Matam (

Hassaniya Arabic Hassānīya ( ar, حسانية '; also known as , , , , and ''Maure'') is a variety of Maghrebi Arabic spoken by Mauritanian Arabs and the Sahrawi. It was spoken by the Beni Ḥassān Bedouin tribes, who extended their authority over most ...

: ; Wolof: Mataam) is the capital town of the

Matam Region Matam is a region of Senegal (regional capitals have the same name as their respective regions). It is a stark, flat, arid place bounded on the north by the Sénégal River and the south by the Sahelian plain studded with baobab trees. Matam i ...

in north-east

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣� ...

, and lies on the Sénégal River on the

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political bo ...

with Mauritania. In the census of 2002, Matam had 14,620 inhabitants. In 2007, according to official estimates, the population of the town had increased to 17,324. In 1996, the Upper Senegal River Valley, stretching from Matam to Diamou in Mali was cited as one of the poorest and most inaccessible regions in the western

Sahel The Sahel (; ar, ساحل ' , "coast, shore") is a region in North Africa. It is defined as the ecoclimatic and biogeographic realm of transition between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian savanna to the south. Having a hot semi-arid c ...

Mining

Matam has

phosphate In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid . The phosphate or orthophosphate ion is derived from phosph ...

mines in the vicinity.

Climate

Matam has a

hot desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in deser ...

(BWh) with little to no rainfall in all months except July, August and September.

Notable people

* Samba Diouldé Thiam

References

Populated places in Matam Region Matam Region Regional capitals in Senegal Senegal River Communes of Senegal {{Senegal-geo-stub