Mauritania: Sovereign state in West Africa and North Africa

Mauritania is a country in northwest Africa.

The capital city, which is also the biggest city in the country, is Nouakchott. It is on the Atlantic coast. Its president is General Mohamed Ould Ghazouani.

Islamic Republic of Mauritania
  • الجمهورية الإسلامية الموريتانية (Arabic)
    al-Jumhūrīyah al-Islāmīyah al-Mūrītānīyah
  • République islamique de Mauritanie (French)
Motto: شرف، إخاء، عدل
"Honour, Fraternity, Justice"
Anthem: النشيد الوطني الموريتاني
"Land of the Proud, Guided by Noblemen"
Location of Mauritania (dark green) in western Africa
Location of Mauritania (dark green) in western Africa
Capital
and largest city
Nouakchott
18°09′N 15°58′W / 18.150°N 15.967°W / 18.150; -15.967
Official languagesArabic
Recognised national languagesFrench
Recognised regional languagesPulaar, Soninke, Wolof, Zenaga
Other languagesEnglish, Italian, Spanish
Ethnic groups
Religion
Islam (Sunni)
Demonym(s)Mauritanian
GovernmentUnitary semi-presidential Islamic republic
• President
Mohamed Ould Ghazouani
Mohammed Ould Bilal
• President of the National Assembly
Cheikh Ahmed Baye
LegislatureNational Assembly
Independence
• Republic established
28 November 1958
• Independence from France
28 November 1960
• Current constitution
12 July 1991
Area
• Total
1,030,000 km2 (400,000 sq mi) (28th)
• Water (%)
0.03
Population
• 2021 estimate
4,614,974
• 2013 census
3,537,368
• Density
3.4/km2 (8.8/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)2018 estimate
• Total
$18.117 billion (134th)
• Per capita
$4,563 (140th)
GDP (nominal)2018 estimate
• Total
$5.200 billion (154th)
• Per capita
$1,309 (149th)
Gini (2014)Positive decrease 32.6
medium
HDI (2019)Increase 0.546
low · 157th
CurrencyOuguiya (MRU)
Time zoneUTC (GMT)
Driving sideright
Calling code+222
ISO 3166 codeMR
Internet TLD.mr
  1. According to Article 6 of the Constitution: "The national languages are Arabic, Pulaar, Soninke, and Wolof; the official language is Arabic."

At 1,030,700 km² (397,929 mi²), Mauritania is the world's 29th-largest country (after Bolivia). It is similar in size to Egypt. The land is flat in most places.

Demographics

Religion

Mauritania Religions
Islam
99.9%
Christianity
0.1%

Mauritania is almost 100% Muslim, most of whom are Sunni. People can be killed in Mauritania for being an atheist. On 27 April 2018, The National Assembly passed a law that allows for the death penalty for certain apostasy-related crimes.

Language

Afro-Asiatic languages

Modern Standard Arabic is the official language of Mauritania. Hassaniya is the Arabic dialect that is widely spoken throughout the country. It is mostly used in daily life.

Berber languages

There are also some Berber languages that are spoken in Mauritania. In de south Zenaga is spoken and close to the border with Mali in the southeast Tamasheq (a variety of Tuareg) is spoken. Zenaga is only spoken by a few hundred peoples and seems to be close to disappearance.

Foreign languages

As Mauritania is a former colony of France, it is now part of the Francophonie. French is spoken including African French and Maghreb French.

Niger-Congo languages

There are several Niger-Congo languages that are spoken in Mauritania. These are Wolof, Soninke, Pulaar and Bambara.

Economy

Mauritania: Demographics, Language, Economy 
Mauritania exports, 2019

Mauritania is rich in natural resources but has a low GDP. Many people living in Mauritania depend on farming and livestock. Mauritania has a large deposit of iron ore, which is almost half of the country's total exports.

References

Other websites

Tags:

Mauritania DemographicsMauritania LanguageMauritania EconomyMauritania Other websitesMauritaniaAfricaAtlantic OceanCountryNouakchott

🔥 Trending searches on Wiki Simple English:

TomatoDonald SutherlandList of cities in the United Arab EmiratesOdinApartheidTesla (unit)Japan Airlines Flight 123Artificial intelligenceQWERTYLahore ResolutionSubrahmanyam Jaishankar3 IdiotsSquash (plant)Occam's razorItikafList of best-selling albums worldwideParty in the U.S.A.JupiterBangladeshi takaKajolUmarAnimalJay ShahJohn CenaTerabyteCzech RepublicTom KaulitzDistricts of BangladeshCaitlin ClarkCrocus City Hall attackCaféSalman KhanHumanList of European countries by areaSeptemberBaseball21st centuryChristina KirkmanField of studyRRR (movie)Cape VerdeList of English football teamsKiara AdvaniShakiraWayne RooneyCartoon NetworkElvis PresleyChinese charactersProphets of IslamWinterNathuram GodseList of elements by symbolFarrah BrittanyOiranBaguioTildeElon MuskMeet the PressThe Valley (2024 TV series)List of political ideologiesFerruccio LamborghiniList of current members of the United States SenateKathy HiltonMebibyteBob DylanList of country calling codesDeaths in 2024Drake (musician)San FranciscoNaturismNumberAndy ColePadmavatiList of U.S. states and territories by areaAirbusChatGPT🡆 More