North AfricaNorthernmost region of Africa North AfricaArea7,862,221 km2 (3,035,620 sq mi)Population 270,538,625 (2026)Countries Sovereign states (6) Algeria Egypt Libya (GNU) Morocco Sudan (sometimes excluded) Tunisia Partially recognized states (1) Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Western Sahara) Dependencies Territories of European states (5) Italy • Lampedusa e Linosa Portugal • Madeira Spain • Alboran Island • Canary Islands • Plazas de soberanía • Ceuta • Melilla Non-UN states Quasi-states and rival gov...
Egyptian languageThe Egyptian language, or ancient Egyptian (r n kmt; 'speech of Egypt'), is an extinct branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family that was spoken in Egypt. It is one of the earliest known written languages, first recorded in the hieroglyphic script in the late 4th millennium BC, and the longest-attested human language with a written record spanning over 5,000 years. Its classical form, known as "Middle Egyptian," was the vernacular language of the Middle Kingdom of ancient Egypt, and remained the literary langua...
JaphetitesThe term Japhetites (sometimes spelled Japhethites; in adjective form Japhetic or Japhethitic) refers to the descendants of Japheth, one of the three sons of Noah in the Book of Genesis. The term was used in ethnological and linguistic writings from the 18th to the 20th centuries as a Biblically derived racial classification for the European peoples, but is now considered obsolete. Medievalethnographers believed that the world had been divided into three large-scale groupings, corresponding to the three classica...
Horn of AfricaThe Horn of Africa (HOA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region located in the easternmost part of mainland Africa. It is the fourth largest peninsula in the world and is composed of Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and the partially recognised state of Somaliland. Although not common, some broader geopolitical definitions include parts or all of Kenya and Sudan. It has been described as a region of significant geopolitical and strategic importance, since it is sit...
Berber languagesThe Berber languages (also known as the Amazigh languages or Tamazight) are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They comprise a group of closely related languages spoken by Berber communities, who are indigenous to North Africa. Historically, they have been written with the ancient Libyco-Berber script, which now exists in the form of Tifinagh. Today, they may also be written in the Berber Latin alphabet or the Arabic script, with Latin being the most widespread. The Berber languages have a level of var...
Cushitic languagesThe Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken primarily in the Horn of Africa, with minorities speaking Cushitic languages to the north in Egypt and Sudan, and to the south in Kenya and Tanzania. As of 2012, the Cushitic languages with over one million speakers were Oromo, Somali, Beja, Afar, Hadiyya, Kambaata, and Sidama.
SlaverySlavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regard to their labour. It is an economic phenomenon and its history resides in economic history. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavement is the placement of a person into slavery, and the person is called a slave or an enslaved person. Many historical cases of enslavement occurred as a result of breaking the law, becoming indebted, suff...
Scientific racismScientific racism, sometimes termed biological racism, is the pseudoscientific belief that the human species is divided into biologically distinct taxa called "races", and that empirical evidence exists to support or justify racial discrimination, racial inferiority, or racial superiority. Modern scientific consensus rejects this view as being irreconcilable with genetic research. Scientific racism misapplies, misconstrues, or distorts physical anthropology, craniometry, evolutionary biology, and other disciplin...
Book of GenesisThe Book of Genesis (from Greek Γένεσις, Génesis, 'Origin'; Biblical Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית, romanized: Bərēʾšīṯ, lit. 'In [the] Beginning'; Latin: Liber Genesis) is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. The Hebrew name bereshit ('in the beginning') is taken directly from the first word. The primary narrative of Genesis includes a legendary account of the creation of the world, the early history of the human race, and the origins of the Jewish people. In Judai...
Semitic peopleSemitic people or Semites is an obsolete term for an ethnic, cultural or racial group formerly used in connection with ancient and modern peoples of the Middle East including Akkadians (Assyrians and Babylonians), Arabs, Ammonites, Arameans, Canaanites, Edomites, Israelites, Jews, Judahites, Moabites, Phoenicians, Samaritans, and others. Use of the terminology is now largely confined to the field of linguistics in reference to "Semitic languages". However, the term is sometimes still used colloquially as a short...
ColonialismColonialism is the practice of extending and maintaining political, social, economic, and cultural domination over a territory and its people by another people in pursuit of interests defined in an often distant metropole, who also claim superiority. While frequently an imperialist project, colonialism functions through differentiating between the targeted land and people, and that of the colonizers (a critical component of colonization). Rather than annexation, this typically culminates in organizing the coloni...
Ham (Genesis)Ham (in Hebrew: חָם), according to the Table of Nations in the Book of Genesis, was either the second or the youngest son of Noah, and the father of Cush, Mizraim, Phut and Canaan. Ham's descendants are interpreted by Josephus and others as having populated Africa. The Bible refers to Egypt as "the land of Ham" in Psalms 78:51; 105:23, 27; 106:22; and 1 Chronicles 4:40.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.