Mauritania is a country in northwest Africa. The largely-desert country presents a cultural contrast, with an Arab-Berber population to the north and black Africans to the south. Many of its people are nomads.
Mauritania is considered one of the oldest political systems in Africa. Algeria, Mali, the Western Sahara, the Atlantic Ocean, and Senegal are its northern, western, and southern neighbors, respectively.
In the Middle Ages Mauritania was the cradle of the Almoravid movement, which spread Islam throughout the region. Mauritania was a part of the Empire of Ghana. As early as 1500 AD, European traders began to establish themselves along the Mauritanian coast. In the 1860s, French armies started to occupy Mauritania, turning it into a French colony. Under President Moktar Ould Daddah, Mauritania gained independence from France in 1960 following around 150 years of occupation.
Mauritania has abundant natural minerals despite being a mostly arid country. Iron ore ranks highest among them. Mauritania’s main export is iron ore, which is abundant in its deposits. Additionally, oil, which was recently discovered, is on the verge of surpassing iron ore as its top export. Among the other minerals are phosphate, gypsum, diamond, copper, and gold.
Mauritania is almost 100% Muslim. By the terms of the constitution, Islam is the official state religion, but the republic guarantees freedom of conscience and religious liberty to all.
The French Tricolore was the flag of Mauritania when it was a French colony. A new flag was designed once the nation attained independence. Mauritania’s flag is green with a five-pointed star in the middle and a gold crescent moon underneath it. This serves as a symbol of Mauritania’s Islamic republican identity. The green of the flag symbolizes Mauritania’s development and future, while the gold of the moon and star stands for the Saharan sand. The flag was modified in 2017. To represent the blood that was spilled and the sacrifices made by the people of Mauritania in order to protect their homeland, two red bands were added to the top and bottom of the flag.
Arabic is the official language; Fula, Soninke, and Wolof are national languages. Soon after independence, in 1960, Nouakchott was declared the country’s capital. Nouakchott, which translates to “place of winds,” is situated along the Atlantic coast in eastern Mauritania. A third of Mauritania’s population resides there. It is among the biggest and most populated cities in the southern Sahara.
The majority of Saharan meteorites are sold in Mauritania’s capital, Nouakchott. These are old meteorites that might have detached from an early Solar System planet during the formation of the Earth.
