Everything About Libya

Basic Statistics

Libya is an Islamic, Arab nation that is located in North Africa, which has a Northern coastline on the Mediterranean Sea, and is bordered by the countries Egypt, Sudan, Chad, Niger, Tunisia, and Algeria. Libya has a population of about 6 million people about a third of which live along the coastline in the area commonly referred to as Tripolitania, named after the capital city, Tripoli. Libya has a total size of about 1.8 million square kilometers making it the 17th largest country in the world. It is about the size of Alaska (CIA World Fact Book). Due to large amounts of petroleum exporting, Libya has the highest gross domestic product, or GDP, per capita, of any African country. Libya’s national flag is objectively, the plainest of any country in the world. It is simply a green colored rectangle without any design (Wikipedia.org). Libyans have an average life expectancy of 77 years, which is fairly high compared to other African countries. The dominant religion is Sunni Muslim; its followers comprising 97 percent of the country’s population. The other 3 percent follow many different religions. The country’s main languages are Arabic, Italian, and English, which are understood in most major cities. Finally, the country is lead by the military dictator, Muammar al-Qaddafi, who has been in power ever since 1969 (CIA World Fact Book).

Geography

The country of Libya can be split into 2 different geographical regions. The region along the Mediterranean Sea has a mild, temperate climate, whereas the interior of the country is a very harsh, hot, and dry portion of the Sahara Desert. About 90 percent of the population of the country lives on or very near the coast because it is a much more habitable area. Libya’s coastline is 1770 kilometers long, giving it the longest Mediterranean coast of any North African country. Most major cities are located along the coastline, including the capital, Tripoli, which is also the country’s largest city (Wikipedia.org).

The remainder of Libya is a vast, sand swept desert, which is home to some of the most extreme weather on the planet (CIA World Fact Book). In 1922 in this desert, known as the Libyan Desert, a naturally occurring air temperature of 136 degrees Fahrenheit was recorded. This is the hottest temperature ever in recorded history (Wikipedia.org). The desert areas usually receive rain about once every 5 to 10 years. In one area of the desert, the last recorded rainfall was in September 1998. For these reasons, few cities are located in this area of the country (Infoplease.com).

Early History

Archaeological finds suggest that as early as 8000 BC people inhabited Libya’s coastal region that were skilled in the domestication of cattle and cultivation of crops. The first culture to inhabit the land of Libya was the Berber tribe, whose origin is still a mystery. They were thought to have migrated from southwest Asia to North Africa. However, only educated guesses can be made about their origins (A Country Study: Libya).

The next major culture to inhabit Libya was the Phoenicians, which was the first culture to develop trading stations in Libya in order to trade with the native Berber tribes. By 500 BC, Carthage, the largest of all of the Phoenician cities, had spread its social customs into North Africa and Libya where a civilization known as Punic was formed. Some of the Punic cities included Oea and Libdah, became Tripoli and Leptis Magna, two of the largest cities in Libya today (Wikipedia.org).

After the Phoenicians the Greeks inhabited the land that is now modern day Libya. It is thought that the reason the Greeks first came to Libya was because they were commanded to emigrate there by the oracle of Delphi in order to decrease the population of the crowded Greek island, Thera. In about 630 BC, they founded the city, Cyrene, which today is still a major city. Within the next 200 years 4 more major cities were founded, all of which are still in existence today, though with different names (Wikipedia.org).

Finally, for more than 600 years, the Romans successfully ruled all three areas of Libya, modernizing the civilization and leading to many prosperous lives. However, the Romans did not create any major cities that still exist. In addition the Romans also did not drastically affect the culture that exists in Libya (Wikipedia.org).

Modern History

In the 1500’s, The Ottoman Empire conquered most of Libya and was able to retain control of it for over 400 years, until 1911, when Italy invaded Libya, defeated the Ottomans, and turned the three regions of Libya into colonies (Wikipedia.org).

The Italians ruled over Libya as a whole from 1912 to 1927, when they split it into two colonies that were ruled by separate Italian governors. In 1934, the Italians officially named the colony “Libya” after the word used by the Greeks to refer to all of North Africa. In the time between 1927 and 1934, there was a resistance against the Italian occupation led by King Idris, the leader of the section of the colony called Cyrenaica. In order to crush the uprising, the Italian military killed almost half of the native people either directly or by putting them in concentration camps. In addition, King Idris was exiled to Cairo until he was able to return in 1944. Finally, after the end of World War II, Italy was forced to give up all claims to Libya (Wikipedia.org).

On November 21, 1949, the United Nations passed a resolution stating that Libya had to become an independent nation before January 1, 1952. Finally, on December 24, 1951, Libya declared its independence as a Monarchy led by King Idris who also represented Libya during the UN negotiations before becoming independent. Libya was ruled without incident until September 1969 (Wikipedia.org).

On September 1, 1969, a group of army officers lead by Colonel Muammar al-Qaddafi staged a coup against King Idris who was in Turkey receiving medical treatment. At that time, Idris’ nephew was about to take the throne. The group of revolutionaries deposed the Crown Prince and put him under house arrest, all before the end of the day. The revolutionaries then abolished Libya’s monarchy, and formed the new Libyan Arab Republic, which to this day is lead by Qaddafi. Qaddafi’s oppressive dictatorship has kept the country free of any uprisings for the remainder of the country’s history (Wikipedia.org).

Culture and Religion

Libya’s culture is very similar to that of its neighboring Arab Islamic countries. Libyans consider themselves not only to be Libyan but also as part of