The Guardafui Channel ( so, Marinka Gardafuul) is an oceanic

strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...

off the tip of the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

that lies between the

Puntland Puntland ( so, Puntland, ar, أرض البنط, it, Terra di Punt or ''Paese di Punt''), officially the Puntland State of Somalia ( so, Dowlad Goboleedka Puntland ee Soomaaliya, ar, ولاية أرض البنط الصومالية), is a F ...

region of

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

and

Socotra Socotra or Soqotra (; ar, سُقُطْرَىٰ ; so, Suqadara) is an island of the Republic of Yemen in the Indian Ocean, under the ''de facto'' control of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council, a secessionist participant in Yemen’s ...

to the west of the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...

. It connects the

Gulf of Aden The Gulf of Aden ( ar, خليج عدن, so, Gacanka Cadmeed 𐒅𐒖𐒐𐒕𐒌 𐒋𐒖𐒆𐒗𐒒) is a deepwater gulf of the Indian Ocean between Yemen to the north, the Arabian Sea to the east, Djibouti to the west, and the Guardafui Channe ...

to the north with the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

to the south. Its namesake is

Cape Guardafui Cape Guardafui ( so, Gees Gardafuul, or Raas Caseyr, or Ras Asir, it, Capo Guardafui) is a headland in the autonomous Puntland region in Somalia. Coextensive with Puntland's Gardafuul administrative province, it forms the geographical apex of th ...

, the very tip of the Horn of Africa. Notable places of interest include the

Alula Lagoon Alula Lagoon is a large shallow lagoon in the northeastern Bari region of Somalia. The northernmost point in the country, it is mostly covered with mangroves. Overview Facing the Gulf of Aden, the lagoonal mangrove lies behind a barrier island. ...

Extent

Its width is roughy between Ras Asir (

Gardafuul Gardafuul is a region in north-west Puntland, Somalia. It is an administrative province of Puntland created in 2013 that was carved out of the Bari Province. It is named after Marinka Gardafuul (Guardafui Channel). Most locals work as fisherman ...

) and Abd al Kari, and roughly between Ras Asir and Socotra.

, a province of the semi-autonomous region of Puntland, is named after it. In its narrower sense, Marinka Gardafuul, in English called the Guardafui Channel, refers to the strait between Puntland and

Abd al Kuri Abd al Kuri ( ar, عبد الكوري) is a rocky island in the Guardafui Channel. As a part of the Socotra Archipelago of the Socotra Governorate of Yemen, it lies about 65 miles (105 km) southwest of the island of Socotra.Ras Hafun Ras Hafun ( so, Ras Xaafuun, ar, رأس حـافـون, it, Capo Hafun), also known as Cape Hafun, is a promontory in the northeastern Bari region of Somalia. Jutting out into the Guardafui Channel, it constitutes the easternmost point in Afri ...

, near the town of

Foar Foar is a town in the northeastern Bari region of Somalia, on the coast of the Guardafui Channel The Guardafui Channel ( so, Marinka Gardafuul) is an oceanic strait off the tip of the Horn of Africa that lies between the Puntland region of Som ...

, the ''Ras Asir-Socotra Strait'', the ''Cape Guardafui Strait'', the Guardafui-Socotra Channel Guardafui Channel Cape Guardafui Channel, ''Socotra Strait'', and ''Socotra Passage''.

History

The oceanic strait has been regarded as a possibly dangerous pitfall both during peace and war times. It was a highly strategic region during World War Two. Due to its possession by an Axis power at the time, Italy, The Allies attempted to secure passage through the oceanic strait in the Operation Chapter. Subsequently, the Allies decided that in order to continue routing independent ships and convoys, air cover was needed. The oceanic strait also experiences cyclones that emerge from its southeast in the Somali sea. There is a dispute between the Somali government and Yemen over the sovereignty of its islands. The presence of an archipelago has also meant that there are shores for stranded sailors to find shelter, which on occasion has subsequently resulted in their evacuations.

Geography

To the northwest, it connects with the Gulf of Aden, to the northeast with the

and to the south with the Somali sea. The passage contains the islands of

Abd al Kuri Abd al Kuri ( ar, عبد الكوري) is a rocky island in the Guardafui Channel. As a part of the Socotra Archipelago of the Socotra Governorate of Yemen, it lies about 65 miles (105 km) southwest of the island of Socotra.Darsah Darsah ( ar, درسة) is an uninhabited island in the Guardafui Channel. It is part of the Socotra Archipelago of Yemen. Darsah and neighboring Samhah ( to the west) are collectively known as "Al Akhawain" ( ar, الأخوين) which means "The B ...

and

Samhah Samhah or Samha ( ar, سمحة) is an inhabited island in the Guardafui Channel. A part of the Socotra archipelago, it is located between the island of Socotra and Somalia. Like the whole group, it belongs to Yemen and is part of Socotra Governora ...

. Ships passing the strait use the Francesco Crispi lighthouse in

as a navigational aid. On the western mainland on the Horn African coast, lie the

Puntite The Land of Punt (Egyptian: '' pwnt''; alternate Egyptological readings ''Pwene''(''t'') /pu:nt/) was an ancient kingdom known from Ancient Egyptian trade records. It produced and exported gold, aromatic resins, blackwood, ebony, ivory and ...

localities of

Aluula Alula ( so, Caluula, ar, علولة), also spelled Aluula, is a coastal town in the northeastern Bari, Somalia, Bari region and is part of the autonomous state of Puntland, on the coast of the Guardafui Channel. In the late 19th and early 20th ce ...

Ras Filuk Ras Filuk ( so, Bolimoog, ar, رأس فيلوك), also known as Cape Elephant, is a headland in the northeastern Bari province of Somalia. It is situated in the autonomous Puntland region. Etymology Ras Filuk (or ''Ras Fil'') means the ''Head of ...

Bereeda Bereeda ( so, Bareeda, ar, بارآدا) is a coastal town in the northeastern Bari province of Somalia. It is situated in the Alula District, which is in the autonomous Puntland region. Location Bereeda is located at , facing the Gulf of Aden a ...

Tohen Tohen ( so, Tooxin, ar, طوهآن) is a settlement in the northeastern Bari province of Somalia. It is situated in the autonomous Puntland region. Location Tohen is located at , on the northeastern coast of Somalia.Douglas Collins, ''Tales from ...

and

Bargal Bargal ( so, Baargaal, ar, بارجال) is a town in the northeastern Bari region of Puntland, Somalia. Location Bargal is situated in the mountainous Bari province of the autonomous Puntland state. It serves as the center of the Bargal Dis ...

Geology

The northern reaches of the Guardafui Channel lies at the Gulf of Aden

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the ...

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

oceanic floor; here water depths reach in excess of 2500 m. The Guardafui Channel, as well as the island chain of the Socotra archipelago are located in the

Somali Plate The Somali Plate is a minor tectonic plate which straddles the Equator in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is currently in the process of separating from the African Plate along the East African Rift Valley. It is approximately centered on the isl ...

.Khanna, S. N., and G. E. Pillay. "Geology And Petroleum Prospects of Seychelles." (1988): 114-124.

References

External links

{{List of African seas