Portal:Mauritania

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The Mauritania Portal - بوابة موريتانيا

Flag of Mauritania Seal of Mauritania

Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to the north and northwest, Algeria to the northeast, Mali to the east and southeast, and Senegal to the southwest. By land area Mauritania is the 11th-largest country in Africa and 28th-largest in the world; 90% of its territory is in the Sahara. Most of its population of some 4.3 million lives in the temperate south of the country, with roughly a third concentrated in the capital and largest city, Nouakchott, on the Atlantic coast.

The country's name derives from the ancient Berber kingdom of Mauretania in North Africa within the ancient Maghreb. Berbers occupied what is now Mauritania beginning in the third century AD. Arabs under the Umayyad Caliphate conquered the area in the late seventh century, bringing Islam, Arab culture, and the Arabic language. In the early 20th century, Mauritania was colonized by France as part of French West Africa. It achieved independence in 1960, but has since experienced recurrent coups and periods of military dictatorship. The most recent coup, in 2008, was led by General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who won subsequent presidential elections in 2009 and 2014. He was succeeded by General Mohamed Ould Ghazouani following the 2019 elections, which were considered Mauritania's first peaceful transition of power since independence.

Mauritania is culturally and politically part of the Arab world; it is a member of the Arab League and Arabic is the official language. The official religion is Islam, and almost all inhabitants are Sunni Muslims. Despite its prevailing Arab identity, Mauritanian society is multiethnic; the Bidhan, or so-called "white moors", make up 30% of the population, while the Haratin, or so-called "black moors", comprise 40%. Both groups reflect a fusion of Arab-Berber ethnicity, language, and culture. The remaining 30% of the population comprises various sub-Saharan ethnic groups.

Despite an abundance of natural resources, including iron ore and petroleum, Mauritania remains poor; its economy is based primarily on agriculture, livestock, and fishing. Mauritania is generally seen as having a poor human rights record, and is particularly censured for the perpetuation of slavery as an institution within Mauritanian society, with an estimation by the 2018 Global Slavery Index of about 90,000 slaves in the country (or 2.1% of the population). (Full article...)

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Map of the bay showing the Banc d'Arguin National Park

The Banc d'Arguin National Park (Arabic: حوض أركين, romanized: Ḥawḍ ʾArkīn, French: Parc national du Banc d'Arguin) of Bay of Arguin lies in Western Africa on the west coast of Mauritania between Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and is the former mouth of the Tamanrasset River. The World Heritage Site is a major site for migratory birds and breeding birds, including flamingos, pelicans and terns. Much of the breeding is on sand banks including the islands of Tidra, Niroumi, Nair, Kijji and Arguim. The surrounding waters are some of the richest fishing waters in western Africa and serve as nesting grounds for the entire western region.

The Banc d'Arguin National Park is a Nature reserve that was established in 1976 to protect both the natural resources and the valuable fisheries, which makes a significant contribution to the national economy, as well as scientifically and aesthetically valuable geological sites, in the interests of and for the recreation of the general public.

The park's vast expanses of mudflats provide a home for over one million migrant shorebirds from northern Europe, Siberia and Greenland. The region's mild climate and absence of human disturbance makes the park one of the most important sites in the world for these species. The nesting bird population is also noted for its great numbers and diversity. Between 25,000 and 40,000 pairs belonging to 15 species, making the largest colonies of water birds in West Africa. (Full article...)

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Landscape to the northeast of Ten Hamadi, near Aïoun El Atrouss

Ten Hamadi (Arabic: تن حمادي) or Tenhemad is a village and rural commune in southern Mauritania, in the Aïoun El Atrouss department of the Hodh El Gharbi region. In 2000, the commune had a population of 2,264, of which 155 lived in the village of Ten Hamadi itself, approximately 17 kilometres (11 mi) southwest of the main town and departmental capital of Aïoun El Atrouss. The population estimate in 2007 was 3,686, spread over 16 villages.

The northern part of the commune is hilly but relatively favorable to agriculture, while the southern part is flat and characterized by sand dunes. Situated at the southern boundary of the Sahara-Sahel region of southern Mauritania, the climate is generally hot and dry. (Full article...)

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Nouakchott Malouma Mauritania at the 2012 Summer Olympics Mauritania at the 2008 Summer Olympics Mauritania at the 2000 Summer Olympics Mauritania at the 2004 Summer Olympics

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The following are images from various Mauritania-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Sandy area west of Chinguetti (from Mauritania)
Image 2Nouakchott is the capital and the largest city of Mauritania. It is one of the largest cities in the Sahara. (from Mauritania)
Image 3Terjit oasis in the Adrar Region (from Mauritania)
Image 4French West Africa, circa 1913 (from History of Mauritania)
Image 52011–12 Mauritanian protests. (from Mauritania)
Image 6After the Portuguese, the Dutch, and then the French, took control of Arguin until abandoning it in 1685. (from Mauritania)
Image 7The Portuguese Empire ruled Arguin (Portuguese: Arguim) from 1445, after Prince Henry the Navigator set up a feitoria, until 1633. (from Mauritania)
Image 8Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz in his hometown, Akjoujt, on 15 March 2009. (from Mauritania)
Image 9Qur'an collection in a library in Chinguetti (from Mauritania)
Image 10A Moorish family in the Adrar Plateau. (from Mauritania)
Image 11Chinguetti was a center of Islamic scholarship in West Africa. (from Mauritania)
Image 12Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi. (from Mauritania)
Image 13Camel market in Nouakchott (from Mauritania)
Image 14Mauritanian blogger and political prisoner Mohamed Cheikh Ould Mkhaitir. (from Mauritania)
Image 15Rock art in the Sahara Desert (from Mauritania)

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Religions in Mauritania

Arab states

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WikiProjects

You are invited to participate in WikiProject Mauritania, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about Mauritania.

WikiProject Africa

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Topics in Mauritania

Cities and towns

v t e Largest cities or towns in Mauritania citypopulation.de
	Rank	Name	Region	Pop.
Nouakchott Nouadhibou	1	Nouakchott	Nouakchott	1,195,600	Kiffa
	2	Nouadhibou	Dakhlet Nouadhibou	118,167
	3	Kiffa	Assaba	60,005
	4	Néma	Hodh Ech Chargui	57,000
	5	Rosso	Traza	51,026
	6	Kaédi	Gorgol	45,539
	7	Zouérat	Tiris Zemmour	44,469
	8	Sélibaby	Guidimaka	26,420
	9	Atar	Adrar	25,190
	10	Aïoun	Hodh El Gharbi	22,796