Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in continental Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. Senegal is bordered by Mauritania to the north, Mali to the east, Guinea to the southeast and Guinea-Bissau to the southwest. Senegal nearly surroundsThe Gambia, a country occupying a narrow sliver of land along the banks of the Gambia River, which separates Senegal's southern region of Casamance from the rest of the country. Senegal also shares a maritime border with Cape Verde. Senegal's economic and political capital is Dakar.
Senegal is the westernmost country in the mainland of the Old World, or Afro-Eurasia. It owes its name to the Senegal River, which borders it to the east and north. The climate is typically Sahelian, though there is a rainy season. Senegal covers a land area of almost 197,000 square kilometres (76,000 sq mi) and has a population of around 18 million.0 The state is a unitarypresidential republic; since the country's foundation in 1960, it has been recognized as one of the most stable countries on the African continent. On the 2023 V-Dem Democracy Indices, Senegal is ranked 52nd in electoral democracy worldwide and 4th in electoral democracy in Africa.
The state was formed as part of the independence of French West Africa from French colonial rule. Because of this history, French is the official language, but it is understood by only a minority of the population. Over 30 languages are spoken in Senegal. Wolof is the most widely spoken one, with 80% of the population speaking it as a first or second language, acting as Senegal's lingua franca alongside French. Like other African nations, the country includes a wide mix of ethnic and linguistic communities, with the largest being the Wolof, Fula, and Serer people. Senegalese people are predominantly Muslim.
Boats on the Senegal River, on the border between Senegal and Mauritania
The Senegal River (Arabic: نَهر السنغَال, romanized: Nehr es-Sinigâl, French: Fleuve Sénégal, Wolof: Dexug Senegaal) is a 1086-kilometre-long (675 mi) river in West Africa; much of its length marks part of the border between Senegal and Mauritania. It has a drainage basin of 270000 km2 (100000 sq mi), a mean flow of 680 m3/s (24,000 cu ft/s), and an annual discharge of 21.5 km3 (5.2 cu mi). Important tributaries are the Falémé River, Karakoro River, and the Gorgol River. The river divides into two branches once it passes Kaédi The left branch, called the Doué, runs parallel to the main river to the north. After 200 km (120 mi) the two branches rejoin a few kilometers downstream of Podor.
In 1972 Mali, Mauritania and Senegal founded the Organisation pour la mise en valeur du fleuve Sénégal (OMVS) to manage the river basin. Guinea joined in 2005. , only very limited use was made of the river for the transportation of goods and passengers. The OMVS have looked at the feasibility of creating a navigable channel 55 m (180 ft) in width between the small town of Ambidédi in Mali and Saint-Louis, a distance of 905 km (562 mi). It would give landlocked Mali a direct route to the Atlantic Ocean. (Full article...)
Credit: Llanta. Lithographer, Abbot P. David Boilat, author of text in his book Esquisses sénégalaises (1853). Source: cote : Gallica, bnf.fr - Réserve DT 549.2 B 67 M Atlas - planche n °5 - Notice n° : FRBNF38495418 - (Illustrations de Esquisses sénégalaises). Uploader to Wiki Commons Patricia.fidi More about Ndaté Yalla Mbodj...
Image 2The star Yoonir, symbol of the Universe in Serer religion and Cosmogony. The Serer people are one of the main ethnic groups of Senegal, and are also found in The Gambia and Mauritania. The peak of the star (top point) represents their Supreme Deity (Roog). The other four points represent the cardinal points of the Universe. The crossing of the lines ("bottom left" and "top right", and "top left" and "bottom right") pinpoints the axis of the Universe that all energies pass. The top point is "the point of departure and conclusion, the origin and the end". Among the Serers who cannot read or write the Latin alphabet, it is very common for them to sign official documents with the star of Yoonir, as the star also represents "good fortune and destiny". Yoonir also represents the Serer people and their precolonial Kingdom of Sine.
Image 4The rare of the Third Millennium Gate monument in Médina, Dakar, Senegal. On the left is the Seydou Nourou Tall mosque — named after Seydou Nourou Tall (1862 - 1980) — son of El Hadj Umar Tall. Pierre Atepa Goudiaby was the architect of the Millennium Gate.
Image 5The Senegambian stone circles (Wassu section) believed by archaeologists and historians to be built by the Serer people of the Senegambia region. The Senegambia stone circles are the largest concentration of stone circles seen anywhere in the world according to UNESCO. They are sacred burial grounds and a place of ritual offerings (kuur in Serer).
Image 6The African Renaissance Monument (French: Le Monument de la Renaissance Africaine) is a 49 meter tall bronze statue located on top of one of the twin hills known as Collines des Mamelles, outside Dakar, Senegal. Built overlooking the Atlantic Ocean in the Ouakam suburb, the statue was designed by the Senegalese architect Pierre Goudiaby after an idea presented by president Abdoulaye Wade and built by Mansudae Overseas Projects, a company from North Korea. Site preparation on top of the 100-meter high hill began in 2006, and construction of the bronze statue began 3 April 2008. Originally scheduled for completion in December 2009, delays stretched into early 2010, and the formal dedication occurred on 4 April 2010, Senegal's "National Day", commemorating the 50th anniversary of the country's independence from France. It is the tallest statue in Africa.
Image 7The flag of Senegal (French: le drapeau du Sénégal) is a tricolour consisting of three vertical green, yellow and red bands charged with a five-pointed green star at the centre. Adopted in 1960 to replace the flag of the Mali Federation, it has been the flag of the Republic of Senegal since the country gained independence that year. The present and previous flags were inspired by French Tricolour, which flew over Senegal until 1960.
Image 10The Serer of the Senegambia's representation of the universe. The three worlds : the invisible world, the terrestrial world and the nocturnal world.
And so, for outsiders, Africa today tends to conjure up images of nonstop civil wars, impoverished people, diabolical dictators, rampant disease, and seemingly endless despair. To be sure, it's a generalization, but it is nevertheless based on reality in some places. But then there's Senegal.
”
— Debbie Nevins, Elizabeth Berg, and Ruth Wan, Senegal, Cavendish Square Publishing, LLC (2018), p. 6 [1]
Souleymane Ndéné Ndiaye (born 6 August 1958) is a Senegalese politician who was Prime Minister of Senegal from 2009 to 2012. He was Minister of the Civil Service and Labour in 2005, Director of the Cabinet of the President of the Republic from 2005 to 2007, and Minister of State for the Maritime Economy from 2007 to 2009. A lawyer by profession, Ndiaye is the president of the National Union for the People (UNP). He was also Mayor of Guinguinéo. (Full article...)
Image 21« Plan de l'isle de Gorée avec ses deux forts et le combat que nous avons rendu le premier du mois de novembre 1677 » (from History of Senegal)
Image 22Land mines were widely used in the Casamance conflict between separatist rebels and the central government. (from Senegal)
Image 25Arrival of Blaise Diagne, Deputy for Senegal, High Commissioner of the Government for the recruitment of black troops in Dakar in March 1918 (from History of Senegal)
Image 32The Portuguese Empire was the first European power to colonize Senegal, beginning with the arrival of Dinis Dias in 1444 at Gorée Island and ending in 1888, when the Portuguese gave Ziguinchor to the French. (from Senegal)
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