia at 2,416 m (7,927 ft) tall, is located here. To the south, the interior consists of a rugged plateau, ranging in elevation from about 500 m (about 1,640 ft) in the north to less than 180 m (600 ft) in the south. In the south, a wide coastal plain, which has many sand dunes, borders on the Indian Ocean. The country’s two major rivers are found on the southern plateau, the Jubba (Genalē) in the southern part and the Shabeelle (Shebelē) River in the south central section.
Mogadishu, Somalia
The rugged mountainous regions and arid plateaus of Somalia inhibit development and urbanization. One of the few urban centers in the country is Mogadishu, the country’s capital and largest city. Located on the Indian Ocean, Mogadishu, shown here, is Somalia’s leading seaport as well as a commercial and manufacturing center.
Beaches of Mogadishu
Once a popular Indian Ocean resort known for its lovely beaches and fine hotels, Mogadishu was heavily shelled and virtually destroyed in Somalia's civil war, which began in the late 1980s. Many popular tourist sights, hotels, and restaurants no longer exist in the city, Somalia's capital and a major port.