Deutsche für Ukrainer

Deutschland hat bis Anfang September 450 Patienten aus der Ukraine aufgenommen. Hier wurden auch mit über 800 die meisten der insgesamt 1300 Hilfsanfragen bearbeitet, die bei der Europäischen Union im Zusammenhang mit dem Union Civil Protection Mechanism eingingen. Ab sofort bündelt nun ein neuer EU-Evacuation Hub in Polen in Jasionka in der Nähe von Rzeszow die Hilfe bei der medizinischen Versorgung. Nach der Erfassung der Daten werden Patientinnen und Patienten auf 18 EU-Länder verteilt.

2022/09/27

Independence day of Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan, Turkmen Türkmenistan, country of Central Asia. It is the second largest state in Central Asia, after Kazakhstan, and is the southernmost of the region’s five republics. After Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan is the least densely populated of the Central Asian states. Much of its waterless expanse is inhospitable to plant and animal life. Except for oases in narrow strips dotted along the foothills of the Kopet-Dag Range and along the Amu Darya, Morghāb, and Tejen rivers, deserts characterize its sunbaked sandy terrain. From 1925 to 1991 Turkmenistan was the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic, a constituent (union) republic of the Soviet Union; it declared independence on October 27, 1991. The capital is Ashgabat (Ashkhabad), which lies near the southern border with Iran. Land Turkmenistan is located in the southwest of the Central Asia region. It is bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north and east, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south, and the Caspian Sea to the west. Though Turkmenistan is the second largest country in Central Asia in terms of land area, most of the land consists of oases scattered amid otherwise uninhabitable desert. Relief Topographically, four-fifths of Turkmenistan consists of the southern part of the Turan Plain. Mountains and foothills rise mainly in the southern part of the republic, including the Kugitangtau and Kopet-Dag ranges. The Kopet-Dag is geologically young, its instability indicated by intermittent earthquakes of great destructive force. Two broad divisions may be seen throughout Turkmenistan: an oasis region—characterized by adequate water supply, cultivated lands, and developed industry—composed of the Kopet-Dag and other oases; and a desert region occupying nine-tenths of Turkmenistan’s territory, subdivided into western Turkmenistan and the Karakum. The Karakum is one of the world’s largest sand deserts, taking up the entire central part of Turkmenistan and extending northward toward Kazakhstan. Oases The Kopet-Dag oasis stretches along the northern foothills of the Kopet-Dag Range, the slopes of which offer large areas for nonirrigated farming; both the mountains and foothills are also rich in mineral resources. The economic and cultural centre of the oasis is the capital city of Ashgabat. The development of the capital has stimulated industry, turning an agrarian oasis into the industrial-agrarian core of the republic. The Morghāb oasis is famous for its fine-staple cotton, silk, handmade carpets and rugs, and Karakul sheep. The Morghāb River, the lower reaches of which are crossed by the Karakum Canal, can supply more water for irrigation. Mary (formerly Merv) is the centre of the oasis and the surrounding region. Separated from the Morghāb by a stretch of the Karakum, the Tejen oasis formed along the Tejen River. Before the construction of the Karakum Canal, only small areas of wheat, barley, and melons could be cultivated because of the scarcity of water. After the oasis was crossed by the canal, however, and the Hauz-Khan Reservoir built, large areas were irrigated, thus making possible the cultivation of long-staple cotton and the construction of cotton-processing plants. The economic and cultural centre is the town of Tejen. The middle Amu Darya oasis, in contrast to other oases, stretches almost without interruption for hundreds of miles and is almost entirely cultivated. The Amu Darya waters are very rich in silt, an excellent natural fertilizer. Raising of cotton and silkworms has long been widespread in that area, which is also an important producer of kenaf and other fibre crops. The adjoining deserts provide fodder for Karakul sheep. Industries processing agricultural products and mineral raw materials have been developed in the oasis as well. The economic and administrative centre of the oasis and the region is Türkmenabat (Chardzhou), the second largest city and industrial centre in Turkmenistan. The lower Amu Darya oasis lies in the ancient delta of the Amu Darya and was long one of the most important agricultural regions of the republic. The oasis is cut by a dense network of old riverbeds as well as by irrigation channels and ditches beginning in neighbouring Uzbekistan. Reductions in the lower Amu Darya’s flow threaten to impair this oasis’s agricultural output, however. Deserts The desert of western Turkmenistan is an enormous and almost waterless expanse, but its mountainous part, which is an eastern continuation of the Caucasus Mountains, has mineral and fuel resources. The latter’s deposits of oil, rock salt, and common lake salt are of great importance. Western Turkmenistan is one of the most industrially developed regions of the republic, emphasizing oil extraction and refining, chemical and mining industries, and fisheries and fish processing (along the Caspian Sea). The rural population is engaged mostly in raising sheep, goats, and camels. The Karakum and the other featureless deserts are distinguished by the same desert landscape, lack of surface water, exceptionally meagre precipitation, and high summer temperatures. At the same time the desert is a zone of fuel and mineral resources, and its richest pastures can be used year-round for sheep, goats, and camels. Drainage Turkmenistan’s main rivers are the aforementioned Amu Darya (ancient Oxus River), which flows along its northeastern border toward the Aral Sea, and the Tejen, Morghāb (Murgab, or Murgap), and Atrek; there are also numerous small mountain rivers. However, the geographic position of the rivers and the direction of their flow do not coincide with the location of cultivable lands; the most fertile—and still insufficiently used—lands lie chiefly in the south, northeast, and west, whereas the principal rivers run mostly in the east. The Karakum Canal, completed in 1967, is one of the world’s largest irrigation and shipping canals. The water lost from these canals through irrigation and from evaporation in the arid climate contributes to the shortfall of the Amu Darya and other streams in their lower courses. Climate Turkmenistan’s position deep inside Asia and the character of its relief are responsible for a strongly continental climate, which exhibits great fluctuations in temperatures during the day and the year. The average annual temperature is 57–61 °F (14–16 °C), but this figure masks an extremely wide range. The temperature seldom falls below 95 °F (35 °C) during summer days, and the absolute maximum high temperature in the southeast Karakum reaches 122 °F (50 °C) in the shade. By contrast, in winter the temperature in Serhetabat, in the extreme south on the border with Afghanistan, drops to −27 °F (−33 °C). Precipitation occurs mainly in the spring and ranges from about 3 inches (80 millimetres) per year in the northwest desert to as much as 12 inches in the mountains. Plant and animal life Except in the oases and mountain valleys and plateaus, the vegetation is of a pronounced desert character. In the mountain valleys of the Kopet-Dag, wild grapes, almonds, figs, and walnuts are found, while juniper and pistachio trees grow on the open slopes. On the riverbanks and islands of the Amu Darya stand tugai (dense floodplain forests) of black poplar, willow, reed, and cane. The desert is home to foxes, wildcats, gazelles, and tortoises, while the mountains support goats, cheetahs, lynx, snow leopards, and porcupines. Jackals, wild boars, various species of birds, and the rare pink deer inhabit the tugai; wild donkeys roam the Badkhyz and Garabil plateaus in the southwest. Vast flocks of ducks, geese, and swans make the east coast of the Caspian Sea their winter home. In the Caspian, fishermen find abundant herring, sprat, roach, and sturgeon; before it became heavily polluted, the Amu Darya supplied edible carp, barbel, and pike. More … Score: https://www.britannica.com/place/Turkmenistan

2022/09/27

Independence day Republic of Guinea-Bissau

Guinea-Bissau, country of western Africa. Situated on the Atlantic coast, the predominantly low-lying country is slightly hilly farther inland. The name Guinea remains a source of debate; it is perhaps a corruption of an Amazigh (Berber) word meaning “land of the blacks.” The country also uses the name of its capital, Bissau, to distinguish it from Guinea, its neighbour to the east and south. In the 15th and early 16th centuries the Portuguese commanded the entire western coast of Africa. Gradually their monopoly gave way to incursions by French, Dutch, English, and other European powers. The French pressured both the northern and southern borders of what is now Guinea-Bissau and placed the Casamance region of southern Senegal fully under French rule after the late 19th century. The English rivaled Portuguese authority on the coast, particularly at Bolama; a long-running dispute between the two powers resulted with Guinea-Bissau under Portuguese rule. Although Bissau is the country’s present capital and largest city, the towns of Bolama and Cacheu were important during the slave trade and in the colonial era. Land Guinea-Bissau is bounded by Senegal to the north, Guinea to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. It includes the Bijagós (Bissagos) archipelago and other islands that lie off the coast. Relief Almost all of Guinea-Bissau is low-lying and bathed daily by tidal waters that reach as far as 62 miles (100 km) inland. In the southeastern part of the country, the Fouta Djallon plateau rises approximately 600 feet (180 metres). The Boé Hills extend from the western slopes of the Fouta Djallon to the Corubal basin and the Gabú Plain. Drainage and soils The coastal area is demarcated by a dense network of drowned valleys called rias. The Bafatá Plateau is drained by the Geba and Corubal rivers. The Gabú Plain occupies the northeastern portion of the country and is drained by the Cacheu and Geba rivers and their tributaries. The interior plains are part of the southern edge of the Sénégal River basin. The uniform elevation of the mature floodplain allows rivers to meander and renders the area susceptible to flooding during the rainy season. Some eastern portions of Guinea-Bissau form a part of the upper basin of the Gambia River system. Tidal penetration into the interior, facilitated by Guinea-Bissau’s flat coastal topography, carries some agricultural advantage: the surge of brackish water can be used to irrigate the extensive drowned rice paddies called bolanhas. Anti-colonial warfare had a devastating effect on Guinea-Bissau’s soils. Arable land that fell out of use was subject to soil erosion, and, with the destruction of protective riverine dikes, the arability of some soils was compromised by excessive salination. Climate Guinea-Bissau has a generally tropical climate influenced by the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), a belt of converging trade winds that circles the Earth near the Equator. There are two pronounced seasons: the hot, rainy season, which usually lasts from June to November, and the hot, dry season. April and May are the hottest months, and temperatures can reach the high 90s F (mid-30s C). Precipitation does not vary greatly by elevation in Guinea-Bissau, although it does vary between coastal and inland areas; the coast receives some 60 to 120 inches (1,500 to 3,000 mm) of precipitation, whereas the interior is influenced by the tropical savanna climate, with greater variation in precipitation and temperature. Plant and animal life Guinea-Bissau’s three ecological zones—the tidal estuaries, the heavily forested interior plain, and the savanna—are home to remarkably diverse flora and fauna. Aquatic and riverine birds such as flamingos and pelicans are especially numerous in the coastal swamps, which are also inhabited by a variety of reptiles such as snakes, crocodiles, and sea turtles, the latter of which are endangered. In the plains and forests, lizards, gazelles, antelopes, monkeys and apes, parrots, hyenas, and leopards abound. Although there was once a substantial elephant population, it has since been virtually eliminated. Many wild animals are hunted for their meat and hides. People - Ethnic and linguistic groups Guinea-Bissau’s population is dominated by more than 20 African ethnicities, including the Balante, one of the largest ethnic groups in the country, the numerous Fulani and their many subgroups, the Diola, the Nalu, the Bijagó, the Landuma, the Papel (Pepel), and the Malinke. There is also a small Cape Verdean minority with mixed African, European, Lebanese, and Jewish origins. During the colonial period the European population consisted mainly of Portuguese but also included some Lebanese, Italian, French, and English groups, as well as members of other nationalities. Notably, there was never a substantial settler population in Guinea-Bissau, as there was in other Portuguese colonies. Among the African languages spoken in Guinea-Bissau, some 20 languages and dialects classified in the Atlantic and Mande branches of Niger-Congo languages predominate. Although Portuguese is the country’s official and formal language, it is Crioulo—a creole that emerged during the slave trade—that is spoken as the lingua franca and exerts a unifying influence in the rural areas. Religion About two-fifths of the population is Muslim. Among Christians, who make up about one-fifth of the population, Roman Catholicism predominates. About one-sixth of the population practices traditional beliefs, which include ancestor worship, possession, and animism and are especially prevalent along the coast and in the central regions. Christianity and Islam are enriched with African traditional beliefs, which results in a unique religious syncretism; saints’ days, for example, may be celebrated with drumming, processionals, masks, and traditional dance. Settlement patterns Most of the population of Guinea-Bissau live in small villages and the country’s several main towns. The population is sparse on the low-lying lands of the coast and in the savanna regions. The majority of Guinea-Bissau’s population traditionally lived in rural villages and individual households. From 1963 to 1974, during the armed struggle for independence, about one-third of the rural population fled to neighbouring countries for refuge. Those who remained tried to restructure their lives in liberated zones, while the colonial military imposed a system of aldeamentos, concentrated settlements designed to isolate the population from the nationalist forces. Although migration to urban centres such as Bissau, Cacheu, and Bolama had generally been increasing since independence, much of the urban population fled during the fighting that erupted in the late 1990s. About half of the population is rural. Demographic trends Population growth in Guinea-Bissau is lower than that of the rest of the African continent. Life expectancy for both men and women is well below the African average and substantially lower than the world average, and infant mortality is high. The population of Guinea-Bissau is, on the whole, very young: about two-fifths of the population is under age 15 and about two-thirds under 30. Guinea-Bissau does not have a significant expatriate population living outside the country, except those in the neighbouring countries of Guinea and Senegal. Historically, the only traditional pattern of emigration was due to human trafficking; during the 15th through 19th century, thousands of Guineans were exported to Cape Verde and the New World, especially to Cuba and the northern Brazilian states of Grão Pará and Maranhão, as slaves or indentured servants. More: Score: https://www.britannica.com/place/Guinea-Bissau

2022/09/24

Evento organizado por el viajero Ryszard Sobolewski

Embajada del Perú en Polonia informa sobre el próximo evento organizado por el viajero Ryszard Sobolewski. El 24 de septiembre en el Centro Cultural de Dobroń tendrá lugar una reunión "Conoce Perú".

2022/09/23

Dzień otwartych drzwi w Ambasadzie Francji (24 września 2022)

Pod patronatem Ambasadora, Pana Frédérica Billet, Ambasada Francji w Polsce organizuje 24 września 2022 r. dzień otwartych drzwi. To adresowane do szerokiej publiczności wydarzenie będzie okazją do poznania Ambasady oraz spędzenia miłych chwil z wieloma francuskimi podmiotami w Polsce. Wydarzenie odbędzie się w godzinach 11-18.

2022/09/23

Anniversary of the proclamation of the Kingdom of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia, arid, sparsely populated kingdom of the Middle East. Extending across most of the northern and central Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia is a young country that is heir to a rich history. In its western highlands, along the Red Sea, lies the Hejaz, which is the cradle of Islam and the site of that religion’s holiest cities, Mecca and Medina. In the country’s geographic heartland is a region known as Najd (“Highland”), a vast arid zone that until recent times was populated by nomadic tribes. To the east, along the Persian Gulf, are the country’s abundant oil fields that, since the 1960s, have made Saudi Arabia synonymous with petroleum wealth. Those three elements—religion, tribalism, and untold wealth—have fueled the country’s subsequent history. It was only with the rise of the Saʿūd family (Āl Saʿūd)—a Najdi group for which the country is named—and its eventual consolidation of power in the early 20th century that Saudi Arabia began to take on the characteristics of a modern country. The success of the Saʿūd family was in no small part due to the motivating ideology of Wahhābism, an austere form of Islam that was embraced by early family leaders and that became the state creed. This deep religious conservatism has been accompanied by a ubiquitous tribalism—in which competing family groups vie for resources and status—that often has made Saudi society difficult for outsiders to comprehend. Enormous oil wealth has fueled huge and rapid investment in Saudi Arabia’s infrastructure. Many citizens have benefited from this growth, but it also has supported lavish lifestyles for the scions of the ruling family, and religious conservatives and liberal democrats alike have accused the family of squandering and mishandling the country’s wealth. In addition, civil discontent increased after the Persian Gulf War (1990–91) over the country’s close ties to the West, symbolized notably by the U.S. troops stationed in Saudi Arabia until 2005. In the mid-20th century, most of Saudi Arabia still embraced a traditional lifestyle that had changed little over thousands of years. Since then, the pace of life in Saudi Arabia has accelerated rapidly. The constant flow of pilgrims to Mecca and Medina (vast throngs arrive for the annual hajj, and more pilgrims visit throughout the year for the lesser pilgrimage, the ʿumrah) had always provided the country with outside contacts, but interaction with the outside world has expanded with innovations in transportation, technology, and organization. Saudi Arabia’s growing petroleum wealth has also wrought irreversible domestic changes—educational and social as well as economic. Modern methods of production have been superimposed on a traditional society by the introduction of millions of foreign workers and by the employment of hundreds of thousands of Saudis in nontraditional jobs. In addition, tens of thousands of Saudi students have studied abroad, most in the United States. Television, radio, and the Internet have become common media of communication and education, and highways and airways have replaced traditional means of transportation. Saudi Arabia, once a country of small cities and towns, has become increasingly urban; traditional centres such as Jiddah, Mecca, and Medina have grown into large cities, and the capital, Riyadh, a former oasis town, has grown into a modern metropolis. Most of the region’s traditional nomads, the Bedouin, have been settled in cities or agrarian communities. Land The country occupies about four-fifths of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait to the north; by the Persian Gulf, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman to the east; by a portion of Oman to the southeast; by Yemen to the south and southwest; and by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba to the west. Long-running border disputes were nearly resolved with Yemen (2000) and Qatar (2001); the border with the United Arab Emirates remains undefined. A territory of 2,200 square miles (5,700 square km) along the gulf coast was shared by Kuwait and Saudi Arabia as a neutral zone until 1969, when a political boundary was agreed upon. Each of the two countries administers one-half of the territory, but they equally share oil production in the entire area. The controversy over the Saudi-Iraqi Neutral Zone was legally settled in 1981 by partition, yet conflict between the two countries persisted and prevented final demarcation on the ground. Relief The Arabian Peninsula is dominated by a plateau that rises abruptly from the Red Sea and dips gently toward the Persian Gulf. In the north, the western highlands are upward of 5,000 feet (1,500 metres) above sea level, decreasing slightly to 4,000 feet (1,200 metres) in the vicinity of Medina and increasing southeastward to more than 10,000 feet (3,000 metres). Mount Sawdāʾ, which is situated near Abhā in the south, is generally considered the highest point in the country. Estimates of its elevation range from 10,279 to 10,522 feet (3,133 to 3,207 metres). The watershed of the peninsula is only 25 miles (40 km) from the Red Sea in the north and recedes to 80 miles (130 km) near the Yemen border. The coastal plain, known as the Tihāmah, is virtually nonexistent in the north, except for occasional wadi deltas, but it widens slightly toward the south. The imposing escarpment that runs parallel to the Red Sea is somewhat interrupted by a gap northwest of Mecca but becomes more clearly continuous to the south. Toward the interior, the surface gradually descends into the broad plateau area of the Najd, which is covered with lava flows and volcanic debris as well as with occasional sand accumulations; it slopes down from an elevation of about 4,500 feet (1,370 metres) in the west to about 2,500 feet (760 metres) in the east. There the drainage is more clearly dendritic (i.e., branching) and is much more extensive than that flowing toward the Red Sea. To the east, this region is bounded by a series of long, low ridges, with steep slopes on the west and gentle slopes on the east; the area is 750 miles (1,200 km) long and curves eastward from north to south. The most prominent of the ridges are the Ṭuwayq Mountains (Jibāl Ṭuwayq), which rise from the plateau at an elevation of some 2,800 feet (850 metres) above sea level and reach more than 3,500 feet (1,100 metres) southwest of Riyadh, overlooking the plateau’s surface to the west by 800 feet (250 metres) and more.The interior of the Arabian Peninsula contains extensive sand surfaces. Among them is the world’s largest sand area, the Rubʿ al-Khali (“Empty Quarter”), which dominates the southern part of the country and covers more than 250,000 square miles (647,500 square km). It slopes from above 2,600 feet (800 metres) near the border with Yemen northeastward down almost to sea level near the Persian Gulf; individual sand mountains reach elevations of 800 feet (250 metres), especially in the eastern part. A smaller sand area of about 22,000 square miles (57,000 square km), called Al-Nafūd (nafūd designating a sandy area or desert), is in the north-central part of the country. A great arc of sand, Al-Dahnāʾ, almost 900 miles (1,450 km) long but in places only 30 miles (50 km) wide, joins Al-Nafūd with the Rubʿ al-Khali. Eastward, as the plateau surface slopes very gradually down to the gulf, there are numerous salt flats (sabkhahs) and marshes. The gulf coastline is irregular, and the coastal waters are very shallow. Drainage and soils There are virtually no permanent surface streams in the country, but wadis are numerous. Those leading to the Red Sea are short and steep, though one unusually long extension is made by Wadi Al-Ḥamḍ, which rises near Medina and flows inland to the northwest for 100 miles (160 km) before turning westward; those draining eastward are longer and more developed except in Al-Nafūd and the Rubʿ al-Khali. Soils are poorly developed. Large areas are covered with pebbles of varying sizes. Alluvial deposits are found in wadis, basins, and oases. Salt flats are especially common in the east. More: Score: https://www.britannica.com/place/Saudi-Arabia    

2022/09/23

VISIT NEPAL NEPAL TOURISM BOARD OFFICAL PROMO

This video of Visit Nepal 2020 lets you know to experience the Time Lapse of most visited trekking routes of Nepal - Nar Phu Time Lapse, Tilicho Lake Time Lapse, Manang Valley Timelapse, Mustang Valley Time Lapse and Phewa Lake Time Lapse. This video summarizes top attractions of Nepal, best places to visit in Nepal, 8 of the World Heritage Sites to be explored in Nepal, Nepal culture, religion & traditions, festivals in Nepal, things to do in Nepal, outdoor & adventure activities in Nepal, best trekking sites in Nepal and popular places to visit in Nepal for tour.

2022/09/22

Independence Day of the Republic of Mali

Mali, landlocked country of western Africa, mostly in the Saharan and Sahelian regions. Mali is largely flat and arid. The Niger River flows through its interior, functioning as the main trading and transport artery in the country. Sections of the river flood periodically, providing much-needed fertile agricultural soil along its banks as well as creating pasture for livestock. Although Mali is one of the largest countries in Africa, it has a relatively small population, which is largely centred along the Niger River. The Bambara (Bamana) ethnic group and language predominate, with several other groups—including the Fulani (Fulbe), Dogon, and Tuareg—also present in the population. Agriculture is the dominant economic sector in the country, with cotton production, cattle and camel herding, and fishing among the major activities. The area that is now Mali was once part of the three great precolonial Sudanic empires: Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. The fabled but now faded trading and learning centre of Timbuktu is situated in Mali on the upper Niger River. For centuries, caravans crossed the Sahara desert from North Africa while others came from the forest regions to the south, meeting at the crossroads of Timbuktu. Other notable towns include Djenné, noted for its famous mosque and other examples of Sudanese architecture, and Mopti, a bustling market centre. The Dogon region, centred on the Bandiagara escarpment in the country’s central area, is an important tourist destination because of its unique cliffside villages and diverse artistic life. The national capital, Bamako, is located on the Niger River and is a rapidly growing city because of increased migration from the depressed rural areas. Relief Mali’s landscape is largely flat and monotonous. Two basic relief features can be distinguished: plateaus and plains, which are crossed by two of Africa’s major river systems, the Niger and the Sénégal. The highland regions are localized and discontinuous. The plateaus of the south and southwest (extensions of the Fouta Djallon highlands of Guinea and the Guinea Highlands of Guinea and Côte d’Ivoire) lie between about 1,000 and 1,600 feet (300 and 500 metres) above sea level but attain heights approaching 2,000 feet (600 metres) in the Mandingue Plateau near Bamako and more than 2,100 feet (640 metres) near Satadougou. The plateaus of the southeast and east, also extensions of the Guinea Highlands, are a series of small, broken hills. Elevations in the southeast range between almost 1,000 feet (300 metres) around Sikasso and 1,740 feet (530 metres) at Mount Mina. East of the Niger River the Dogon Plateau descends gently westward to the river valley but ends in abrupt cliffs on the southeast. These cliffs reach an elevation approaching 3,300 feet (1,000 metres) at Bandiagara. Northwest of the region is the country’s highest point, Mount Hombori Tondo, which rises to a height of 3,789 feet (1,155 metres). Northern and central Mali are made up of the plains of the Niger River basin and of the Sahara. The only marked relief feature in the north is the Iforas Massif. An extension of the mountainous Hoggar region of the Sahara, this heavily eroded sandstone plateau rises to elevations of more than 2,000 feet. Drainage and soils With the exception of some intermittent streams in the northeast, Mali’s drainage system consists entirely of the Sénégal and Niger rivers and their tributaries. The Sénégal system flows in a northwesterly direction across western Mali for about 420 miles (670 km) on its course to the Atlantic Ocean. One of its main headstreams, the Bakoye River, rises in the Fouta Djallon, while another, the Bafing River, rises farther to the east; they join at Bafoulabé to form the Sénégal. The river continues flowing northwest and then west around the Mandingue Plateau, broken along the way by falls at Gouina and Félou, before exiting Mali. The Niger River flows through Mali for slightly more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km), about two-fifths of the river’s total length. It rises in the Fouta Djallon and is of significant size by the time it enters the country near Kangaba. It flows to the northeast across the Mandingue Plateau, its course interrupted by falls and a dam at Sotuba. Reaching Koulikoro, it spreads out in a wide valley and flows majestically to its confluence with the Bani River at Mopti. The Niger then forms an interior delta, because the land is flat and the river’s gradient almost nonexistent. The river breaks down into a network of branches and lakes as it continues northward and, at Kabara, eastward. At Bourem the Niger makes a great turn to the southeast, known as the Niger Bend, and flows past Gao and Ansongo to the Niger border at Labbezanga. The flow of the Niger varies seasonally. High waters occur on the upper Niger from July to October, at the delta from September to November, and at the bend from December to January. Periodic floods and the rich alluvial soils in the central delta make the Niger valley an important agricultural region. The soils outside the Niger valley in Mali are poor. In the south, ferruginous (iron-bearing) soils are shallow and form a hard, red crust because of intense evaporation. The desert region is composed of sand, rock, and gravel. Climate Mali lies within the intertropical zone and has a hot, dry climate, with the sun near its zenith throughout most of the year. In general, there are two distinct seasons, dry and wet. The dry season, which lasts from November to June, is marked by low humidity and high temperatures and is influenced by the alize and harmattan winds. The alize blows from the northeast from November to January and causes a relatively cool spell, with temperatures averaging 77 °F (25 °C). From March to June the harmattan, a dry, hot wind that blows from the east out of the Sahara, sweeps the soil into dusty whirlwinds and is accompanied by daytime temperatures of about 104 to 113 °F (40 to 45 °C). During the rainy season, from June to October, the monsoon wind blows from the southwest. Preceded by large black clouds, the heavy rainstorms often include gusty winds and much lightning and thunder. Temperatures are somewhat lower in August, when most of the rainfall occurs. The country can be divided into three climatic zones—the Sudanic, the Sahelian, and the desert zones. Sudanic climate occurs in about one-third of the country, from the southern border to latitude 15° N. It is characterized by an annual rainfall of 20 to 55 inches (510 to 1,400 mm) and average temperatures of 75 to 86 °F (24 to 30 °C). The Sahel, or the area bordering the Sahara, receives between 8 and 20 inches (200 and 510 mm) of rain per year and has average temperatures between 73 and 97 °F (23 and 36 °C). In the desert (Sahara), temperatures during the day range from 117 to nearly 140 °F (47 to 60 °C), while at night the temperature drops to 39 to 41 °F (4 to 5 °C). Plant and animal life There are two main vegetation zones that correspond to the climatic regions of the Sudan and the Sahel. In the Sudanic zone, localized forest corridors are found along the Guinean border and in the river valleys; the rest of the area is covered with savanna. The trees include the néré, or twoball nitta tree (Parkia biglobosa), the karite (Butyrospermum parkii), the cailcedra (Senegal khaya; Khaya senegalensis), and the kapioka. The incidence of trees decreases to the north as the Sudanic zone merges with the Sahel. The Sahel is characterized by steppe vegetation, notably such drought-resistant trees as the baobab, doum palm, and palmyra. These trees also disappear to the north, where short, thorny plants such as the mimosa, acacia, and cram-cram (Cenchrus biflorus, a member of the grass family) grow; all vegetation is absent in the far-north region of the Sahara. Beginning in the latter half of the 20th century, deforestation, overgrazing, and repeated episodes of drought served to greatly speed the rate of naturally occurring desertification, resulting in the encroachment of the desert on the Sahel. The animal life of the Sudan and of the Sahel is rich and varied. Large herbivorous mammals include gazelles, antelopes, giraffes, and elephants. The main carnivores are lions, panthers, and hyenas. Crocodiles and hippopotamuses inhabit the rivers, and there are a wide variety of monkeys, snakes, and birds (including the ostrich). Boucle du Baoulé National Park along the Baoulé River in the west and the Ansongo-Ménaka Animal Reserve and Douentza (Gourma) Elephant Reserve in the east are major wildlife sanctuaries. People - Ethnic groups The notion of ethnicity is fluid in Mali. In some cases, people marry outside their ethnic group and speak languages that differ from those of their ancestors without changing their cultural affiliation. In other cases, however, identity does change, especially as people move internally and adopt Bambara, the most widely spoken African language in Mali. Nevertheless, several broad categories can be noted. Living in the Sahelian zone and north of the Niger Bend are Imazighen (Berbers, including the Tuareg, a significant subgroup) and the Arab-Spanish-Amazigh (Berber) group known as the Moors, who speak and write Arabic. The rest of the population is composed of numerous agricultural groups, some of whom are descended from the peoples of the ancient empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. The Bambara (Bamana), who live along the upper Niger River, make up the largest group. The Soninke are descended from the founders of the Ghana empire and live in the western Sahelian zone. The Malinke, bearers of the heritage of the Mali empire, live in the southwest, while the Songhai are settled in the Niger valley from Djenné to Ansongo. The Dogon live in the plateau region around Bandiagara, and the Bwa, Bobo, Senufo, and Minianka occupy the east and southeast. The Fulani (Fulbe) were traditionally nomadic pastoralists of the Sahel and the Macina region southwest of Timbuktu. Other ethnic groups of note include the Tukulor, the Khasonke, the Bozo, and the Somono. Although some Tuareg and Fulani are nomadic, the vast majority now live in permanent settlements. More … Score: https://www.britannica.com/place/Mali

2022/09/22

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2022/09/21