Djibouti Region, also known as the formerly Djibouti District is the capital of the

Republic of Djibouti Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...

and one of the six regional administrative divisions of the country. With 603,000 residents across a total area of about 80 square miles (200 km2), Djibouti Region is the most populous in Djibouti. It is the smallest region in Djibouti, and contains the national capital,

Djibouti Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...

History

Ambouli in the Djibouti Region is identifies the city with Canbala by O.G.S. Crawford. Canbala appears in

Muhammad al-Idrisi Abu Abdullah Muhammad al-Idrisi al-Qurtubi al-Hasani as-Sabti, or simply al-Idrisi ( ar, أبو عبد الله محمد الإدريسي القرطبي الحسني السبتي; la, Dreses; 1100 – 1165), was a Muslim geographer, cartogra ...

's map of 1192 on the coast of the Horn of Africa, southeast of the straits of

Bab-el-Mandeb The Bab-el-Mandeb ( Arabic: , , ) is a strait between Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula, and Djibouti and Eritrea in the Horn of Africa. It connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. Name The strait derives its name from the dangers a ...

, and with Cambaleh, a town where the Venetian traveler Bragadino, a thirteenth-century European visitor to

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

, resided for eight years.O.G.S. Crawford
"Some Medieval Theories about the Nile", ''Geographical Journal''
114 (1949), p. 8 In the mid-19th century and earlier, Djibouti Region was ruled by local authorities with whom France signed various treaties between 1883 and 1887 to first gain a foothold in the region.

Demographics

About 60% of Djibouti's population lives in the coastal plain, much of them in the

Djibouti City Djibouti (also called Djibouti City and in many early English texts and on many early maps, Jibuti; so, Magaalada Jabuuti, french: link=no, Ville de Djibouti, ar, مدينة جيبوتي, aa, Gabuutî Magaala) is the eponymous capital of Dji ...

area.

Geography

Topography

The region borders the

Arta Region Arta Region ( ar, إقليم عرتا, so, Gobolka Carta) is one of the six regions of Djibouti. It was officially created in 2003 by the regrouping of districts of the regions of Dikhil and Djibouti. It is situated in the south-central of the co ...

to the south and west, and to the north

Gulf of Tadjoura The Gulf of Tadjoura (; ) is a gulf or basin of the Indian Ocean in the Horn of Africa. It lies south of the straits of Bab-el-Mandeb, or the entrance to the Red Sea, at . The gulf has many fishing grounds, extensive coral reefs, and abundant pe ...

. The landscape around the region, along the Djibouti's coastal plain, is a semi-desert. It is a geographical

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

defined morphologically by the

sea The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

, in terms of topography and soil, and also in its climate, flora and fauna.

Vegetation

The region has a rich in plant species partly because of its diversity of habitats, including beaches, mangroves and semi-arid lands. The most prevalent plant communities are the African foxtail grass, Urochondra,

Panicum turgidum ''Panicum turgidum'' is an old world clumping desert bunchgrass of the genus '' Panicum''. It is a plant of arid regions across Africa and Asia, and has been introduced to other parts of the world. Description ''Panicum turgidum'' is a perennia ...

and

Acacia tortilis ''Vachellia tortilis'', widely known as ''Acacia tortilis'' but now attributed to the genus '' Vachellia'', is the umbrella thorn acacia, also known as ''umbrella thorn'' and Israeli babool, a medium to large canopied tree native to most of Afr ...

Climate

Djibouti Region has an

Semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...

. It is characterised by very hot rainless summers and a very warm, slightly wetter

winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultur ...

season. Most of the annual precipitation falls between October and May. In

sees on average 163.5 millimetres (6.44 in) of rainfall per year. Average high temperatures range from 29 °C (84 °F) during the months of December, January and February, to about 42 °C (108 °F) in July. The topography of the region has

coastal plain A coastal plain is flat, low-lying land adjacent to a sea coast. A fall line commonly marks the border between a coastal plain and a piedmont area. Some of the largest coastal plains are in Alaska and the southeastern United States. The Gulf Co ...

, there are two seasons: a hot dry season from May to October and a cooler season with more precipitation from November to April (winter). The rainfall on the

coast The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in ...

usually occurs between November to March, whereas further inland it falls between April to October. In the summer months, temperatures routinely exceed 40 °C (104 °F), with relative

humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity dep ...

at its lowest point of the year. It is lowest during the rainy period, when there is some coastal fog and greater cloud coverage as warm air passes over the cool

surface. However, precipitation is highly variable and long periods without any rainfall occur throughout the year. Unusual episodes of heavy rain sometimes occur, with a maximal 224 millimetres (8.82 in) falling in November 1949.

References

* {{Coord, 11, 35, N, 43, 08, E, type:adm1st, display=title Regions of Djibouti