Algeria is bordered by Tunisia in the northeast, Libya in the east, Niger in the southeast, Mali and Mauritania in the southwest, a few kilometers of the Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara in the southwest, Morocco in the west and northwest, and the Mediterranean Sea in the north. Its size is almost 2,400,000 km2, and it has an estimated population of about 35,700,000 as of January 2010.[8] The capital of Algeria is Algiers.
Algeria had been inhabited since prehistoric times by indigenous peoples of northern Africa, who coalesced eventually into a distinct native population, the Berbers.
After the waves of Muslim Arab armies conquered Algeria from its former Berber rulers and the Aghlabid, the rule of the Umayyad Arab Dynasty fell, numerous dynasties emerged thereafter. Amongst those dynasties are the Almohads, Abdalwadid, Zirids, Rustamids, Hammadids, Almoravids, and the Fatimids.
Having converted the Kutama of Kabylie to its cause, the Shia Fatimids overthrew the Rustamids, and conquered Egypt, leaving Algeria and Tunisia to their Zirid vassals. When the latter rebelled, the Shia Fatimids sent in the Banu Hilal, a populous Arab tribe, to weaken them.
The Spanish expansionist policy in North Africa begun with the Catholic Monarchs and the regent Cisneros, once the Reconquista in the Iberian Peninsula was finished. That way, several towns and outposts in the Algerian coast were conquered and occupied: Mers El Kébir (1505), Oran (1509), Algiers (1510) and Bugia (1510). The Spaniards left Algiers in 1529, Bujia in 1554, Mers El Kébir and Oran in 1708. The Spanish returned in 1732 when the armada of the Duke of Montemar was victorious in the Battle of Aïn-el-Turk and took again Oran and Mers El Kébir. Both cities were hold until 1792, when they were sold by the king Charles IV to the Bey of Algiers.
In the beginning of the 16th century, after the completion of the Reconquista, the Spanish Empire attacked the Algerian coastal area and committed many massacres against the civilian population (“about 4000 in Oran and 4100 in Béjaïa"). They took control of Mers El Kébir in 1505, Oran in 1509, Béjaïa in 1510, Tenes, Mostaganem, Cherchell and Dellys in 1511, and finally Algiers in 1512.
On the pretext of a slight to their consul, the French invaded and captured Algiers in 1830. The conquest of Algeria by the French was long and resulted in considerable bloodshed. A combination of violence and disease epidemics caused the indigenous Algerian population to decline by nearly one-third from 1830 to 1872
The population of Algeria is 35,190,000 (January 2009 est.), with 99% classified ethnically as Berber/Arab.[6] About 70% of Algerians live in the northern, coastal area; the minority who inhabit the Sahara are mainly concentrated in oases, although some 1.5 million remain nomadic or partly nomadic. Almost 30% of Algerians are under 15. Algeria has the fourth lowest fertility rate in the Greater Middle East, after those of Cyprus, Tunisia, and Turkey.
Algerian colloquial Arabic is spoken as a native or as a second language language by more than 83% of the population; of these, over 65% speak Algerian Arabic and around 10% Hassaniya.[51] Algerian Arabic is spoken as a second language by many Berbers. However, in the media and on official occasions the spoken language is Standard Arabic.
Islam is the predominant religion, followed by more than 99 percent of the country's population. This figure includes all these born in families considered of Muslim descent. Officially, nearly 100% of all Algerians are Muslims, but atheists and other kinds of non-believers are not counted in the statistics. Nearly all Algerians follow Sunni Islam, with the exception of some 200,000 ibadis in the M'zab Valley in the region of Ghardaia.
There are also some 150,000 Christians in the country, including about 10,000 Roman Catholics and 50,000 to 100,000 evangelical Protestants (mainly Pentecostal), according to the Protestant Church of Algeria's leader Mustapha Krim.
Algeria had an important Jewish community until the 1960s. Nearly all of this community emigrated following the country's independence, although a very small number of Jews continue to live in Algiers.
Algeria 80th country of this blog
April 8, 2010
April 6, 2010
April 5, 2010
Tunisia means to lie down
Population 10,432,500
The name Tunis can be attributed to different origins. It can be associated with the Phoenician goddess Tanith (aka Tunit), ancient city of Tynes or to the Berber root ens which means "to lie down".
Tunisia is the smallest of the nations situated along the Atlas mountain range. The south of the country is composed of the Sahara desert, with much of the remainder consisting of particularly fertile soil and 1,300 km of coastline.
Tunisia has close relations with both the European Union — with whom it has an association agreement — and the Arab world. Tunisia is also a member of the Arab League and the African union.
Every year numerous Tunisians attempt illegal immigration to European countries like Italy by sea. Many die trying when the small boats in which they are riding capsize or go adrift at sea. Others reach their destination but are forcibly repatriate.
Tunisia is an authoritarian regime and police state in the guise of a procedural democracy. Independent human rights groups, such as Amnesty International, Freedom House, have documented that basic human and political rights are not respected.
Censorship in Tunisia is severe. In practice no public criticism of the regime is tolerated and all direct protest is severely suppressed and does not get reported in the media as was the case with the public demonstrations against nepotism and corruption in 'Redayef' near the city of Gafsa, in the country's south, in 2008.
Tunisia has a diverse economy, ranging from agriculture, mining, manufacturing, petroleum products and tourism. In 2008 it had a GDP of $41 billion (official exchange rates), or $82 billion (purchasing power parity).
The Desertec project is a large-scale energy project aimed at installing solarpower panels in, and a grid connecting North Africa and Europe. Tunisia will be a part of this project, but exactly how it may benefit from it remains to be seen.
Tunic Arabic is the local vernacular of Arabic and is considered Tunisia's official language. As is the case in the rest of the Arab world, a local variety of Arabic is used by the public. Tunisian Arabic is closely related to the Maltese language. There is also a small minority of speakers of Shelha, a Berber language.
Tunisia is the 79th country visiting this blog.
The name Tunis can be attributed to different origins. It can be associated with the Phoenician goddess Tanith (aka Tunit), ancient city of Tynes or to the Berber root ens which means "to lie down".
Tunisia is the smallest of the nations situated along the Atlas mountain range. The south of the country is composed of the Sahara desert, with much of the remainder consisting of particularly fertile soil and 1,300 km of coastline.
Tunisia has close relations with both the European Union — with whom it has an association agreement — and the Arab world. Tunisia is also a member of the Arab League and the African union.
Every year numerous Tunisians attempt illegal immigration to European countries like Italy by sea. Many die trying when the small boats in which they are riding capsize or go adrift at sea. Others reach their destination but are forcibly repatriate.
Tunisia is an authoritarian regime and police state in the guise of a procedural democracy. Independent human rights groups, such as Amnesty International, Freedom House, have documented that basic human and political rights are not respected.
Censorship in Tunisia is severe. In practice no public criticism of the regime is tolerated and all direct protest is severely suppressed and does not get reported in the media as was the case with the public demonstrations against nepotism and corruption in 'Redayef' near the city of Gafsa, in the country's south, in 2008.
Tunisia has a diverse economy, ranging from agriculture, mining, manufacturing, petroleum products and tourism. In 2008 it had a GDP of $41 billion (official exchange rates), or $82 billion (purchasing power parity).
The Desertec project is a large-scale energy project aimed at installing solarpower panels in, and a grid connecting North Africa and Europe. Tunisia will be a part of this project, but exactly how it may benefit from it remains to be seen.
Tunic Arabic is the local vernacular of Arabic and is considered Tunisia's official language. As is the case in the rest of the Arab world, a local variety of Arabic is used by the public. Tunisian Arabic is closely related to the Maltese language. There is also a small minority of speakers of Shelha, a Berber language.
Tunisia is the 79th country visiting this blog.
April 4, 2010
Easter He is risen In Christ Alone - Travis Cottrell
In Christ Alone - Travis Cottrell
Today is more than chocolate eggs and bunnies and Easter egg hunts. Today- Easter- means everything to me and to countless people around the world.
Today is more than chocolate eggs and bunnies and Easter egg hunts. Today- Easter- means everything to me and to countless people around the world.
April 2, 2010
Hungary population 10,000,000
Hungary is bordered by Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia. Its capital is Budapest. Hungary is a member of EU, NATO, OECD, V4 and is a Schengen state. The official language is Hungarian, which is part of the Finno-Ugric family, thus one of the four official languages of the European Union that are not of Indo-European origin.
In 1918, as a political result of German defeat on the Western front in World War I, the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy collapsed. French troops landed in Greece to rearm the defeated Romania, Serbia and the newly formed Czech state. Despite the general armistice agreement, the Balkanian French army organized new campaigns against Hungary with the help of Czech, Romanian, and Serbian governments.
The Communist Party of Hungary, led by Béla Kun, came to power and proclaimed the Hungarian Soviet Republic. The Communists also promised equality and social justice.
Hungary's signing of the Treaty of Trianon on June 4, 1920, ratified the country's dismemberment. The territorial provisions of the treaty, which ensured continued discord between Hungary and its neighbors, required Hungary to surrender more than two-thirds of its pre-war lands. However, nearly one-third of the 10 million ethnic Hungarians found themselves outside the diminished homeland. The country's ethnic composition was left almost homogeneous, Hungarians constituting about 90% of the population, Germans made up about 6%, and Slovaks, Croats, Romanians, Jews and Gypsies accounted for the remainder.
Communist Statue Park
Vandalised fallen head of a statue of Joseph Stalin during the revolution
Following the fall of Nazi Germany, Soviet troops occupied all of the country and through their influence Hungary gradually became a communist satellite state of the Soviet Union.
As of 2009, 13 Hungarians (who were born in Hungary) had received a Nobel prize, more than China, India, Australia or Spain.
After the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, the former Soviet satellites had to transition from a one-party, centrally planned economy to a market economy with a multi-party political system. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Eastern Bloc countries suffered a significant loss in both markets for goods, and subsidizing from the Soviet Union. Hungary, for example, "lost nearly 70% of its export markets in Eastern and Central Europe." The loss of external markets in Hungary coupled with the loss of Soviet subsidies left "800,000 unemployed people because all the unprofitable and unsalvageable factories had been closed.
Hungary is the 78th country visiting this blog
In 1918, as a political result of German defeat on the Western front in World War I, the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy collapsed. French troops landed in Greece to rearm the defeated Romania, Serbia and the newly formed Czech state. Despite the general armistice agreement, the Balkanian French army organized new campaigns against Hungary with the help of Czech, Romanian, and Serbian governments.
The Communist Party of Hungary, led by Béla Kun, came to power and proclaimed the Hungarian Soviet Republic. The Communists also promised equality and social justice.
Hungary's signing of the Treaty of Trianon on June 4, 1920, ratified the country's dismemberment. The territorial provisions of the treaty, which ensured continued discord between Hungary and its neighbors, required Hungary to surrender more than two-thirds of its pre-war lands. However, nearly one-third of the 10 million ethnic Hungarians found themselves outside the diminished homeland. The country's ethnic composition was left almost homogeneous, Hungarians constituting about 90% of the population, Germans made up about 6%, and Slovaks, Croats, Romanians, Jews and Gypsies accounted for the remainder.
Communist Statue Park
Vandalised fallen head of a statue of Joseph Stalin during the revolution
Following the fall of Nazi Germany, Soviet troops occupied all of the country and through their influence Hungary gradually became a communist satellite state of the Soviet Union.
As of 2009, 13 Hungarians (who were born in Hungary) had received a Nobel prize, more than China, India, Australia or Spain.
After the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, the former Soviet satellites had to transition from a one-party, centrally planned economy to a market economy with a multi-party political system. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Eastern Bloc countries suffered a significant loss in both markets for goods, and subsidizing from the Soviet Union. Hungary, for example, "lost nearly 70% of its export markets in Eastern and Central Europe." The loss of external markets in Hungary coupled with the loss of Soviet subsidies left "800,000 unemployed people because all the unprofitable and unsalvageable factories had been closed.
Hungary is the 78th country visiting this blog
April 1, 2010
Phil Wickham safe
Phil Wickham safe
To the one who's dreams are falling all apart
And all you're left with is a tired and broken heart
I can tell by your eyes you think your on your own
Have you heard of the One who can calm the raging seas
Give sight to the blind, pull the lame up to their feet
With a love so strong and never let you go
You will be safe in His arms
You will be safe in His arms
'Cause the hands that hold the world are holding your heart
This is the promise He made
He will be with You always
When everything is falling apart
You will be safe in His arms
Did you know that the voice that brings the dead to life
Is the very same voice that calls you to rise
So hear Him now He's calling you home
These are the hands that built the mountains
the hands that calm the seas
These are the arms that hold the heavens
they are holding you and me
These are hands that healed the leper
Pulled the lame up to their feet
These are the arms that were nailed to a cross
to break our chains and set us free
love dominican republic
The Dominican Republic has become the Caribbean's largest tourist destination; the country's year-round golf courses are among the top attractions.
Population 10,000,000
The Dominican Republic is situated on the eastern part of the second-largest island in the Greater Antilles, Hispaniola. It shares the island roughly at a 2:1 ratio with Haiti. The country's area is reported variously as 48,442 km² making it the second largest country in the Antilles, after Cuba. The country's capital and greatest metropolitan area, Santo Domingo, is located on the southern coast.
The climate of the Dominican Republic is mostly tropical. The annual average temperature is 25 °C . At higher elevations, the temperature averages 18 °C while near sea level the average temperature is 28 °C.
Population 10,000,000
The Dominican Republic is situated on the eastern part of the second-largest island in the Greater Antilles, Hispaniola. It shares the island roughly at a 2:1 ratio with Haiti. The country's area is reported variously as 48,442 km² making it the second largest country in the Antilles, after Cuba. The country's capital and greatest metropolitan area, Santo Domingo, is located on the southern coast.
The climate of the Dominican Republic is mostly tropical. The annual average temperature is 25 °C . At higher elevations, the temperature averages 18 °C while near sea level the average temperature is 28 °C.
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