The black continent was and remains one of the most romantic places in the world. Kenya, Zanzibar, South Africa, Morocco, Egypt annually attract thousands of travelers who want to see with their own eyes the life of the mainland, where the first traces of man were found. Perhaps the most famous island in Africa is Madagascar, glorified by famous sailors and modern filmmakers. But besides him, there are hundreds of wonderful islands off the coast of the continent. Today about the 10 most-most.
Sao Tome
The island in the Gulf of Guinea off the coast of West Africa was discovered by the Portuguese, who quickly adapted it for the cultivation of sugar cane. Today Sao Tome Is a typical resort island with a Portuguese-speaking population. Open here international Airport and water communication has been established. The island, which is of volcanic origin, has great recreational resources. A huge variety of tropical fruits grow here, and the sea is warm and very clean.
Sal
Sal Island - the territory of Cape Verde, the birthplace of the famous singer Cesaria Evora. The island owes its name to the Portuguese word "salt", which, most likely, describes perfectly clean beaches... In addition to relaxing by the sea, Sal can offer an environment for classes aquatic species sports, and great places for evening gatherings - there are bars, restaurants and cafes.
Moheli
Moheli or Mwali Is the third largest island in the Comoros archipelago. The island is sparsely populated, and most of it is nature reserve... This is a great place for snorkeling and watching animals: turtles, whales, etc.
Nosy B
Name Nosy B are the archipelago and its largest island, located in Indian Ocean... There is no fashionable resorts with expensive hotels and prestigious restaurants. However, there are a lot of tourists here. They are attracted by the rich underwater world and the indescribable paradise atmosphere of the place, created by the aromas of tropical flowers and the unhurried rhythm of life.
Djerba
Everyone who has ever been to Tunisia knows about this island. It is located off the coast of the state in northern Africa. What is famous for Djerbabecause of its stunning white sandy beaches. It is noteworthy that Berber is still spoken in Djerba, and in 1977 scenes of one of the episodes of the famous Star Wars saga were filmed here.
Reunion
This is not big Islandok is not popular destination at russian tourists... Those looking for the exotic usually visit Madagascar or picturesque Mauritius, and in between Reunion bypass. French is spoken on the island, and the local landscape strongly resembles Hawaii. Of the most interesting entertainment - walks in volcanic places and trips to waterfalls.
Lamu Island
This small island belonging to Kenya is famous for its main listed city. World heritage UNESCO. The oldest surviving Swahili settlement is located here. Tourism on the island is in its infancy, largely thanks to the intrigues of pirates who kidnap tourists. However, some are not deterred by the opportunity to be imprisoned, as cultural and natural resources Lamu do deserve some degree of risk.
Mauritius
Until the discovery by the Portuguese in the 16th century, the island was completely uninhabited. At first, it was used as a docking place for ships, and then began to colonize, in the process of which it changed its owners several times. Today it is a sovereign republic with a multicultural and multilingual population. Most of the island's population is engaged in agriculture and tourism. IN last years the island has become popular with Russian tourists who come here in search of pristine nature and authentic atmosphere.
Zanzibar
The island from the poem about Aibolit is located off the coast of Tanzania. Zanzibar has two main attractions - Stone city with its charming houses, old bazaars and courtyards and snow-white sandy beaches.
Praslin
This island of the Seychelles archipelago is the only place in the world where sea coconut grows. The island has a national natural Park, there are great diving spots, good restaurants and modest hotels. Beaches Pricelin - it is turquoise shallow water and fine, like flour, bright white sand.
Amorphophallus titanic | lat. Amorphophallus titanum
("Plates")
Kingdom - Plants;
Department - Angiosperms;
Class - Monocots;
Order - Ostuchtsvetny;
Family - Aroid;
Genus - Amorphophallus;
Species - Amorphophallus titanic.
The largest flower in the world is called Amorphophallus titanum.
This giant flower is native to the forests of Sumatra. Its dimensions are impressive - the height of the plant can be more than 2.5 meters, the length of the leaf is up to five meters.
The underground tuber is large and can reach fifty kilograms.
The largest flower in the world was discovered in 1878; it has several names - devil's tongue, cadaveric flower, Voodoo lily, snake palm, umbrella palm, leopard palm and others.
In the homeland of the plant, in Indonesia and Sumatra, it is called "Bunga bangkai", which literally means "corpse flower".
This amazing plant lives up to forty years, while it blooms only three to four times.
Flowering lasts up to two weeks, while the ear of the plant heats up to forty degrees. At the same time, the flower emits a strong "aroma" of rotten eggs and rotting fish, thereby attracting insects for pollination.
Initially, titanic amorphophallus grew only in the forests of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, but people who came there practically exterminated it. Now this rare flower is cultivated mainly in greenhouse conditions in the botanical gardens of the world. \\
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Socotra is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Because of its landscape, the island is called the most unique place on earth, there is no other place like it. It is enough to look at the photos to understand that the local nature is unique. We have already written in our issues about many unusual places, but Socotora goes far beyond the usual concepts of what is unusual placeSo, we continue our series of articles on interesting places planet earth. We have already talked about the most mysterious places on Earth, now we will visit the most unusual places. Socotra Island is unusual primarily for its landscape; it can be mistaken for a scenery for a film about some extraterrestrial civilization, but believe me, such beauty really exists. In addition, it is also one of the most isolated places on the planet. Because of this location, one third of Socotra's plants are endemic and cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. Imagine for a few seconds that a miracle happened and you suddenly woke up unexpectedly on this island. The first thing that comes to your mind is that you have gone mad, or ended up on another planet, or plunged into a completely different era in the history of the Earth. The latter option is most plausible in the case of Socotra, geographically isolated from Africa for 6 million years. The island abounds in extremely rare species of flora and fauna, of which there are about seven hundred. Despite the harsh, hot and dry climate, an amazing plant life flourishes here. Socotra Island is located 250 kilometers from Somalia and 340 from Yemen. Wide sandy beaches smoothly transition to a limestone plateau with many caves and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The name Socotra is translated from Sanskrit as the Island of Happiness. And one can quite agree with this - crazy botanical charm here side by side with silence, isolation and huge quiet beaches. Let's move on to describe some of the unique plants and animals of the island, which are protected here by natural isolation, and therefore some of them have been preserved in the same form as 20 million years ago. Let's start with dracena cinnibaris, a tree called Dragon's Blood, a source of valuable resin for varnishes, paints, and medicine. Dragon's blood resin was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers ... From above, they look like huge mushrooms: Socotra also has a Desert Rose (adenium obesium) - a plant that looks like a blooming elephant foot: Dorstenia Giga - does not require any soil at all and sinks its roots directly into bare rock: Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is the strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree (dendrosicyos socotranum). Despite the fact that the population of the island is approximately 40,000 inhabitants, The government of Yemen built the first roads here only 2 years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO, which declared Socotra a World Heritage Site. It is a quiet and peaceful enclave in a hectic world. If you decide
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Socotra is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Because of its landscape, the island is called the most unique place on earth, there is no other place like it. It is enough to look at the photos to understand that the local nature is unique. We have already written in our issues about many unusual places, but Socotor goes far beyond the usual concepts of what an unusual place is. So, we continue our series of articles about interesting places on planet Earth. We have already talked about the most mysterious places on Earth, now we will visit the most unusual places. The island of Socotra is unusual, first of all, for its landscape, it can be mistaken for a scenery for a movie about some extraterrestrial civilization, but believe me, such beauty exists in reality. In addition, it is also one of the most isolated places on the planet. Because of this location, one third of Socotra's plants are endemic and cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. Imagine for a few seconds that a miracle happened and you suddenly woke up unexpectedly on this island. The first thing that comes to your mind is that you have gone mad, or ended up on another planet, or plunged into a completely different era in the history of the Earth. The latter option is most plausible in the case of Socotra, geographically isolated from Africa for 6 million years. The island abounds in extremely rare species of flora and fauna, of which there are about seven hundred. Despite the harsh, hot and dry climate, an amazing plant life flourishes here. Socotra Island is located 250 kilometers from Somalia and 340 kilometers from Yemen. Wide sandy beaches smoothly transition to a limestone plateau with many caves and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The name Socotra is translated from Sanskrit as the Island of Happiness. And one can quite agree with this - crazy botanical charm here side by side with silence, isolation and huge quiet beaches. Let's move on to describe some of the unique plants and animals of the island, which are protected here by natural isolation, and therefore some of them have been preserved in the same form as 20 million years ago. Let's start with dracena cinnibaris, a tree called Dragon's Blood, a source of valuable resin for varnishes, paints, and medicine. Dragon's blood resin was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers ... From above, they look like huge mushrooms: Socotra also has a Desert Rose (adenium obesium) - a plant that looks like a blooming elephant foot: Dorstenia Giga - does not require any soil and plunges its roots directly into bare rock: Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is the strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree (dendrosicyos socotranum). Despite the population of the island is approximately 40,000 inhabitants, the Yemeni government built the first roads here only 2 years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO, which declared Socotra a World Heritage Site. It is a quiet and peaceful enclave in a hectic world. If you decide
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Socotra is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Because of its landscape, the island is called the most unique place on earth, there is no other place like it. It is enough to look at the photos to understand that the local nature is unique. We have already written in our issues about many unusual places, but Socotor goes far beyond the usual concepts of what an unusual place is. So, we continue our series of articles about interesting places on planet Earth. We have already talked about the most mysterious places on Earth, now we will visit the most unusual places. The island of Socotra is unusual, first of all, for its landscape, it can be mistaken for a scenery for a movie about some extraterrestrial civilization, but believe me, such beauty exists in reality. In addition, it is also one of the most isolated places on the planet. Because of this location, one third of Socotra's plants are endemic and cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. Imagine for a few seconds that a miracle happened and you suddenly woke up unexpectedly on this island. The first thing that comes to your mind is that you have gone mad, or ended up on another planet, or plunged into a completely different era in the history of the Earth. The latter option is most plausible in the case of Socotra, geographically isolated from Africa for 6 million years. The island abounds in extremely rare species of flora and fauna, of which there are about seven hundred. Despite the harsh, hot and dry climate, an amazing plant life flourishes here. Socotra Island is located 250 kilometers from Somalia and 340 kilometers from Yemen. Wide sandy beaches smoothly transition to a limestone plateau with many caves and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The name Socotra is translated from Sanskrit as the Island of Happiness. And one can quite agree with this - crazy botanical charm here side by side with silence, isolation and huge quiet beaches. Let's move on to describe some of the unique plants and animals of the island, which are protected here by natural isolation, and therefore some of them have been preserved in the same form as 20 million years ago. Let's start with dracena cinnibaris, a tree called Dragon's Blood, a source of valuable resin for varnishes, paints, and medicine. Dragon's blood resin was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers ... From above, they look like huge mushrooms: Socotra also has a Desert Rose (adenium obesium) - a plant that looks like a blooming elephant foot: Dorstenia Giga - does not require any soil and plunges its roots directly into bare rock: Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is the strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree (dendrosicyos socotranum). Despite the population of the island is approximately 40,000 inhabitants, the Yemeni government built the first roads here only 2 years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO, which declared Socotra a World Heritage Site. It is a quiet and peaceful enclave in a hectic world. If you decide
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Socotra is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Because of its landscape, the island is called the most unique place on earth, there is no other place like it. It is enough to look at the photos to understand that the local nature is unique. We have already written in our issues about many unusual places, but Socotor goes far beyond the usual concepts of what an unusual place is. So, we continue our series of articles about interesting places on planet Earth. We have already talked about the most mysterious places on Earth, now we will visit the most unusual places. The island of Socotra is unusual, first of all, for its landscape, it can be mistaken for a scenery for a movie about some extraterrestrial civilization, but believe me, such beauty exists in reality. In addition, it is also one of the most isolated places on the planet. Because of this location, one third of Socotra's plants are endemic and cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. Imagine for a few seconds that a miracle happened and you suddenly woke up unexpectedly on this island. The first thing that comes to your mind is that you have gone mad, or ended up on another planet, or plunged into a completely different era in the history of the Earth. The latter option is most plausible in the case of Socotra, geographically isolated from Africa for 6 million years. The island abounds in extremely rare species of flora and fauna, of which there are about seven hundred. Despite the harsh, hot and dry climate, an amazing plant life flourishes here. Socotra Island is located 250 kilometers from Somalia and 340 kilometers from Yemen. Wide sandy beaches smoothly transition to a limestone plateau with many caves and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The name Socotra is translated from Sanskrit as the Island of Happiness. And one can quite agree with this - crazy botanical charm here side by side with silence, isolation and huge quiet beaches. Let's move on to describe some of the unique plants and animals of the island, which are protected here by natural isolation, and therefore some of them have been preserved in the same form as 20 million years ago. Let's start with dracena cinnibaris, a tree called Dragon's Blood, a source of valuable resin for varnishes, paints, and medicine. Dragon's blood resin was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers ... From above, they look like huge mushrooms: Socotra also has a Desert Rose (adenium obesium) - a plant that looks like a blooming elephant foot: Dorstenia Giga - does not require any soil and plunges its roots directly into bare rock: Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is the strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree (dendrosicyos socotranum). Despite the population of the island is approximately 40,000 inhabitants, the Yemeni government built the first roads here only 2 years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO, which declared Socotra a World Heritage Site. It is a quiet and peaceful enclave in a hectic world. If you decide
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Socotra is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Because of its landscape, the island is called the most unique place on earth, there is no other place like it. It is enough to look at the photos to understand that the local nature is unique. We have already written in our issues about many unusual places, but Socotor goes far beyond the usual concepts of what an unusual place is. So, we continue our series of articles about interesting places on planet Earth. We have already talked about the most mysterious places on Earth, now we will visit the most unusual places. The island of Socotra is unusual, first of all, for its landscape, it can be mistaken for a scenery for a movie about some extraterrestrial civilization, but believe me, such beauty exists in reality. In addition, it is also one of the most isolated places on the planet. Because of this location, one third of Socotra's plants are endemic and cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. Imagine for a few seconds that a miracle happened and you suddenly woke up unexpectedly on this island. The first thing that comes to your mind is that you have gone mad, or ended up on another planet, or plunged into a completely different era in the history of the Earth. The latter option is most plausible in the case of Socotra, geographically isolated from Africa for 6 million years. The island abounds in extremely rare species of flora and fauna, of which there are about seven hundred. Despite the harsh, hot and dry climate, an amazing plant life flourishes here. Socotra Island is located 250 kilometers from Somalia and 340 kilometers from Yemen. Wide sandy beaches smoothly transition to a limestone plateau with many caves and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The name Socotra is translated from Sanskrit as the Island of Happiness. And one can quite agree with this - crazy botanical charm here side by side with silence, isolation and huge quiet beaches. Let's move on to describe some of the unique plants and animals of the island, which are protected here by natural isolation, and therefore some of them have been preserved in the same form as 20 million years ago. Let's start with dracena cinnibaris, a tree called Dragon's Blood, a source of valuable resin for varnishes, paints, and medicine. Dragon's blood resin was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers ... From above, they look like huge mushrooms: Socotra also has a Desert Rose (adenium obesium) - a plant that looks like a blooming elephant foot: Dorstenia Giga - does not require any soil and plunges its roots directly into bare rock: Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is the strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree (dendrosicyos socotranum). Despite the population of the island is approximately 40,000 inhabitants, the Yemeni government built the first roads here only 2 years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO, which declared Socotra a World Heritage Site. It is a quiet and peaceful enclave in a hectic world. If you decide
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Socotra is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Because of its landscape, the island is called the most unique place on earth, there is no other place like it. It is enough to look at the photos to understand that the local nature is unique. We have already written in our issues about many unusual places, but Socotor goes far beyond the usual concepts of what an unusual place is. So, we continue our series of articles about interesting places on planet Earth. We have already talked about the most mysterious places on Earth, now we will visit the most unusual places. The island of Socotra is unusual, first of all, for its landscape, it can be mistaken for a scenery for a movie about some extraterrestrial civilization, but believe me, such beauty exists in reality. In addition, it is also one of the most isolated places on the planet. Because of this location, one third of Socotra's plants are endemic and cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. Imagine for a few seconds that a miracle happened and you suddenly woke up unexpectedly on this island. The first thing that comes to your mind is that you have gone mad, or ended up on another planet, or plunged into a completely different era in the history of the Earth. The latter option is most plausible in the case of Socotra, geographically isolated from Africa for 6 million years. The island abounds in extremely rare species of flora and fauna, of which there are about seven hundred. Despite the harsh, hot and dry climate, an amazing plant life flourishes here. Socotra Island is located 250 kilometers from Somalia and 340 kilometers from Yemen. Wide sandy beaches smoothly transition to a limestone plateau with many caves and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The name Socotra is translated from Sanskrit as the Island of Happiness. And one can quite agree with this - crazy botanical charm here side by side with silence, isolation and huge quiet beaches. Let's move on to describe some of the unique plants and animals of the island, which are protected here by natural isolation, and therefore some of them have been preserved in the same form as 20 million years ago. Let's start with dracena cinnibaris, a tree called Dragon's Blood, a source of valuable resin for varnishes, paints, and medicine. Dragon's blood resin was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers ... From above, they look like huge mushrooms: Socotra also has a Desert Rose (adenium obesium) - a plant that looks like a blooming elephant foot: Dorstenia Giga - does not require any soil and plunges its roots directly into bare rock: Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is the strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree (dendrosicyos socotranum). Despite the population of the island is approximately 40,000 inhabitants, the Yemeni government built the first roads here only 2 years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO, which declared Socotra a World Heritage Site. It is a quiet and peaceful enclave in a hectic world. If you decide
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Socotra is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Because of its landscape, the island is called the most unique place on earth, there is no other place like it. It is enough to look at the photos to understand that the local nature is unique. We have already written in our issues about many unusual places, but Socotor goes far beyond the usual concepts of what an unusual place is. So, we continue our series of articles about interesting places on planet Earth. We have already talked about the most mysterious places on Earth, now we will visit the most unusual places. The island of Socotra is unusual, first of all, for its landscape, it can be mistaken for a scenery for a movie about some extraterrestrial civilization, but believe me, such beauty exists in reality. In addition, it is also one of the most isolated places on the planet. Because of this location, one third of Socotra's plants are endemic and cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. Imagine for a few seconds that a miracle happened and you suddenly woke up unexpectedly on this island. The first thing that comes to your mind is that you have gone mad, or ended up on another planet, or plunged into a completely different era in the history of the Earth. The latter option is most plausible in the case of Socotra, geographically isolated from Africa for 6 million years. The island abounds in extremely rare species of flora and fauna, of which there are about seven hundred. Despite the harsh, hot and dry climate, an amazing plant life flourishes here. Socotra Island is located 250 kilometers from Somalia and 340 kilometers from Yemen. Wide sandy beaches smoothly transition to a limestone plateau with many caves and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The name Socotra is translated from Sanskrit as the Island of Happiness. And one can quite agree with this - crazy botanical charm here side by side with silence, isolation and huge quiet beaches. Let's move on to describe some of the unique plants and animals of the island, which are protected here by natural isolation, and therefore some of them have been preserved in the same form as 20 million years ago. Let's start with dracena cinnibaris, a tree called Dragon's Blood, a source of valuable resin for varnishes, paints, and medicine. Dragon's blood resin was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers ... From above, they look like huge mushrooms: Socotra also has a Desert Rose (adenium obesium) - a plant that looks like a blooming elephant foot: Dorstenia Giga - does not require any soil and plunges its roots directly into bare rock: Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is the strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree (dendrosicyos socotranum). Despite the population of the island is approximately 40,000 inhabitants, the Yemeni government built the first roads here only 2 years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO, which declared Socotra a World Heritage Site. It is a quiet and peaceful enclave in a hectic world. If you decide
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Ambergris Cay (Belize) is the largest island of nearly two hundred islands in Belize and is a major attraction for many travelers, especially scuba divers. Kei means "island", and the name "Ambergris" comes from the large chunks of amber (a waste product of migratory whales) that used to wash on the local coast.
Tourist popularity came to the island relatively recently, so the nature here has preserved its pristine beauty, practically untouched by civilization.
The coastline of the island is protected by the Barrier Reef, without which this small piece of land in the ocean could not exist. The Barrier Reef serves as a natural breakwater and of course the biggest attraction. The reef is located about two kilometers from the coast of the island. The amazingly clear water separating the island from the reef provides countless opportunities for diving and snorkelling enthusiasts. Diving into the dazzling turquoise ocean waters is a fabulous journey through colorful coral canyons and underwater caves, observing the life of marine life.
Sao Tome
Sao Tome Island is the largest island in Sao Tome and Principe County. This island, ()
Sao Tome
Sao Tome Island is the largest island in Sao Tome and Principe County. This island, locals which speaks Portuguese, is bordered by the Equator ( west Coast Central Africa). There is never a large influx of tourists, so travelers can enjoy a secluded getaway.
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The largest island in Africa is, of course, Madagascar.
Madagascar is not only the largest African island, but also one of the most large islands the world - the fourth largest. The French called this island "Great" for its enormous size. It separated from the African continent more than 100 million years ago. And it seems, according to the testimony of some scientists, Madagascar is still moving away from the continent at an incredible speed - as much as 2 centimeters per century. The island is located in the Indian Ocean, near east coast Africa, and from which it is separated by the Mozambique Channel. The climate on most of the island is tropical, only in the extreme south of the island is subtropical. The length of the island is about 1600 kilometers, the width is over 600 kilometers, the area is 587 040 square kilometers - this is about twenty Moscow regions or the territories of France and Belgium taken together. Highest point the island is, on this moment not active, the volcano Marumukutru, whose height is 2876 meters, it is located in the Tsaratanana mountain range, in the north of the island. The Anjafi mountain plateau occupies central part islands. The mountainous terrain of the island is up to 2600 meters high, rich in minerals and metals: copper, iron, gold; the vast coastal plains are swampy, and some of them are very fertile.
Animal and vegetable world Madagascar is quite unique - it contains 5 percent of the plant and animal species of the world and 80 percent of them exist only on this african island... Because of this uniqueness, Madagascar is often referred to as "the small continent".
The state of the same name is located in Madagascar, with the capital in the city of Antananarivo, which occupies the territory of the entire island. The state was formed on June 26, 1960, declaring its independence from France. The area is 587,041 square kilometers - forty-fifth in the world. Population 20,042,552, 2008 estimate, 58th in the world.
Earlier, there were several states on the island, but the most powerful and developed among them was the state of Imerina, founded by the Merinan people. The heyday of Imerin dates back to the 19th century. The name of this state indicates the place where it was located. Merina is translated into Russian as "higher". The kingdom was located on the High Plateau of Madagascar. At the beginning of the 16th century Tananarive was founded - "the city of a thousand", which received such a name in memory of the many thousands of troops who annexed the land on which this city was built to the kingdom. The great ruler of Ramboazalam, who ruled at the end of the 18th century, significantly expanded the boundaries of the kingdom, uniting under his rule many scattered early tribes. It is Rambozalame who owns the famous formula of a single Madagascar: "Our border is the sea." And soon the unification of the island took place, a state "from sea to sea" was created, which occupied the territory of the entire island. August 10, 1500 Portuguese Diego Diaz was the very first of the Europeans to “discover” Madagascar. Soon after him, the French, British, Dutch reached out to the island.
In the 19th century, the state of Imerina achieved quite significant success. Even universal compulsory education was introduced. The level of education of the population in the country increased so much that the royal court dismissed the heralds and hung their decrees on the walls of houses. Almost everyone could read them. The Malagasy state continued to develop, the first factories and metallurgical factories appeared on the island, the development of minerals began, periodicals were born, a network of medical institutions was created (in 1870 alone, more than 200 thousand people became their visitors). In 1876 - 6 years earlier than in France - free education was introduced in Madagascar. But despite all this, Imerina could not withstand the onslaught of one of the largest imperialist powers. Relying on military force and using divisions between the tribes, France annexed the island in 1896. Here we can see the fact that before the emergence of European "civilizers" on the island there was a highly developed state in which there already existed what was "super civilized" and "supercultural" far away - free and universal education, free medical care and almost universal literacy. The only thing that the "civilized" Europeans have clearly surpassed the "wild" African aborigines is the military force.
The main population of the island is Malagasy. They speak Malagasy. This language is also called Malgash, and it belongs to the Indonesian group of the Austronesian language family.
The Malagasy language has nothing to do with the surrounding African languages. It is the most western of the Malay-Polynesian languages \u200b\u200bbelonging to the Austronesian family. The Malagasy language is related to the languages \u200b\u200bof Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. The closest to it are the languages \u200b\u200bspoken on the island of Borneo. The basic vocabulary of the Malgash language is 90% identical to the vocabulary of the Maanyan language in the Barito River region of southern Borneo. This can only mean one thing, Madagascar was inhabited by people from those places. The reason for this colonization is not known for certain. Later settlers from distant borneo islands mingled with Arabs and East Africans. In Malagasy there are loanwords from Bantu, Swahili and Arabic, as well as from French and English. The language has a written literature since the 15th century and a rich tradition of oral poetry and legends.
Comorians, Chinese, Indians, Creoles, French and Pakistanis make up a fairly small percentage of the island's population.
52 percent of the population are adherents of local ancient traditional beliefs - this is animalism, fetishism, the cult of ancestors, the forces of nature and more, 41 percent are Christians, of which about half are Catholics and half are Protestants, 7 percent are Sunni Muslims - immigrants from Pakistan and the Comoros ... The beginning of the spread of Christianity is the 17th century. Most Christians at the same time profess local traditional beliefs.
From all of the above, I can conclude that the island of Madagascar is a rather interesting and unusual place of our globe, with unique flora and fauna, and it is inhabited by a people with a peculiar history and culture. In general, this is the place that is in no way inferior to the now popular places of tourism and recreation and is worth visiting. Moreover, since March 1, 2010, the Madagascar authorities have canceled visa fees for all tourists from Russia who come to the island for up to thirty days.
Madagascar - an island of diversity of life and landscape
The largest island in Africa is Madagascar, it is separate from the continent and is divided with it by the Mozambique Strait. Madagascar is considered the fourth largest island on our planet. The Kingdom of Madagascar became a French colony in 1896, but regained full independence in 1960. The country is divided into six small provinces of Tuliara, Anceranana, Fianarantsoa, \u200b\u200bTuamasina, Mahajanga, and Antananarivo.
Madagascar is considered a real paradise for connoisseurs of true exotic: a huge ocean, deserts, mountains, lakes, waterfalls, impenetrable jungle and woodlands with baobabs and palm trees. But the most important thing that makes Madagascar especially graceful is the uncommon fauna that is not found anywhere. There are no large mammals in Madagascar, except for the domestic animals once brought by Europeans, but different types of small insectivores and lemurs live here.
150,000 unique species of animals and plants
There is an abundance of reptiles in Madagascar, including the famous for their size, crocodiles, chameleons and lizards. Out of more than 200,000 species of animals and plants, more than 150,000 are found nowhere else in the world (this is 5% of the total species abundance of flora and fauna on Earth).
That is why there are so many nature reserves and national parks in Madagascar: Berenti, Marudzezi, Bemaraha, Mount Ambr, Tsimanampetsutsa, Betampuni, Andasibe, Ankarafantsika, Lukuba, Tsaratanana.
3 climatic zones
Madagascar is located in 3 climatic zones: the climate of the east coast is tropical monsoon, temperate maritime; in central areawhere there are highlands and deserts - the climate is arid. As a rule, the annual rainfall is 140 cm for the central highlands (in this case, for the capital of the country), 350 cm for the whole south coast, 32 cm in the south of the island.
The area of \u200b\u200bthe state of Madagascar is 587 thousand square meters. km. Population - 19.5 million people (data for 2010). The island's population is growing very quickly - the annual growth rate is about 3% (13th place in this indicator in the world). The capital of Madagascar is the city of Antananarivo. The form of government is a parliamentary republic.
Madagascar is the most large island off the coast of Africa and throughout the Indian Ocean. Very often it is called a kind of miniature continent. This is due to the fact that its flora and fauna are very different from those that exist on the African continent. Many of their representatives are found only here. Moreover, the local landscapes are unique and are not repeated anywhere else on the planet. Several millennia ago, it was part of the huge mainland known as Gondwana, which split over time. As a result, Africa, Antarctica and Madagascar itself were formed. Now the largest island in Africa is separated from the main continent by the Mozambique Channel, which is about 300 kilometers wide.
The local landscape is diverse. Most of the territory is a plateau. In some regions, it rises above sea level to a height of 2876 meters. Not far from the city of Antananarivo are the Ankaratro mountains, the maximum height of which is 2643 meters. Africa's largest island also boasts of its fertile plains. They are found on the west and east coasts. All local rivers flow into and flow from east to west. Although there are not many of them, they annually attract a huge number of tourists with the abundance of their waterfalls and picturesque landscapes.
The best time to visit the largest island in Africa is the period from March to April. It is recommended to travel to the central part from November to March. This is due to the specifics of the local climate. The fact is that there are wet and dry seasons here. On east coast there are almost always showers, and strong trade winds lead to the fact that rain streams fly almost horizontally, so no canopies and umbrellas save them. The average winter temperature is 16, and the summer temperature is 34 degrees.
Democratic, which was formed as a result of a military coup in 1975, occupies not only this large island of Africa, but also several small ones located nearby. The area of \u200b\u200bthe country is just over 587 thousand km 2. The population of the state exceeds 14 million people. Most of them live in the most large cities, including the aforementioned Antananarivo, as well as Tulear, Tuamasina, Mahajanga, Fianarantsoa and others. There are two official languages \u200b\u200bin the republic - French and gelding (one of the dialects of Malagasy). The country is headed by the president, and the head of government is the prime minister.
The first European to visit the largest on August 10, 1500 was Portuguese Diego Diaz. In the new lands, travelers were engaged in robbery and murder, so as soon as they set off towards India, the local population breathed a sigh of relief. Much to his regret, six years later the next European expedition appeared on the island. Its representatives did not differ much from their predecessors, so most of the adult inhabitants of Madagascar were destined to become slaves. IN different time here the Portuguese, French and British tried to gain a foothold. In 1896, the island became entitled to self-government in 1958, and the declaration of independence took place in 1960.
Currently Madagascar is a member of many world organizations, including the IMF, UN, WHO and others.
