South Africa

We just learned about the country of Democratic Republic of Congo.

South Africa is a country on the south part of the continent of Africa on the Pacific and Indian oceans.

(from: wikipedia - south africa)

To eat in South Africa you might have chakalaka, which is a kind of vegetable stew.

(from: wikipedia - chakalaka)

Nelson Mandela was a very famous person from Africa who helped lead the African people toward peace and equality.

(from: wikipedia - nelson mandela)

Cape Town is a famous city in South Africa, with many natural wonders to see.

(from: wikipedia - cape town)

There many wild animals in South Africa, and people often go on trips there just to see the animals like the giraffes.

(from: wikipedia - south african giraffe)


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Africa continent

We just learned about the Equator.

Africa is a continent that is home to many countries such as Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

There are 57 countries on the African continent!


(from: wikipedia - africa)

The African continent is home to animals like giraffes, rhinoceroses, elephants and lions.

(from: wikipedia - rhinoceros)

And in the country of Egypt they have pyramids!

(from: wikipedia - pyramids)

Israel

Israel is a small country in Asia.
It is right on the border of the continent of Africa, and it is the only country in Asia that touches Africa where it borders against the country of Egypt.
So if you wanted to drive from Asia to Africa, you'd have to drive through Israel!

(from: wikipedia - israel)

For lunch in Israel, you might have a felafel pita, kind of like a sandwich.

(from: wikipedia - israeli cuisine)

A very famous city in Israel is Jerusalem, which is very old and has a lot of history in the Bible.

(from: wikipedia - tourism in israel)

Natalie Portman is a famous actress from Israel.
She played Queen Amidala in the Star Wars movies.

(from: wikipedia - queen amidala)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Africa Continent

Cheetah

We just learned about the Clouded Leopard.

We learned a long time ago about how the Cheetah can run 75 miles per hour and has marks on its face to help block the sun.

The Cheetah is also called the acinonyx jubatus, and there are four different types of cheetahs in the world.

- The Southeast African cheetah lives in the countries in the southeast part of Africa like South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya, and is the one most people think of when talking about cheetahs. There are only about 5,000 of these cheetahs left in the world.
Some of these Cheetahs have long black stripes going down their back, and these are called "King Cheetahs". They are still Southeast African cheetahs, but they are different colored, kind of like the black panther.

- The Asiatic cheetah lives in the country of Iran, and there are only about 50 of them left in the world. Its fur is shorter than the African cheetahs.

- The Northeast African cheetah lives in countries in the Northeast part of Africa like Ethiopia, and there are about 950 left of them in the world. It looks a lot like the southeast African cheetah, but has darker fur and no spots on its back feet.

- The Northwest African cheetah lives in the Sahara desert, and looks very different from the other cheetahs. It has lighter fur almost white, and very few spots on its back and legs. There are only about 250 of them left in the world.

The cheetahs are amazing fast animals, but there are so few left of them in the world because of people hunting them.
Cheetahs only have a few babies per year, and sometimes they don't have babies at all so bringing back this wild cat takes a long time.
Lots of zoos and parks are trying to bring back cheetahs but it is a lot of work and takes years to try and save this cat from going extinct!

Southeast African Cheetah:




Southeast African King Cheetah:

Asiatic Cheetah:

Northeast African Cheetah:

Northwest African Cheetah:

(from: wikipedia - cheetah)


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Benin Bronzes

We just learned about the Mask for King Obalufon II in Africa.

Another famous set of sculptures are the Benin Bronzes, from an old kingdom called Benin that is now part of Nigeria.

In the years of the 1700s, the people from Europe who were taking over parts of Africa did not think the art in all parts of Africa was very good.

Then in 1897 people from another country came to Benin and saw thousands of very good bronze and ivory sculptures that had been made over hundreds of years.




(from: wikipedia - benin bronzes)


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Cameroon

Cameroon is a country in Africa on the West coast, right on the Pacific Ocean.

(from: wikipedia - cameroon)

Just like Ghana, the Cameroon flag has the colors green, red and yellow..
These are sometimes known as the Pan African colors, and countries in Africa share them to show that they are all together in Africa.

The flag has a green stripe for the forests, a red stripe for unity (which means working together), a yellow stripe for the sun and desert, and a yellow star in the middle which also stands for unity.

(from: wikipedia - flag of cameroon)

To eat in Cameroon you might have ndolé, which is a stew of nuts, bitter leaves, and fish or beef.

(from: wikipedia - ndolé)

There is an active volcano called Mount Cameroon that erupts from time to time. The last time it erupted was in 2012.

(from: wikipedia - mount cameroon)

A musical instrument in Cameroon is called the Bamileke drum.

(from: wikipedia - bamileke)


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Morocco

We just learned about the country of Sudan.

Morocco is a country in Africa on the Northwest part of the continent, right on the Atlantic Ocean.

(from: wikipedia - morocco)

To eat in Morocco you might have couscous, which is a type of steamed wheat with meat and vegetables.

(from: wikipedia - moroccan cuisine)

A famous author named Leo Africanus was from Morocco. He wrote an important book about the geography of Northern Africa.

(from: wikipedia - leo africanus)

On the North part of Morocco, there is an area of land that comes very close to the South part of the country of Spain.
It is so close that on a clear day you can see across the water to the other country on the continent of Europe.
This water passage is called the Strait of Gibraltar, and it connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.

(from: wikipedia - strait of gibraltar)

The highest mountain peak in North Africa is Toubkal in the Atlas Mountains.

(from: wikipedia - toubkal)


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Ethiopia

Let's keep learning about the countries in the continent of Africa. Last time we learned about Nigeria.
The second largest country in Africa is Ethiopia. It is on the Northeast part of Africa, near the Indian Ocean.

(from: wikipedia - ethiopia)

To eat in Ethiopia you might have Injera, which is a type of bread usually served with some dipping sauces.

(from: wikipedia - injera)

There are many old instruments made throughout different parts of Ethiopia, like the masinko or kirar, which are string instruments like a guitar.

(from: wikipedia - music of ethiopia)

In a town called Lalibela, there are some large churches that were carved out of the rock.

(from: wikipedia - lalibela)

One of the things Ethopia is known for is making coffee.

(from: wikipedia - coffee production in ethiopia)


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Uganda

We just learned about the African country of Algeria.

Uganda is a small country in the middle of Southern Africa, just West of Kenya.

(from: wikipedia - uganda)

The Ugandan country motto is For God and My Country.

Uganda's flag is has six stripes, in a black yellow red pattern.
The black color represents the African people, the yellow is Africa's sunshine, and the red is the blood through which all Africans are connected.
In the middle of the flag is the grey crowned crane, which is a bird famous for its gentle nature.

(from: wikipedia - flag of uganda)

To eat in Uganda you might have Nsenene, which is cooked fried katydids, or maybe Nswaa which is fried termites!

(from: wikipedia - tettigoniidae)

(from: wikipedia - termite)


The Rwenzori Mountain range in Uganda is the highest mountain range in Africa.

(from: wikipedia - rwenzori mountains)

One type of music in Uganda is called Kadongo Kamu, which means little guitar.

(from: wikipedia - barnard kabanda)


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Ghana

We just learned about the country of Uganda.

Ghana is a country in Africa on the West side of the continent, on the Atlantic Ocean.
Ghana's motto is Freedom and Justice

(from: wikipedia - ghana)

The flag of Ghana has horizontal stripes of red, yellow and green, with a black star in the middle.
The red, yellow and green colors are also on many other flags of countries in Africa.
The red is for the blood of the people who died fighting for freedom, the yellow is for the gold and other minerals that make a lot of money for the country, and the green is for the forests and nature of the country.
The black star is for the freedom of the African people.
The Ghana soccer team is nicknamed the black stars because of their flag.

(from: wikipedia - flag of ghana)

To eat in Ghana you might have koobi, which is salted dry tilapia fish.

(from: wikipedia - ghanaian cuisine)

The Kintampo Waterfalls are a popular place for tourists to go visit.

(from: wikipedia - kintampo waterfalls)

A special type of dance and music in Ghana is called kpanlogo, and uses a special type of drum.
It was created by young people who liked American rock and roll, and wanted to create their own type of music.

(from: wikipedia - kpanlogo (drum))


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Egypt

Let's keep learning about the countries in the continent of Africa.
Last time we learned about Ethiopia.

Now let's learn about Egypt.
Egypt is on the Northeast part of the continent, and it is the only country in Africa that is connected to the continent of Asia, where it borders Israel.


(from: wikipedia - egypt)

To eat in Egypt you might have a dish called Kushari, which is rice, macaroni, lentils, tomato sauce, spaghetti, chickpeas and fried onions.

(from: wikipedia - kushari)

A very famous actor from Egypt was Omar Sharif. He won several awards for his movies.

(from: wikipedia - omar sharif)

The sphinx and pyramids are ancient stone buildings that people made over 4,000 years ago for the Pharaohs who were like kings long ago.

(from: wikipedia - great sphinx of giza)

Ancient Egyptians used pictures to write their words, and we call these heiroglyphics which means something like sacred carvings. They would very often carve these pictures into walls of buildings for their writing.

(from: wikipedia - egyptian hieroglyphs)


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