Algeria
is commonly called the country of cherries and dates. This
refers to the various types of weather found here; a mild
climate in the north and a dry, hot one in the Saharan south.
Algerian dates are known to be some of the best on earth.
Visitors are traditionally greeted by being offered dates
and milk.
The official name of Algeria is the People’s Democratic
Republic of Algeria and its National Holiday is also known
as Revolution Day, honoring the day the final bid for independence
began on the first of November decades ago.
Algeria’s
official language is Arabic. The people speak Arabic, Berber
(called Tamazight and Amazigh) or French. Algerian Arabic
(called darja) is spoken by well over half the population
as well. Although English is not commonly spoken, it is taught
in Algerian schools.
Algeria’s official religion is Islam and it is illegal
to proselytize (advocate or promote) to the people about any
other religion. The legal system is based on the French court
system and Sharia law.
Even
though Western clothing is common, mostly in urban areas,
traditional Muslim clothing is also common. In areas under
Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) control, people wear some form
of traditional garb, particularly the women. It is considered
proper to be dressed conservatively in public and modest clothing
is worn by all Algerians. The militant Islamists demand that
women be veiled and they are more than willing to enforce
their orders.
The national
animal of Algeria is the Fennec fox and their national football
team (soccer) is named after the animal: “Les Fennecs”.
Football (soccer) is Algeria’s national sport. The fennec
is a small desert fox with disproportionately large ears.
Hospitality is important among the Algerian people. It is
a blend of Arabic customs with French Gallic traditions. Everyone
is cordial to strangers and friends alike. In a small gathering,
it is polite to greet each person individually, beginning
with the elders. Handshakes are common but using your fingers
to point at objects or people is considered rude. Never use
the left hand separately: when handing someone something,
do it with the right hand or both hands.
In this male dominant society, sex roles are clearly defined.
(Nevertheless, some women do fill important positions in public
and private professions.) Fathers handle family finances while
mothers take care of the children and the home. Men often
meet at coffeehouses to play games like chess, checkers, and
dominoes. The women tend to socialize in each others’
homes.
Close
friends and relatives visit each other frequently and don’t
have to have an invitation or let each other know first. Others
are expected to make advance plans. When visiting someone
socially, it is customary to bring the host a small gift.
Speech
in conversations that is too direct and frank is considered
impolite. Key attributes of the Algerian national character
are courtesy and formality.
All but two percent of Algeria’s exports are fossil
fuels. Petroleum and natural gas make up 98 percent of the
country’s exports. The country’s crude oil reserves
are the 16th largest in the world with 12,200 million barrels
of oil reserves (at the start of 2017). Algeria is also Africa’s
largest oat market.
Algeria owes no money to other countries; it has no external
debt. Unfortunately, one in every four of its citizens lives
on less than a dollar a day. Many Algerians are poor. This
situation is made worse by the fact that Algeria has North
Africa’s highest cost of living. The national currency
is the Algerian Dinar.
Only about
three percent of the country’s land is cultivated, far
too little for feeding their population self-sufficiently.
As a result, malnutrition is one of the nation’s principal
health problems. Five percent of Algeria’s population
is undernourished, according to the World Bank.
Free national
health care was introduced by the government in 1974 and helps
pay for those who are sick and injured. Nearly all of the
people living in urban areas and 80 percent of the population
in rural areas have access to adequate sanitation.
Algeria’s
literacy rate is 80 percent; more men can read than women.
Women have traditionally been discouraged from attending school
to stay home with their mothers. French is the instructional
language at school. English is taught as well.
Only 12
percent of Algeria’s land area is inhabited. The northern
coastal area is home to 90 percent of the population while
the remaining nomadic or partly nomadic population lives in
oases in the Sahara desert. Twenty-nine percent of Algerians
are under 15 years old.
People
gather for helping in the harvest and then feasting in a celebration
known as “La Touiza”. Huge amounts of the national
dish of couscous are served after the hard work of harvest.
Algerian
born Nobel Prize winners are Albert Camus and Claude Cohen-Tannoudj
(Physics, 1997). Camus (Literature, 1957) was the goal keeper
for the football (soccer) team while at the University of
Algiers. His family was French and lived in Algeria during
the colonial years.
Algeria
has competed at every summer Olympics since 1964, winning
five gold medals and 17 medals overall. They won two silver
medals in the 2016 games in Brazil.
Women in Algeria, unlike those in other Islamic nations, make
up 60 percent of the student population. They also have considerable
prominence in society as 70 percent of Algeria’s lawyers
and 60 percent of its judges are women. Algerian women make
a larger contribution to household income than their male
counterparts.
The largest country by area in all of Africa is Algeria. It
is the tenth-largest in the world.
Only 12
percent of its land is inhabited. Over 90 percent of the country
is covered by the Sahara desert.
The capital
city of Algeria is Algiers, which is also the country’s
largest city.
Algeria
is in North Africa and is located on the Mediterranean Ocean
with Morocco to the west and Tunisia to the east.
Algeria
recorded its record high temperature in August of 2011. The
thermometer topped off at 123.8°F (51°C). Its coastal
region, though, has a typical Mediterranean climate that is
pleasant all year round. Rainfall is abundant along the coast
and scarce in the desert. The mountains receive a lot of frost
and some snow.
Mount
Tahat is Algeria’s highest mountain and is 3,003 meters
(1.9 miles) high. Its longest river is the Chelif. It flows
from near the city of Aflou through the Tell Atlas to empty
into the Mediterranean and is 700 kilometers (435 miles) long.
.Algeria’s Tassili National Park is also called “Plateau
of the Rivers”. It is a large open sky museum where
there are many prehistoric rock art drawings and other archaeological
sites from the Neolithic era. Some drawings are called the
‘Aliens on the rocks’.
Algeria’s
mountainous and fertile northern regions have cork and olive
trees. There are also evergreen forests that are home to wild
boars and jackals. Various palm, agave and fig trees also
grow in the warmer climates. Grapes are native to the coastal
plain.
Central
Algeria has the region of High Plateaus with shallow or dry
lakes and salt marshes. The further south you travel, the
more arid the land and climate becomes. The vegetation here
is sparse. Rabbits, snakes, scorpions, and camels live in
the desert climate.
There
are seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Algeria. Some are
ruins of cities built by the indigenous people and some are
Roman ruins. Cultural: 1. Al Qal’a of Beni Hammad (1980),
2. Djémila (1982), 3. Kasbah of Algiers (1992), 4.
M’Zab Valley (1982), 5. Timgad (1982), 6. Tipasa (1982);
Mixed: 1. Tassili n’Ajjer (1982).
Al Qal’a
of Beni Hammad is ruins of an ancient fortified Muslim city
that give us an authentic picture of the style of life there.
The Kasbah of Algiers (also spelled Casbah) is a historic
citadel Napoleon III visited in 1860.
Timgad
is a Roman-Berber ruin in the Aurés Mountains. Djémála
features some of the best preserved Berbero-Roman ruins in
North Africa. They demonstrate a unique adaptation of Roman
architecture to a mountainous environment.
The M’Zab
Valley contains five “walled villages” or ksours
(qsurs) known as the Pentapolis. Tipasa is a ruined city on
the central coast of the Mediterranean that emperor Claudius
turned into a military colony.
#34. During Algeria’s history, the country has been
ruled by Romans, Germanic tribes, Byzantines, the Spanish,
Turks and the French. In its earliest time, the country was
known as Numidia.
There
are many interesting architectural sites of significant historical
interest in Algeria and seven of them have been designated
UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
The 8th
and 11th centuries AD saw the arrival in Algeria of Islam
and with it the Arabic language. The introduction of both
had a significant impact on all the Maghreb (North African)
people with changes in economic and social relationships and
the establishment of links with a rich and well-established
culture.
Algeria’s
political history is interesting and full of conflict. More
than a million Europeans were captured and then sold as slaves
in North Africa. France conquered Algeria in 1830 and the
practice stopped. France ruled Algeria until 1962.
The modern borders of Algeria were established by the French
during their colonization. Though France controlled the entire
country, the traditional Muslim rural communities remained
separated from the French’s economic infrastructure
and the European community in their country.
The French
in Algeria were known as Colons (colonists) or pieds noirs
(black feet) and they controlled both the government and the
majority of the country’s wealth. Political unrest in
the 1930s made the Colons burden the people with more restrictive
laws.
The Algerians
Muslims did fight with the French in World War I and World
War II but from 1954 to 1962 Algeria was engaged in a fight
with France for their independence that was bloody and long.
It resulted in more than a million Algerian deaths. The conflict
involved many atrocities, including guerrilla warfare, terrorism
and counter-terrorism, and torture.
Algeria’s
modern flag was designed to symbolize very specific points.
The colors are green, red and white. The green, believed to
be the Prophet Muhammad’s (P.B.U.H) favorite color,
represents Islam and paradise (nature). Red symbolizes the
deaths and sacrifice of all those who fought for Algeria’s
independence, and for liberty. White symbolizes purity and
peace. To be acceptable for the flag, the exact wavelength
that each color must absorb is specified officially, which
is highly unusual for an African country’s flag.
The current Algerian flag was adopted on 3 July 1962.
Algeria
mediated negotiations between Iran and the U.S. in 1980 to
liberate the Americas hostages Iran kidnapped from the American
embassy. This led to the signing of the Algiers Accords and
the prisoners’ release.
Algerian
cuisine has been influenced by the ancient cultures and various
countries that have visited and/or ruled it. The Berbers brought
wheat cultivation and were the first to create couscous which
is the country’s national dish. The Romans brought barley
and other grains. Vegetables such as potatoes, tomatoes, chilies,
and zucchini came from the New World.
Muslim
Arabs introduced exotic spices like cloves, saffron, ginger,
cinnamon, and nutmeg from Indonesia’s Spice Islands.
Olives and olive oil, as well as peaches, plums, and oranges,
came with the Spanish. Tea came from European traders.
When
the French arrived, they forced the Algerians to surrender
their land and crops to them. In return, the French introduced
their culture and cuisine to the Algerians, including sidewalk
cafes, as well as their crusty long loaves of bread, eaten
daily in the country even now.
Today
traditional Algerian cuisine is a colorful combination of
Turkish, Berber, Arab and French influences and tastes. Flavors
may be packed with seasonings or extremely mild. Essential
pantry supplies include mint, cinnamon, parsley, cumin, garlic,
coriander, ginger, saffron, onion, parsley, garlic, and onion.
Algeria
produces its own citrus fruit, grapes, cherries, figs, wheat
and famous dates, which some regard as the best in the world.
They just can’t produce enough for all their people,
so 45 percent of their food must be imported.
There are three key Algerian dishes (one is a range of drinks,
actually). One is couscous, a pasta-like dish made from semolina
wheat. It is served as a bed for chicken, meat, lamb, and
vegetables. It can even be a dessert with a topping of cinnamon
of other toppings.
Another
is Mechoui. This is a whole roasted lamb cooked on an outdoor
spit, prepared for large group gatherings. Seasoned with herb
butter, the skin turns crispy while the meat inside is cooked
tender and juicy. It is usually served with vegetables and
dried fruits as well as bread.
Etzai,
the mint tea popular all over North Africa, is the favorite
gift. Alcohol is forbidden for Muslims. Coffee with cardamom
is another drink. Children like to drink apricot nectar. Fruit
or nut-flavored milk drinks called Sharbats are also popular.
Meals
are eaten at a leisurely pace and are sociable occasion. Food
like couscous is traditionally eaten with the thumb, forefinger
and middle finger of the right hand. Never use more than three
fingers or you are displaying greed. Never eat with the left
hand, which is considered unclean. Leaving a little on your
plate is considered a sign that your host is able to amply
provide for your needs.
The atmosphere
at the table in a middle-class family may be a bit more elegant.
A servant or young family member may offer each guest a bowl
of perfumed water for washing their hands before dining.
Between
the hospitality of the Algerians, the excellent cuisine, and
the vast landscapes, Algeria is an exciting country to visit.
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Algeria
is the 11th largest country in the world and the 2nd largest
in Africa.
Arabic
is the official language of the country spoken by 80% of the
population. They also speak French.
The legal
system in Algeria is based on French and Islamic law.
80%-90%
of Algeria is Sahara desert. And they have the biggest sand
dunes.
Algeria
is considered the country with the highest cost of living
in North Africa
The first
Algerian president is Ahmed Ben Bella who was elected in 1963
and served for only 2 years.
The couscous
is the Algerian national dish.
The highest
weather temperature that was ever recorded in Algeria is 60.5
celsius.
The national
day in Algeria is on November 1st. It's also called "Revolution
Day".
The currency
of Algeria is the Algerian Dinar
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