Portal:Mauritania

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The Mauritania Portal - بوابة موريتانيا

Flag of Mauritania Seal of Mauritania

Mauritania, formally 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 Mauretania, the Latin name for a region in the ancient Maghreb. It extended from central present-day Algeria to the Atlantic. Berbers occupied what is now Mauritania by beginning of the third century AD. Groups of Arab tribes migrated to this area in the late seventh century, bringing with them 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 2008 Mauritanian coup d'état 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, head of an autocratic government with a very poor human rights record, particularly because of its perpetuation of slavery; the 2018 Global Slavery Index estimates there are about 90,000 slaves in the country (or 2.1% of the population)..

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 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. (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. The park has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports large numbers of wintering waterbirds. (Full article...)

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Mauritania competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, which was held from 27 July to 12 August 2012. The country's participation at London marked its eighth appearance in the Summer Olympics since its debut in the 1984 Summer Olympics. The delegation included two track and field athletes, Jidou El Moctar and Aicha Fall, who were selected to the team by wildcard places, as the nation had no athletes that met either the "A" or "B" qualifying standards. Moctar was selected as flag bearer for the opening ceremony while a LOCOG Games Maker carried it for the closing ceremony. Neither of the two athletes progressed beyond the heats. (Full article...)

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

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Related portals

Religions in Mauritania

Arab states

Other countries

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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