Spanning 2,381,741 square kilometres (919,595 sq mi), Algeria is the world'stenth-largest country by area and thelargest in Africa.[16] It has a semi-arid climate, with theSahara desert dominating most of the territory except for itsfertile and mountainous north, where most of the population is concentrated. With a population of 47 million, Algeria is thetenth-most populous country in Africa, and the32nd-most populous in the world. Algeria's official languages areArabic andTamazight; the vast majority of the population speak theAlgerian dialect of Arabic.French is used in media, education, and certain administrative matters, but has no official status. Most Algerians areArabs, withBerbers forming a sizeable minority.Sunni Islam is the official religion and practised by 99 percent of the population.[17]
Different forms of the name Algeria include:Arabic:الجزائر,romanised: al-Jazāʾir,Algerian Arabic:دزاير,romanised: dzāyer,French:l'Algérie. The country's full name is officially thePeople's Democratic Republic of Algeria[18] (Arabic:الجمهورية الجزائرية الديمقراطية الشعبية,romanised: al-Jumhūriyah al-Jazāʾiriyah ad-Dīmuqrāṭiyah ash‑Shaʿbiyah; French:République algérienne démocratique et populaire,abbr. RADP;BerberTifinagh:ⵜⴰⴳⴷⵓⴷⴰ ⵜⴰⵣⵣⴰⵢⵔⵉⵜ ⵜⴰⵎⴰⴳⴷⴰⵢⵜ ⵜⴰⵖⴻⵔⴼⴰⵏⵜ,[19][20][g]Berber Latin alphabet:Tagduda tazzayrit tamagdayt taɣerfant[22]).
Etymology
Algeria's name derives from the city ofAlgiers, which in turn derives from the Arabical-Jazāʾir (الجزائر, 'the islands'), referring to four small islands off its coast,[23] a truncated form of the olderJazāʾir Banī Mazghanna (جزائر بني مزغنة, 'islands of Bani Mazghanna').[24][25][page needed][26][page needed] The name was given byBuluggin ibn Ziri after he established the city on the ruins of thePhoenician city ofIcosium in 950.[27] It was employed by medieval geographers such asMuhammad al-Idrisi andYaqut al-Hamawi.
Algeria took its name from the Regency of Algeria[28][29][30] or Regency of Algiers,[31] when Ottoman rule was established in the centralMaghreb in early 16th century. This period saw the installation of a political and administrative organisation which participated in the establishment of theWatan el djazâïr (وطن الجزائر, 'country of Algiers') and the definition of its borders with its neighbouring entities on the east and west.[32] TheOttoman Turks who settled in Algeria referred both to themselves[33][34][35] and the peoples as "Algerians".[36][28] Acting as a centralmilitary andpolitical authority in the regency, the Ottoman Turks shaped the modernpolitical identity of Algeria as a state possessing all the attributes ofsovereign independence, despite still being nominally subject to theOttoman sultan.[37][38] Algerian nationalist, historian and statesmanAhmed Tewfik El Madani regarded the regency as the "first Algerian state" and the "Algerian Ottoman republic".[34][39][40]
Around ~1.8-million-year-old stone artifacts from Ain Hanech (Algeria) were considered to represent the oldest archaeological materials in North Africa.[41] Stone artifacts and cut-marked bones that were excavated from two nearby deposits at Ain Boucherit are estimated to be ~1.9 million years old, and even older stone artifacts to be as old as ~2.4 million years.[41] Hence, the Ain Boucherit evidence shows that ancestral hominins inhabited the Mediterranean fringe in northern Africa much earlier than previously thought. The evidence strongly argues for early dispersal of stone tool manufacture and use from East Africa, or a possible multiple-origin scenario of stone technology in both East and North Africa.
The earliest blade industries in North Africa are calledIberomaurusian (located mainly in theOran region). This industry appears to have spread throughout the coastal regions of theMaghreb between 15,000 and 10,000 BC.Neolithic civilisation (animal domestication and agriculture) developed in the Saharan and Mediterranean Maghreb perhaps as early as 11,000 BC[45] or as late as between 6000 and 2000 BC. This life, richly depicted in theTassili n'Ajjer paintings, predominated in Algeria until the classical period. The mixture of peoples of North Africa coalesced eventually into a distinct native population that came to be calledBerbers, who are the indigenous peoples of northern Africa.[46]
From their principal center of power atCarthage, theCarthaginians expanded and established small settlements along the North African coast; by 600 BC, aPhoenician presence existed atTipasa, east ofCherchell,Hippo Regius (modernAnnaba) andRusicade (modernSkikda). These settlements served as market towns as well as anchorages.
As Carthaginian power grew, its impact on the indigenous population increased dramatically. Berber civilisation was already at a stage in which agriculture, manufacturing, trade, and political organisation supported several states. Trade links between Carthage and the Berbers in the interior grew, but territorial expansion also resulted in the enslavement or military recruitment of some Berbers and in the extraction of tribute from others.
By the early 4th century BC, The north is divided into twoMasaesyli kingdom in west led bySyphax andMassylii kingdom in east. Berbers formed the single largest element of the Carthaginian army. In theRevolt of the Mercenaries, Berber soldiers rebelled from 241 to 238 BC after being unpaid following the defeat of Carthage in theFirst Punic War.[47] They succeeded in obtaining control of much of Carthage's North African territory, and they minted coins bearing the name Libyan, used in Greek to describe natives of North Africa. The Carthaginian state declined because of successive defeats by the Romans in thePunic Wars.[48]
In 146 BC, the city ofCarthage was destroyed. As Carthaginian power waned, the influence of Berber leaders in the hinterland grew. By the 2nd century BC, several large but loosely administered Berber kingdoms had emerged. Two of them were established inNumidia, behind the coastal areas controlled by Carthage. West of Numidia layMauretania, which extended across theMoulouya River in modern-dayMorocco to the Atlantic Ocean. The high point of Berber civilisation, unequalled until the coming of theAlmohads andAlmoravids more than a millennium later, was reached during the reign ofMasinissa in the 2nd century BC.
After Masinissa's death in 148 BC, the Berber kingdoms were divided and reunited several times. Masinissa's line survived until 24 AD, when the remaining Berber territory was annexed to theRoman Empire.
Roman inscription from Agueneb in the province ofLaghouat
For several centuries Algeria was ruled by the Romans, who founded many colonies in the region. Algeria is home to the second-largest number of Roman sites and remains after Italy. Rome, after getting rid of its powerful rival Carthage in the year 146 BC, decided a century later to include Numidia to become the new master of North Africa. They built more than 500 cities.[49] Like the rest of North Africa, Algeria was one of the breadbaskets of the empire, exporting cereals and other agricultural products.Saint Augustine was the bishop ofHippo Regius (modern-day Annaba, Algeria), located in the Roman province ofAfrica. The GermanicVandals ofGeiseric moved into North Africa in 429, and by 435 controlled coastal Numidia.[50]When the Byzantines arrived,Leptis Magna was abandoned and the Msellata region was occupied by the indigenousLaguatan who facilitated anAmazigh political, military and cultural revival.[50][51] During the rule of the Romans, Byzantines, Vandals, Carthaginians, and Ottomans the Berber people were one of the few in North Africa who remained independent.[52][53][54][55] The Berber people were so resistant that even during the Muslim conquest of North Africa they still had control and possession over their mountains.[56][57]
After negligible resistance from the locals,MuslimArabs of theUmayyad Caliphate conquered Algeria in the early 8th century.
Large numbers of the indigenous Berber people converted to Islam. Christians, Berber and Latin speakers remained in the great majority in Tunisia until the end of the 9th century and Muslims only became a vast majority some time in the 10th.[64] After the fall of the Umayyad Caliphate, numerous local dynasties emerged, including theRustamids,Aghlabids,Fatimids,Zirids,Hammadids,Almoravids,Almohads and theZayyanids. The Christians left in three waves: after the initial conquest, in the 10th century and the 11th. The last were evacuated toSicily by theNormans and the few remaining died out in the 14th century.[64]
Fatimid Caliphate, aShiaIsmaili dynasty that ruled much of North Africa, c. 960–1100Dihya memorial inKhenchela, Algeria
During theMiddle Ages, North Africa was home to the Jewish scholarJudah ibn Kuraishi, the first grammarian to write about Semitic and Berber languages, as well as theSufi mastersSidi Boumediene (Abu Madyan) andSidi El Houari, and the EmirsAbd Al Mu'min andYāghmūrasen. It was during this time that theFatimids or children ofFatima, daughter ofMuhammad, came to theMaghreb. These "Fatimids" went on to found a long lasting dynasty stretching across the Maghreb,Hejaz and theLevant, boasting a secular inner government, as well as a powerful army and navy, made up primarily ofArabs andLevantines extending from Algeria to their capital state ofCairo. TheFatimid caliphate began to collapse when its governors theZirids seceded. To punish them the Fatimids sent the ArabBanu Hilal andBanu Sulaym against them. The resultant war is recounted in the epicTāghribāt. In Al-Tāghrībāt the Amazigh Zirid HeroKhālīfā Al-Zānatī asks daily, for duels, to defeat the Hilalan heroĀbu Zayd al-Hilalī and many other Arab knights in a string of victories. TheZirids, however, were ultimately defeated ushering in an adoption of Arab customs and culture. The indigenousAmazigh tribes, however, remained largely independent, and depending on tribe, location and time controlled varying parts of the Maghreb, at times unifying it (as under the Fatimids). The Fatimid Islamic state, also known asFatimid Caliphate made an Islamic empire that included North Africa, Sicily,Palestine,Jordan,Lebanon,Syria,Egypt, theRed Sea coast of Africa, Tihamah,Hejaz andYemen.[65][66][67] Caliphates from Northern Africa traded with the other empires of their time, as well as forming part of a confederated support and trade network with other Islamic states during the Islamic Era.
TheBerber people historically consisted of several tribes. The two main branches were the Botr and Barnès tribes, who were divided into tribes, and again into sub-tribes. Each region of the Maghreb contained several tribes (for example,Sanhadja,Houara,Zenata,Masmouda,Kutama, Awarba, andBerghwata). All these tribes made independent territorial decisions.[68]
SeveralAmazigh dynasties emerged during the Middle Ages in the Maghreb and other nearby lands.Ibn Khaldun provides a table summarising the Amazigh dynasties of the Maghreb region, theZirid,Ifranid,Maghrawa,Almoravid,Hammadid,Almohad,Merinid,Abdalwadid,Wattasid,Meknassa andHafsid dynasties.[69] Both of theHammadid andZirid empires as well as theFatimids established their rule in all of the Maghreb countries. TheZirids ruled land in what is now Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Libya, Spain, Malta and Italy. TheHammadids captured and held important regions such as Ouargla, Constantine, Sfax, Susa, Algiers, Tripoli and Fez establishing their rule in every country in the Maghreb region.[70][71][72] TheFatimids which was created and established by the Kutama Berbers[73][74] conquered all of North Africa as well as Sicily and parts of the Middle East.
Following the Berber revolt numerous independent states emerged across the Maghreb. In Algeria theRustamid Kingdom was established. The Rustamid realm stretched from Tafilalt in Morocco to the Nafusa mountains in Libya including south, central and western Tunisia therefore including territory in all of the modern day Maghreb countries, in the south the Rustamid realm expanded to the modern borders ofMali and included territory inMauritania.[75][76][77]
Once extending their control over all of the Maghreb, part of Spain[78] and briefly over Sicily,[79] originating from modern Algeria, theZirids only controlled modernIfriqiya by the 11th century. The Zirids recognised nominal suzerainty of the Fatimid caliphs of Cairo.El Mu'izz the Zirid ruler decided to end this recognition and declared his independence.[80][81] The Zirids also fought against other Zenata Kingdoms, for example theMaghrawa, a Berber dynasty originating from Algeria and which at one point was a dominant power in the Maghreb ruling over much of Morocco and western Algeria including Fez,Sijilmasa,Aghmat,Oujda, most of the Sous and Draa and reaching as far as M'sila and the Zab in Algeria.[82][83][84][85]
As the Fatimid state was at the time too weak to attempt a direct invasion, they found another means of revenge. Between theNile and theRed Sea were livingBedouin nomad tribes expelled fromArabia for their disruption and turbulency. TheBanu Hilal and theBanu Sulaym for example, who regularly disrupted farmers in theNile Valley since the nomads would often loot their farms. The thenFatimid vizier decided to destroy what he could not control, and broke a deal with the chiefs of these Bedouin tribes.[86] The Fatimids even gave them money to leave.
Whole tribes set off with women, children, elders, animals and camping equipment. Some stopped on the way, especially inCyrenaica, where they are still one of the essential elements of the settlement but most arrived inIfriqiya by theGabes region, arriving 1051.[87] TheZirid ruler tried to stop this rising tide, but with each encounter, the last under the walls ofKairouan, his troops were defeated and the Arabs remained masters of the battlefield. The Arabs usually did not take control over the cities, instead looting them and destroying them.[81]
The invasion kept going, and in 1057 the Arabs spread on the high plains ofConstantine where they encircled theQalaa of Banu Hammad (capital of theHammadid Emirate), as they had done in Kairouan a few decades ago. From there they gradually gained the upperAlgiers andOran plains. Some of these territories were forcibly taken back by theAlmohads in the second half of the 12th century. The influx ofBedouin tribes was a major factor in the linguistic, culturalArabisation of the Maghreb and in the spread ofnomadism in areas where agriculture had previously been dominant.[88]Ibn Khaldun noted that the lands ravaged by theBanu Hilal tribes had become completely arid desert.[89]
TheAlmohads originating from modern day Morocco, although founded by a man originating from modern day Algeria[90] known asAbd al-Mu'min would soon take control over the Maghreb. During the time of the Almohad DynastyAbd al-Mu'min's tribe, the Koumïa, were the main supporters of the throne and the most important body of the empire.[91] Defeating the weakeningAlmoravid Empire and taking control over Morocco in 1147,[92] they pushed into Algeria in 1152, taking control over Tlemcen, Oran, and Algiers,[93] wrestling control from the Hilian Arabs, and by the same year they defeated Hammadids who controlled Eastern Algeria.[93]
Following their decisive defeat at theBattle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212, the Almohads began to collapse. In 1235, the governor of modern-day western Algeria,Yaghmurasen Ibn Zyan, declared independence and established theKingdom of Tlemcen under theZayyanid dynasty. After warring with the Almohads for 13 years, the Zayyanids decisively defeated them in 1248 by ambushing and killing the Almohad caliph near Oujda.[94]
TheZayyanid kingdom of Tlemcen in the fifteenth century and its neighbours
The Zayyanids retained control over much of Algeria for the next three centuries. While eastern Algeria largely fell under theHafsid dynasty,[95] theEmirate of Bejaia, which encompassed the Hafsid territories in Algeria, was at times independent from central Tunisian authority. At their peak, the Zayyanids held Morocco as a western vassal expanded eastward as far asTunis, which was captured during the reign of Abu Tashfin.[96][97][98][99][100][101]
Following several conflicts with localBarbary pirates sponsored by the Zayyanid sultans,[102] Spain launched a campaign to invade Algeria and defeat the Kingdom of Tlemcen. In 1505, Spanish forcesinvaded and captured Mers el Kébir,[103] and in 1509, theyconquered Oran after a deadly siege.[104] Following their decisive victories over the Algerians in the western-coastal areas of Algeria, the Spanish expanded their campaign across the western Algerian coast. In 1510, they captured Bejaia aftera major siege,[105] launched an assault on Algiers, and besieged Tlemcen. In 1511, they seizedCherchell[106] andJijel, and attackedMostaganem, which they failed to conquer but succeeded in forcing into tribute.
In 1516, the Turkish privateer brothersAruj andHayreddin Barbarossa, who operated successfully under theHafsids, moved their base of operations to Algiers. They succeeded in conquering Jijel and Algiers from theSpaniards with help from the locals who saw them as liberators from the Christians, but the brothers eventually assassinated the local noble Salim al-Tumi and took control over the city and the surrounding regions. Their state is known as theRegency of Algiers. When Aruj was killed in 1518 during hisinvasion of Tlemcen,Hayreddin succeeded him as military commander of Algiers. TheOttomansultan gave him the title ofbeylerbey and a contingent of some 2,000janissaries. With the aid of this force and native Algerians, Hayreddin conquered the whole area between Constantine and Oran (although the city of Oran remained in Spanish hands until 1792).[107][108]
The next beylerbey was Hayreddin's sonHasan, who assumed the position in 1544. He was aKouloughli or of mixed origins, as his mother was an Algerian Mooresse.[109] Until 1587 Beylerbeylik of Algiers was governed by Beylerbeys who served terms with no fixed limits. Subsequently, with the institution of a regular administration, governors with the title of pasha ruled for three-year terms. The pasha was assisted by an autonomous janissary unit, known in Algeria as theOjaq who were led by anagha. Discontent among the ojaq rose in the mid-1600s because they were not paid regularly, and they repeatedly revolted against the pasha. As a result, the agha charged the pasha with corruption and incompetence and seized power in 1659.[107]
Plague had repeatedly struck the cities of North Africa. Algiers lost between 30,000 and 50,000 inhabitants to the plague in 1620–21, and had high fatalities in 1654–57, 1665, 1691 and 1740–42.[110]
Map of the Regency of Algiers in early 19th century
TheBarbary pirates preyed on Christian and other non-Islamic shipping in the western Mediterranean Sea.[110] The pirates often took the passengers and crew on the ships and sold them or used them asslaves.[111] They also did a brisk business in ransoming some of the captives. According to Robert Davis, from the 16th to 19th century, pirates captured 1 million to 1.25 million Europeans as slaves.[112] They often made raids on European coastal towns to capture Christian slaves to sell atslave markets in North Africa and other parts of theOttoman Empire.[113] In 1544, for example,Hayreddin Barbarossa captured the island ofIschia, taking 4,000 prisoners, and enslaved some 9,000 inhabitants ofLipari, almost the entire population.[114] In 1551, the Ottoman governor of Algiers,Turgut Reis, enslaved the entire population of the Maltese island ofGozo. Barbary pirates often attacked theBalearic Islands. The threat was so severe that residents abandoned the island ofFormentera.[115] The introduction of broad-sail ships from the beginning of the 17th century allowed them to branch out into the Atlantic.[116]
In July 1627 two pirate ships from Algiers under the command ofDutch pirateJan Janszoon sailed as far asIceland,[117]raiding and capturing slaves.[118][119][120] Two weeks earlier another pirate ship fromSalé inMorocco had also raided in Iceland. Some of the slaves brought to Algiers were later ransomed back to Iceland, but some chose to stay in Algeria. In 1629, pirate ships from Algeria raided theFaroe Islands.[121]
In 1659, the Janissaries stationed in Algiers, known as theOdjak of Algiers, joined a company of corsair captains called the Reis in overthrowing the Ottomanviceroy. A new local leader was installed known as the "Agha"; the position became the "Dey" in 1671, who would be selected by thedivan, a council of some sixty military senior officers. Thus, Algiers became a sovereign military republic. The odjak initially dominated the system, but by the 18th century were the dey's instrument. Although Algiers remained nominally part of the Ottoman Empire,[107] in reality it acted independently from the rest of the Empire,[122][123] and often had wars with other Ottoman subjects and territories such as theBeylik of Tunis.[124]
Thedey was in effect a constitutional autocrat. Though elected for a life term, over the next 159 years (1671–1830), fourteen of the twenty-nine deys were assassinated. Despite usurpation, military coups and occasional mob rule, the day-to-day operation of the Deylikal government was remarkably orderly. Although the regency patronised the tribal chieftains, it never had the unanimous allegiance of the countryside, where heavy taxation frequently provoked unrest. Autonomous tribal states were tolerated, and the regency's authority was seldom applied in theKabylia,[107] although in 1730 the Regency was able to take control of theKingdom of Kuku in western Kabylia.[125] Many cities in the northern Algerian desert paid taxes to Algiers or one of its Beys.[126]
Barbary raids in the Mediterranean continued to attack Spanish merchant shipping, resulting in theSpanish Empire attempting toinvade Algiers in 1775. TheSpanish Navy bombarded the city in1783 but failed to pacify it; a subsequent bombing campaign in1784 was joined by the naval forces of other traditional enemies of Algiers, includingNaples,Portugal and theKnights of Malta.[108] Over 20,000 cannonballs were fired, but the effort ultimately failed; Spain sued for peace in 1786 and paid 1 million pesos to the Dey. In 1792, Algiers recaptured the two remaining Spanish strongholds at Oran and Mers el Kébir.[127] In the same year, they conquered the MoroccanRif andOujda, which they then abandoned in 1795.[128]
In the 19th century, Algerian pirates remained a formidable force in the Mediterranean, even forging affiliations with Caribbean powers, paying a "license tax" in exchange for safe harbor of their vessels.[129] Attacks on American merchantmen resulted in theFirst andSecond Barbary Wars, which ended the targeting of U.S. ships in 1815. A year later, a combinedAnglo-Dutch fleet, under the command ofLord Exmouth,bombarded Algiers to stop similar attacks on European fishermen. These efforts proved successful, although Algerian piracy would continue until theFrench conquest in 1830.[130]
Bombardment of Algiers by the Anglo-Dutch fleet, to support the ultimatum to release European slaves, August 1816
Under the pretext of a slight to their consul, theFrench invaded andcaptured Algiers in 1830.[131][132] According to several historians, the methods used by the French to establish control over Algeria reachedgenocidal proportions.[133][134][135] HistorianBen Kiernan wrote on the French conquest of Algeria: "By 1875, the French conquest was complete. The war had killed approximately 825,000 indigenous Algerians since 1830".[136] French losses from 1831 to 1851 were 92,329 dead in the hospital and only 3,336 killed in action.[137][138] In 1872, The Algerian population stood at about 2.9 million.[139][unreliable source?] French policy was predicated on "civilising" the country.[140] The slave trade and piracy in Algeria ceased following the French conquest.[111] Theconquest of Algeria by the French took some time and resulted in considerable bloodshed. A combination of violence and disease epidemics caused theindigenous Algerian population to decline by nearly one-third from 1830 to 1872.[141][142][unreliable source?] On 17 September 1860,Napoleon III declared "Our first duty is to take care of the happiness of the three million Arabs, whom the fate of arms has brought under our domination."[143] During this time, only Kabylia resisted, the Kabylians were not colonised until after theMokrani Revolt in 1871.[citation needed]
Alexis de Tocqueville wrote and never completed an unpublished essay outlining his ideas for how to transform Algeria from an occupied tributary state to a colonial regime, wherein he advocated for a mixed system of "total domination and total colonisation" whereby French military would wage total war against civilian populations while a colonial administration would provide rule of law and property rights to settlers within French occupied cities.[144]
Emir Abdelkader, Algerian leader insurgent against French colonial rule, 1865
From 1848 until independence, France administered the whole Mediterranean region of Algeria as an integral part anddépartement of the nation. One of France's longest-held overseas territories, Algeria became a destination for hundreds of thousands ofEuropean immigrants, who became known ascolons and later, asPied-Noirs. Between 1825 and 1847, 50,000 French people emigrated to Algeria.[145][146] These settlers benefited from the French government's confiscation of communal land from tribal peoples, and the application of modern agricultural techniques that increased the amount of arable land.[147] Many Europeans settled inOran andAlgiers, and by the early 20th century they formed a majority of the population in both cities.[148]
During the late 19th and early 20th century, theEuropean share was almost a fifth of the population. The French government aimed at making Algeria an assimilated part of France, and this included substantial educational investments especially after 1900. The indigenous cultural and religious resistance heavily opposed this tendency, but in contrast to the other colonised countries' path in central Asia andCaucasus, Algeria kept its individual skills and a relatively human-capital intensive agriculture.[149]
Gradually, dissatisfaction among the Muslim population, which lacked political and economic status under the colonial system, gave rise to demands for greater political autonomy and eventually independence fromFrance. In May 1945, the uprising against the occupying French forces was suppressed through what is now known as theSétif and Guelma massacre. Tensions between the two population groups came to a head in 1954, when the first violent events of what was later called theAlgerian War began after the publication of theDeclaration of 1 November 1954. Historians have estimated that between 30,000 and 150,000Harkis and their dependents were killed by theNational Liberation Front (FLN) or bylynch mobs in Algeria.[151] TheFLN used hit and run attacks in Algeria and France as part of its war, and the French conductedsevere reprisals. In addition, the French destroyed over 8,000 villages[152] and relocated over 2 million Algerians toconcentration camps.[153]
The war led to the death of hundreds of thousands of Algerians and hundreds of thousands of injuries. Historians, likeAlistair Horne andRaymond Aron, state that the actual number of Algerian Muslim war dead was far greater than the original FLN and official French estimates but was less than the 1 million deaths claimed by the Algerian government after independence. Horne estimated Algerian casualties during the span of eight years to be around 700,000.[154] The war uprooted more than 2 million Algerians.[155]
The number of EuropeanPied-Noirs who fled Algeria totalled more than 900,000 between 1962 and 1964.[156] The exodus to mainland France accelerated after theOran massacre of 1962, in which hundreds of militants entered European sections of the city and began attacking civilians.
Algeria's first president was the Front de Libération Nationale (FLN) leaderAhmed Ben Bella. Morocco's claim toportions of western Algeria led to theSand War in 1963. Ben Bella wasoverthrown in 1965 byHouari Boumédiène, his former ally and defence minister. Under Ben Bella, the government had become increasinglysocialist and authoritarian; Boumédienne continued this trend. However, he relied much more on the army for his support, and reduced the sole legal party to a symbolic role. Hecollectivised agriculture and launched a massive industrialisation drive.Oil extraction facilities were nationalised. This was especially beneficial to the leadership after the international1973 oil crisis.
Boumédienne's successor,Chadli Bendjedid, introduced some liberal economic reforms. He promoted a policy ofArabisation in Algerian society and public life. Teachers of Arabic, brought in from other Muslim countries, spread conventional Islamic thought in schools and sowed the seeds of a return to Orthodox Islam.[157]
The Algerian economy became increasingly dependent on oil, leading to hardship when the price collapsed during the1980s oil glut.[158] Economic recession caused by the crash in world oil prices resulted in Algerian social unrest during the 1980s; by the end of the decade, Bendjedid introduced a multi-party system. Political parties developed, such as theIslamic Salvation Front (FIS), a broad coalition of Muslim groups.[157]
In December 1991 theIslamic Salvation Front dominated the first of two rounds oflegislative elections. Fearing the election of an Islamist government, the authorities intervened on 11 January 1992, cancelling the elections. Bendjedid resigned and aHigh Council of State was installed to act as the Presidency. It banned the FIS, triggering a civilinsurgency between the Front's armed wing, theArmed Islamic Group, and the national armed forces, in which more than 100,000 people are thought to have died. The Islamist militants conducted a violent campaign ofcivilian massacres.[159][failed verification] At several points in the conflict, the situation in Algeria became a point of international concern, most notably during the crisis surroundingAir France Flight 8969, a hijacking perpetrated by the Armed Islamic Group. The Armed Islamic Group declared a ceasefire in October 1997.[157]
Algeria heldelections in 1999, considered biased by international observers and most opposition groups[160] which were won by PresidentAbdelaziz Bouteflika. He worked to restore political stability to the country and announced a "Civil Concord" initiative, approved in areferendum, under which many political prisoners were pardoned, and several thousand members of armed groups were granted exemption from prosecution under a limited amnesty, in force until 13 January 2000. The AIS disbanded and levels of insurgent violence fell rapidly. TheGroupe Salafiste pour la Prédication et le Combat (GSPC), a splinter group of the Armed Islamic Group, continued a terrorist campaign against the Government.[157]
Bouteflika was re-elected in theApril 2004 presidential election after campaigning on a programme of national reconciliation. The programme comprised economic, institutional, political and social reform to modernise the country, raise living standards, and tackle the causes of alienation. It also included a second amnesty initiative, theCharter for Peace and National Reconciliation, which was approved in areferendum in September 2005. It offered amnesty to most guerrillas and Government security forces.[157]
In November 2008, theAlgerian Constitution was amended following a vote in Parliament, removing the two-term limit on Presidential incumbents. This change enabled Bouteflika to stand for re-election in the2009 presidential elections, and he was re-elected in April 2009. During his election campaign and following his re-election, Bouteflika promised to extend the programme of national reconciliation and a $150-billion spending programme to create three million new jobs, the construction of one million new housing units, and to continue public sector and infrastructure modernisation programmes.[157]
A continuing series of protests throughout the country started on 28 December 2010, inspired by similarprotests across the Middle East and North Africa. On 24 February 2011, the government lifted Algeria's 19-year-oldstate of emergency.[161] The government enacted legislation dealing with political parties, the electoral code, and the representation of women in elected bodies.[162] In April 2011, Bouteflika promised further constitutional and political reform.[157] However, elections are routinely criticised by opposition groups as unfair and international human rights groups say that media censorship and harassment of political opponents continue.
On 2 April 2019, Bouteflika resigned from the presidency aftermass protests against his candidacy for a fifth term in office.[163]
In December 2019,Abdelmadjid Tebboune became Algeria's president, after winning the first round of thepresidential election with a record abstention rate – the highest of all presidential elections since Algeria's democracy in 1989. Tebboune is accused of being close to the military and being loyal to the deposed president. Tebboune rejects these accusations, claiming to be the victim of a witch hunt. He also reminds his detractors that he was expelled from the Government in August 2017 at the instigation of oligarchs languishing in prison.[164] InSeptember 2024, President Tebboune won a second term with a landslide 84.3 percent of the vote, although his opponents called the results fraud.[165]
Since the 2011 breakup of Sudan, and the creation of South Sudan, Algeria has been the largest country in Africa. It is also the largest country of theMediterranean basin. Its southern part includes a significant portion of theSahara. To the north, theTell Atlas forms with theSaharan Atlas, further south, two parallel sets of reliefs in approaching eastbound, and between which are inserted vast plains and highlands. Both Atlas tend to merge in eastern Algeria. The vast mountain ranges ofAures andNememcha occupy the entire northeastern Algeria and are delineated by the Tunisian border. The highest point isMount Tahat (3,003 metres or 9,852 feet).
Algeria lies mostly between latitudes19° and37°N (a small area is north of 37°N and south of 19°N), and longitudes9°W and12°E. Most of the coastal area is hilly, sometimes even mountainous, and there are a few naturalharbours. The area from the coast to the Tell Atlas is fertile. South of the Tell Atlas is asteppe landscape ending with theSaharan Atlas; farther south, there is the Sahara desert.[167]
TheHoggar Mountains (Arabic:جبال هقار), also known as the Hoggar, are a highland region in central Sahara, southern Algeria. They are located about 1,500 km (932 mi) south of the capital, Algiers, and just east ofTamanghasset. Algiers,Oran,Constantine, andAnnaba are Algeria's main cities.[167]
The Babor mountains and the Jijel Coast. The Erraguene lake can be seen on the right.
In this region, midday desert temperatures can be hot year round. After sunset, however, the clear, dry air permits rapid loss of heat, and the nights are cool to chilly. Enormous daily ranges in temperature are recorded.
Rainfall is fairly plentiful along the coastal part of the Tell Atlas, ranging from 400 to 670 mm (15.7 to 26.4 in) annually, the amount of precipitation increasing from west to east.Precipitation is heaviest in the northern part of eastern Algeria, where it reaches as much as 1,000 mm (39.4 in) in some years.
Farther inland, the rainfall is less plentiful. Algeria also hasergs, or sand dunes, between mountains. Among these, in the summer time when winds are heavy and gusty, temperatures can go up to 43.3 °C (110 °F).
The varied vegetation of Algeria includescoastal,mountainous and grassydesert-like regions which all support a wide range of wildlife.
In Algeriaforest cover is around 1% of the total land area, equivalent to 1,949,000 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, up from 1,667,000 hectares (ha) in 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 1,439,000 hectares (ha) and planted forest covered 510,000 hectares (ha). Of the naturally regenerating forest 0% was reported to beprimary forest (consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 6% of the forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 80% of the forest area was reported to be underpublic ownership, 18%private ownership and 2% with ownership listed as other or unknown.[171][172]
Many of the creatures constituting the Algerian wildlife live in close proximity to civilisation. The most commonly seen animals include the wildboars,jackals, andgazelles, although it is not uncommon to spotfennecs (foxes), andjerboas. Algeria also has a smallAfrican leopard andSaharan cheetah population, but these are seldom seen. A species of deer, theBarbary stag, inhabits the dense humid forests in the north-eastern areas. Thefennec fox is thenational animal of Algeria.[173]
A variety of bird species makes the country an attraction for bird watchers. The forests are inhabited by boars and jackals.Barbary macaques are the sole native monkey. Snakes,monitor lizards, and numerous other reptiles can be found living among an array ofrodents throughout thesemi arid regions of Algeria. Many animals are now extinct, including theBarbary lions,Atlas bears andcrocodiles.[174]
Algeria's government has been described as authoritarian,[176][177][178][179] and elected politicians have relatively little sway over affairs in the country. Instead, a group of unelected civilian and military "décideurs" ("deciders") known as "le pouvoir" ("the power") exercisede facto rule over the country, even deciding who should be president.[180][181][182] The most powerful man might have beenMohamed Mediène, the head of military intelligence, before he was brought down during the2019 protests.[183] In recent years, many of these generals have died, retired, or been imprisoned. After the death of GeneralLarbi Belkheir, previous presidentBouteflika put loyalists in key posts, notably atSonatrach, and secured constitutional amendments that made him re-electable indefinitely, until he was brought down in 2019 duringprotests.[184]
The head of state is thePresident of Algeria, who is elected for a five-year term. The president is limited to two five-year terms. Themost recent presidential election was planned to be in April 2019, butwidespread protests erupted on 22 February against the president's decision to participate in the election, which resulted in President Bouteflika announcing his resignation on 3 April.[185]Abdelmadjid Tebboune, an independent candidate, was elected as president after the election eventually took place on 12 December 2019. Protestors refused to recognise Tebboune as president, citing demands for comprehensive reform of the political system.[186] Algeria has universalsuffrage at 18 years of age.[5] The President is the head of thearmy, theCouncil of Ministers and theHigh Security Council. He appoints thePrime Minister who is also the head of government.[187]
The Algerian parliament isbicameral; the lower house, thePeople's National Assembly, has 462 members who are directly elected for five-year terms, while the upper house, theCouncil of the Nation, has 144 members serving six-year terms, of which 96 members are chosen by local assemblies and 48 are appointed by the president.[188] According to theconstitution, no political association may be formed if it is "based on differences in religion, language, race, gender, profession, or region". In addition, political campaigns must be exempt from the aforementioned subjects.[189]
Algeria is included in theEuropean Union'sEuropean Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) which aims at bringing the EU and its neighbours closer.Giving incentives and rewarding best performers, as well as offering funds in a faster and more flexible manner, are the two main principles underlying the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI) that came into force in 2014. It has a budget of €15.4 billion and provides the bulk of funding through a number of programmes.
In 2009, the French government agreed to compensate victims of nuclear tests in Algeria. Defence Minister Hervé Morin stated that "It's time for our country to be at peace with itself, at peace thanks to a system of compensation and reparations", when presenting the draft law on the payouts. Algerian officials and activists believe that this is a good first step and hope that this move would encourage broader reparation.[190]
Total military personnel include 147,000 active, 150,000 reserve, and 187,000 paramilitary staff (2008 estimate).[193] Service in the military is compulsory for men aged 19–30, for a total of 12 months.[194] The military expenditure was 4.3% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2012.[17] Algeria has thesecond-largest military in North Africa with the largest defence budget in Africa ($10 billion).[195] Most of Algeria's weapons are imported from Russia, with whom theyare a close ally.[195][196]
In 2007, the Algerian Air Force signed a deal with Russia to purchase 49MiG-29SMT and 6 MiG-29UBT at an estimated cost of $1.9 billion. Russia is also building two636-type dieselsubmarines for Algeria.[197]
Algeria is the 90th most peaceful country in the world, according to the 2024Global Peace Index.[198]
Algeria has been categorised by the US government fundedFreedom House as "not free" since it began publishing such ratings in 1972, with the exception of 1989, 1990, and 1991, when the country was labelled "partly free".[199] In December 2016, theEuro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor issued a report regarding violation ofmedia freedom in Algeria. It clarified that the Algerian government imposed restrictions onfreedom of the press; expression; and right to peaceful demonstration, protest and assembly as well as intensified censorship of the media and websites. Due to the fact that the journalists and activists criticise the ruling government, some media organisations' licenses are cancelled.[200]
Independent and autonomous trade unions face routine harassment from the government, with many leaders imprisoned and protests suppressed. In 2016, a number of unions, many of which were involved in the 2010–2012 Algerian Protests, have been deregistered by the government.[201][202][203]
Homosexuality is illegal in Algeria.[204] Public homosexual behavior is punishable by up to two years in prison.[205] Despite this, about 26% of Algerians think that homosexuality should be accepted, according to the survey conducted by theBBC News Arabic-Arab Barometer in 2019. Algeria showed the highest LGBT acceptance compared to other Arab countries where the survey was conducted.[206]
Human Rights Watch has accused the Algerian authorities of using theCOVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to prevent pro-democracy movements and protests in the country, leading to the arrest of youths as part ofsocial distancing.[207]
The administrative divisions have changed several times since independence. When introducing new provinces, the numbers of old provinces are kept, hence the non-alphabetical order. With their official numbers, currently (since 1983) they are:[17]
Algeria's currency is thedinar (DZD). The economy remains dominated by the state, a legacy of the country's socialist post-independence development model. In June 2024 The World Bank's 2024 report marks a turning point for Algeria, which joins the select club of upper-middle-income countries. This economic rise, the result of an ambitious development strategy, places the country in the same category as emerging powers such as China, Brazil and Turkey[209][210][211] In recent years, the Algerian government has halted the privatisation of state-owned industries and imposed restrictions on imports and foreign involvement in its economy.[212] These restrictions are just starting to be lifted off recently although questions about Algeria's slowly-diversifying economy remain.[213][214]
Algeria has struggled to develop industries outside hydrocarbons in part because of high costs and an inert state bureaucracy. The government's efforts to diversify the economy by attracting foreign and domestic investment outside the energy sector have done little to reduce high youth unemployment rates or to address housing shortages.[17] The country is facing a number of short-term and medium-term problems, including the need to diversify the economy, strengthen political, economic and financial reforms, improve the business climate and reduce inequalities among regions.[162]
A wave of economic protests in February and March 2011 prompted the Algerian government to offer more than $23 billion in public grants and retroactive salary and benefit increases. Public spending has increased by 27% annually during the past five years. The 2010–14 public-investment programme will cost US$286 billion, 40% of which will go to human development.[162]
Thanks to strong hydrocarbon revenues, Algeria has a cushion of $173 billion inforeign currency reserves and a large hydrocarbon stabilisation fund. In addition, Algeria'sexternal debt is extremely low at about 2% of GDP.[17] The economy remains very dependent on hydrocarbon wealth, and, despite high foreign exchange reserves (US$178 billion, equivalent to three years of imports), current expenditure growth makes Algeria's budget more vulnerable to the risk of prolonged lower hydrocarbon revenues.[215]
Turkish direct investments have accelerated in Algeria, with total value reaching $5 billion. As of 2022, the number of Turkish companies present in Algeria has reached 1,400. In 2020, despite the pandemic, more than 130 Turkish companies were created in Algeria.[220]
Algeria, whose economy is reliant on petroleum, has been anOPEC member since 1969. Its crude oil production stands at around 1.1 million barrels/day, but it is also a major gas producer and exporter, with important links to Europe.[221] Hydrocarbons have long been the backbone of the economy, accounting for roughly 60% of budget revenues, 30% of GDP, and 87.7%[222] of export earnings. Algeria has the10th-largest reserves of natural gas in the world and is thesixth-largest gas exporter. The U.S.Energy Information Administration reported that in 2005, Algeria had 4.5 trillion cubic metres (160×10^12 cu ft) of provennatural gas reserves.[223] It also ranks16th in oil reserves.[17]
Non-hydrocarbon growth for 2011 was projected at 5%. To cope with social demands, the authorities raised expenditure, especially on basic food support, employment creation, support for SMEs, and higher salaries. High hydrocarbon prices have improved the current account and the already large international reserves position.[215]
Income from oil and gas rose in 2011 as a result of continuing high oil prices, though the trend in production volume is downward.[162] Production from the oil and gas sector in terms of volume continues to decline, dropping from 43.2 million tonnes to 32 million tonnes between 2007 and 2011. Nevertheless, the sector accounted for 98% of the total volume of exports in 2011, against 48% in 1962,[224] and 70% of budgetary receipts, or US$71.4 billion.[162]
The Algerian national oil company isSonatrach, which plays a key role in all aspects of the oil and natural gas sectors in Algeria. All foreign operators must work in partnership with Sonatrach, which usually has majority ownership in production-sharing agreements.[225]
Access tobiocapacity in Algeria is lower than world average. In 2016, Algeria had 0.53 global hectares[226] of biocapacity per person within its territory, much less than the world average of 1.6 global hectares per person.[227] In 2016, Algeria used 2.4 global hectares of biocapacity per person – theirecological footprint of consumption. This means they use just under 4.5 times as much biocapacity as Algeria contains. As a result, Algeria is running a biocapacity deficit.[226] In April 2022, diplomats from Italy and Spain held talks after Rome's move to secure large volume of Algerian gas stoked concerns in Madrid.[228] Under the deal between Algeria's Sonatrach and Italy's Eni, Algeria will send an additional 9 billion cubic metres of gas to Italy by next year and in 2024.[229]
Research and alternative energy sources
Algeria has invested an estimated 100 billion dinars towards developing research facilities and paying researchers. This development programme is meant to advance alternative energy production, especially solar and wind power.[230] Algeria is estimated to have the largest solar energy potential in the Mediterranean, so the government has funded the creation of a solar science park in Hassi R'Mel. Currently, Algeria has 20,000 research professors at various universities and over 780 research labs, with state-set goals to expand to 1,000. Besides solar energy, areas of research in Algeria include space and satellite telecommunications, nuclear power and medical research.
Labour market
The overall rate of unemployment was 11.8% in 2023.[231] The government strengthened in 2011 the job programmes introduced in 1988, in particular in the framework of the programme to aid those seeking work (Dispositif d'Aide à l'Insertion Professionnelle).[162]
Despite a decline in total unemployment, youth and women unemployment is high.[215]
The development of the tourism sector in Algeria had previously been hampered by a lack of facilities, but since 2004 a broad tourism development strategy has been implemented resulting in many hotels of a high modern standard being built.
The Algerian road network is the densest in Africa; its length is estimated at 180,000 km (110,000 mi) of highways, with more than 3,756 structures and a paving rate of 85%. This network will be complemented by theEast-West Highway, a major infrastructure project currently under construction. It is a three-way, 1,216-kilometre-long (756 mi) highway, linkingAnnaba in the extreme east to theTlemcen in the far west. Algeria is also crossed by theTrans-Sahara Highway, which is now completely paved. This road is supported by the Algerian government to increase trade between the six countries crossed: Algeria,Mali,Niger,Nigeria,Chad, andTunisia.
Algeria has a population of an estimated 47.4 million,[6][233] of which the majority, 75%[234] to 85% are ethnicallyArab.[17][235][236] At the outset of the 20th century, its population was approximately 4 million.[237] About 90% of Algerians live in the northern, coastal area; the inhabitants of the Sahara desert are mainly concentrated inoases, although some 1.5 million remainnomadic or partly nomadic. 28.1% of Algerians are under the age of 15.[17]
The largest concentration of Algerian migrants outside Algeria is in France, which has reportedly over 1.7 millionAlgerians of up to the second generation.[242]
Centuries ofArab migrations to the Maghreb since the seventh century shifted the demographic scope in Algeria. Estimates vary based on different sources. The majority of the population of Algeria is ethnicallyArab, constituting between 75%[234][247][248][249] and 80%[250][251][252] to 85%[253][254] of the population.Berbers who make up between 15%[17] and 20%[251][250][255] to 24%[247][248][249] of the population are divided into many groups with varying languages. The largest of these are theKabyles, who live in theKabylie region east of Algiers, theChaoui of Northeast Algeria, theTuaregs in the southern desert and theShenwa people of North Algeria.[256][page needed]During the colonial period, there was a large (10% in 1960)[257]European population who became known asPied-Noirs. They were primarily of French, Spanish andItalian origin. Almost all of this population left during the war of independence or immediately after its end.[258]
Modern Standard Arabic andBerber are the official languages.[259]Algerian Arabic (Darja) is the language used by the majority of the population. Colloquial Algerian Arabic has some Berber loanwords which represent 8% to 9% of its vocabulary.[260]
Berber has been recognised as a "national language" by the constitutional amendment of 8 May 2002.[261]Kabyle, the predominant Berber language, is taught and is partially co-official (with a few restrictions) in parts ofKabylie. Kabyle has a significantArabic,French,Latin,Greek,Phoenician andPunic substratum, and Arabic loanwords represent 35% of the total Kabyle vocabulary.[262] In February 2016, the Algerian constitution passed a resolution that made Berber an official language alongside Arabic. Algeria emerged as a bilingual state after 1962.[263] ColloquialAlgerian Arabic is spoken by about 83% of the population and Berber by 27%.[264]
Although French has no official status in Algeria, it has one of the largest Francophone populations in the world,[265] and French is widely used in government, media (newspapers, radio, local television), and both the education system (from primary school onwards) and academia due toAlgeria's colonial history. It can be regarded as alingua franca of Algeria. In 2008, 11.2 million Algerians could read and write in French.[266] In 2013, it was estimated that 60% of the population could speak or understand French.[267] In 2022, it was estimated that 33% of the population was Francophone.[268]
The use ofEnglish in Algeria, though limited in comparison to the previously mentioned languages, has increased due to globalisation.[269][270] In 2022 it was announced that English would be taught in elementary schools.[271]
Islam is the predominant religion in Algeria, with its adherents, mostly Sunnis, accounting for 99% of the population according to a 2021 CIAWorld Factbook estimate,[17] and 97.9% according to Pew Research in 2020.[272] There are about 290,000Ibadis in the M'zab Valley in the region ofGhardaia.
Prior to independence, Algeria was home to more than 1.3 million Christians (mostly ofEuropean ancestry).[273] Most of the Christian settlers left to France after the country's independence.[274][275] Today, estimates of theChristian population range from 100,000 to 200,000.[276] Algerian citizens who are Christians predominantly belong toProtestant denominations, which have seen increased pressure from the government in recent years including many forced closures.[276]
According to theArab Barometer in 2018–2019, the vast majority of Algerians (99.1%) continue to identify as Muslim.[277] The June 2019Arab Barometer-BBC News report found that the percentage of Algerians identifying as non-religious has grown from around 8% in 2013 to around 15% in 2018.[278] The Arab Barometer December 2019, found that the growth in the percentage of Algerians identifying as non-religious is largely driven by young Algerians, with roughly 25% describing themselves as non-religious.[279] However, the 2021 Arab Barometer report found that those who said they were not religious among Algerians has decreased, with just 2.6% identifying as non-religious. In that same report, 69.5% of Algerians identified as religious and another 27.8% identifying as somewhat religious.[277][280]
In 2018, Algeria had the highest numbers of physicians in the Maghreb region (1.72 per 1,000 people), nurses (2.23 per 1,000 people), and dentists (0.31 per 1,000 people). Access to "improved water sources" was around 97.4% of the population in urban areas and 98.7% of the population in the rural areas. Some 99% of Algerians living in urban areas, and around 93.4% of those living in rural areas, had access to "improved sanitation". According to the World Bank, Algeria is making progress towards its goal of "reducing by half the number of people without sustainable access to improved drinking water and basic sanitation by 2015". Given Algeria's young population, policy favours preventive health care and clinics over hospitals. In keeping with this policy, the government maintains an immunisation programme. However, poor sanitation and unclean water still causetuberculosis,hepatitis,measles,typhoid fever,cholera anddysentery. The poor generally receive healthcare free of charge.[281]
Health records have been maintained in Algeria since 1882 and began adding Muslims living in the south to their vital record database in 1905 during French rule.[282]
UIS literacy rate Algeria population plus 15 1985–2015
Since the 1970s, in a centralised system that was designed to significantly reduce the rate of illiteracy, the Algerian government introduced a decree by which school attendance became compulsory for all children aged between 6 and 15 years who have the ability to track their learning through the 20 facilities built since independence, now the literacy rate is around 92.6%.[283] Since 1972, Arabic is used as the language of instruction during the first nine years of schooling. From the third year, French is taught and it is also the language of instruction for science classes. The students can also learn English, Italian, Spanish and German. In 2008, new programmes at the elementary appeared, therefore the compulsory schooling does not start at the age of six anymore, but at the age of five.[284] Apart from the 122 private schools, the Universities of the State are free of charge. After nine years of primary school, students can go to a high school or to an educational institution. The school offers two programmes: general or technical. At the end of the third year of secondary school, students pass the exam of the baccalaureate, which allows once it is successful to pursue graduate studies in universities and institutes.[285]
Education is officially compulsory for children between the ages of six and 15. In 2008, the illiteracy rate for people over 10 was 22.3%, 15.6% for men and 29.0% for women. The province with the lowest rate of illiteracy wasAlgiers Province at 11.6%, while the province with the highest rate wasDjelfa Province at 35.5%.[286]
Algeria has 26 universities and 67 institutions of higher education, which must accommodate a million Algerians and 80,000 foreign students in 2008. TheUniversity of Algiers, founded in 1879, is the oldest, it offers education in various disciplines (law, medicine, science and letters). Twenty-five of these universities and almost all of the institutions of higher education were founded after the independence of the country.
ContemporaryAlgerian cinema is varied in terms of genre, exploring a wider range of themes and issues. There has been a transition from cinema which focused on the war of independence to films more concerned with the everyday lives of Algerians.[291]
Mohammed Racim; founder of the Algerian school for painting
Algerian painters, likeMohammed Racim andBaya, attempted to revive the prestigious Algerian past prior to French colonisation, at the same time that they have contributed to the preservation of the authentic values of Algeria. In this line,Mohamed Temam,Abdelkhader Houamel have also returned through this art, scenes from the history of the country, the habits and customs of the past and the country life. Other new artistic currents including the one ofM'hamed Issiakhem,Mohammed Khadda andBachir Yelles, appeared on the scene of Algerian painting, abandoning figurative classical painting to find new pictorial ways, to adapt Algerian paintings to the new realities of the country through its struggle and its aspirations.Mohammed Khadda[292] andM'hamed Issiakhem have been notable in recent years.[292]
Algerian literature includes shocking expression, due to the terrorism that occurred during the 1990s. Other styles have an individualistic conception of the human condition. Among noted more recent work isThe Swallows of Kabul andThe Attack byYasmina Khadra,The Oath of Barbarians byBoualem Sansal,Memory of the Flesh byAhlam Mosteghanemi and the last novel of Assia DjebarNowhere in My Father's House.[297][298][299][300]
The Algerian state's interest in film-industry activities can be seen in the annual budget of DZD 200 million (EUR 1.3 million) allocated to production, specific measures and an ambitious programme plan implemented by the Ministry of Culture to promote national production, renovate the cinema stock and remedy the weak links in distribution and exploitation.
The financial support provided by the state, through the Fund for the Development of the Arts, Techniques and the Film Industry (FDATIC) and the Algerian Agency for Cultural Influence (AARC), plays a key role in the promotion of national production. Between 2007 and 2013, FDATIC subsidised 98 films (feature films, documentaries and short films). In mid-2013, AARC had already supported a total of 78 films, including 42 feature films, 6 short films and 30 documentaries.
According to the European Audiovisual Observatory's LUMIERE database, 41 Algerian films were distributed in Europe between 1996 and 2013; 21 films in this repertoire were Algerian-French co-productions.Days of Glory (2006) andOutside the Law (2010) recorded the highest number of admissions in the European Union, 3,172,612 and 474,722, respectively.[301]
Algerian cuisine is rich and diverse as a result of interactions and exchanges with other cultures and nations over the centuries.[302] It is based on both land and sea products. Conquests or demographic movement towards the Algerian territory were two of the main factors of exchanges between the different peoples and cultures. The Algerian cuisine is a mix ofArab,Berber,Turkish andFrench roots.[303][302]
Algerian cuisine offers a variety of dishes depending on the region and the season, but vegetables andcereals remain at its core. Most of the Algerian dishes are centred around bread, meats (lamb, beef or poultry), olive oil, vegetables, and fresh herbs. Vegetables are often used for salads, soups,tajines,couscous, and sauce-based dishes. Of all the Algerian traditional dishes available, the most famous one iscouscous, recognised as a national dish.[304]
Various games have existed in Algeria since antiquity. In theAures, people played several games such as El Kherba or El Khergueba (chess variant). Playing cards,checkers and chess games are part of Algerian culture. Racing (fantasia) andrifle shooting are part of cultural recreation of the Algerians.[305]
Football is the most popular sport in the country. TheAlgerian national football team, known as the Desert Foxes, has a strong fan base and has achieved success both domestically and internationally.[306][307]
^Arabic:الجمهورية الجزائرية الديمقراطية الشعبية,romanised: al-Jumhūriyyah al-Jazāʾiriyyah ad-Dīmuqrāṭiyyah ash‑Shaʿbiyyah; French:République algérienne démocratique et populaire. Formerly also rendered as theDemocratic and Popular Republic of Algeria in English, as seen on the1981 Algiers Accords.[verification needed]
^The transcription of Tamazight in the Tifinagh alphabet is notcodified.[21]
Citations
^"Constitution of Algeria, Art. 11". El-mouradia.dz. language: France and Arabic (government language); people of Algeria speak Arabic and Berber. Archived fromthe original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved17 January 2013.
^LLC, Forbidden Fruits (30 January 2013).iAfrica – Ancient History UNTOLD. Forbidden Fruit Books LLC.Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved8 November 2020.
^Studies, American University (Washington, D. C. ) Foreign Area (1979).Algeria, a Country Study. [Department of Defense], Department of the Army. p. 3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Studies, American University (Washington, D. C. ) Foreign Area (1979).Algeria, a Country Study. [Department of Defense], Department of the Army. p. 23.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Field, Henry Martyn (1 April 1893)."The Barbary Coast". C. Scribner's Sons.Archived from the original on 15 March 2023. Retrieved16 April 2021 – via Google Books.
^Fage, J. D. (1 April 1958)."An Atlas of African History". E. Arnold.Archived from the original on 15 March 2023. Retrieved16 April 2021 – via Google Books.
^Histoire de l'Afrique septentrionale (Berbérie) dupuis les temps les plus reculés jusqu'à la conquête française (1830), Volumes 1–2 Ernest Mercier E. Leroux,
^Roudh El-Kartas: Histoire des souverains du Maghreb (Espagne et Maroc) et annales de la ville de Fès Abū al-Ḥasan ʻAlī b. ʻAbd Allāh Ibn Abī Zarʻ, ʿAlī Ibn-ʿAbdallāh Ibn-Abī-Zarʿ Imprimerie Imperiale
^"The Great Mosque of Tlemcen".MuslimHeritage.com. Foundation for Science Technology and Civilization. 8 December 2004.Archived from the original on 23 September 2019. Retrieved23 September 2019.
^abJeff Huebner, "Al Qal'a of Beni Hammad (M'sila, Algeria)" inMiddle East and Africa: International Dictionary of Historic Places (Vol. 4) (eds. K.A. Berney, Trudy Ring & Noelle Watson: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1996), pp. 36–39.
^Jamil M. Abun-Nasr (20 August 1987).A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period. Cambridge University Press. pp. 103–104
^"Had planning been better (barracks, hospitals, medical services), the drain on men would have been miniscule: it has been calculated that between 1831 and 1851, 92,329 died in hospital, and only 3,336 in battle." The Military and Colonial Destruction of the Roman Landscape of North Africa ... –Michael Greenhalgh, p366[1]Archived 20 March 2019 at theWayback Machine
^Fisher, Michael H. (2014).Migration: A World History. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 80.ISBN978-0-19-976434-1.
^Horne, Alistair (2006).A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954–1962 (New York Review Books Classics). New York: NYRB Classics. p. 32.ISBN978-1-59017-218-6.
^Baten, Jörg (2016).A History of the Global Economy. From 1500 to the Present. Cambridge University Press. p. 220.ISBN978-1-107-50718-0.
^United States Military Academy. Department of Military Art and Engineering (1947).The War in North Africa Part 2—The Allied Invasion. West Point, NY: Department of Military Art and Engineering, United States Military Academy. pp. 4–5.Archived from the original on 3 February 2023. Retrieved18 March 2021.
^Articles: 85, 87, 77, 78 and 79 of the Algerian constitutionAlgerian government."Constitution". Archived fromthe original on 22 April 2012. Retrieved25 September 2011.
^"Algeria".Freedom in the World 2013. Freedom House.Archived from the original on 23 March 2013. Retrieved8 March 2013.
^ab"Algeria – Drainage".Britannica.Archived from the original on 22 December 2022. Retrieved25 December 2022.More than three-fourths of the country is ethnically Arab
^abDK (27 January 2005).FT World Desk Reference 2005. Dorling Kindersley Limited. p. 82.ISBN978-1-4053-6726-4.Arab 75%, Berber 24%, European and Jewish 1%. The population is predominantly Arab, under 30 years of age and urban; some 24% are Berber. More than 85% speak Arabic and 99% are Sunni Muslim.
^ab"Algeria - History Background".education.stateuniversity.com. Retrieved18 August 2024.The combined Arab-Berber people comprise more than 99 percent of the population (Arabs approximately 80 percent; Berbers 20 percent), with Europeans less than one percent.
^"Algeria Ethnic Groups".study.com. Retrieved18 August 2024.Partly due to the strong association between Islam and Arab identity, there is a fair amount of social pressure in Algeria to identify with Arab ancestry. In fact, roughly 85% of the nation identifies much more strongly with their Arab heritage than their Berber heritage.
^Tschudin, Alain; Moffat, Craig; Buchanan-Clarke, Stephen; Russell, Susan; Coutts, Lloyd (18 June 2019).Extremisms in Africa Volume 2. Jonathan Ball Publishers.ISBN978-0-6399928-3-9.The majority of Algerians are Arab, but around 20% are Berbers.
^"La mondialisation, une chance pour la francophonie". Senat.fr. Archived fromthe original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved17 January 2013. () "L'Algérie, non-membre de l'Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, comptabilise la seconde communauté francophone au monde, avec environ 16 millions de locuteurs, suivie par la Côte d'Ivoire avec près de 12 millions de locuteurs francophones, le Québec avec 6 millions et la Belgique avec plus de 4 millions de francophones."
^"Le dénombrement des francophones"(PDF). Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 12 October 2013. () p. 9 "Nous y agrégeons néanmoins quelques données disponibles pour des pays n'appartenant pas à l'OIF mais dont nous savons, comme pour l'Algérie (11,2 millions en 20081)," and "1. Nombre de personnes âgées de cinq ans et plus déclarant savoir lire et écrire le français, d'après les données du recensement de 2008 communiquées par l'Office national des statistiques d'Algérie."
^Greenberg, Udi; A. Foster, Elizabeth (2023).Decolonization and the Remaking of Christianity. Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 105.ISBN978-1-5128-2497-1.
Ageron, Charles-Robert (1991).Modern Algeria – A History from 1830 to the Present. Translated from French and edited by Michael Brett. London:Hurst.ISBN978-0-86543-266-6.
Aghrout, Ahmed; Bougherira, Redha M. (2004).Algeria in Transition – Reforms and Development Prospects.Routledge.ISBN978-0-415-34848-5.
Sidaoui, Riadh (2009). "Islamic Politics and the Military – Algeria 1962–2008".Religion and Politics – Islam and Muslim Civilisation. Farnham:Ashgate Publishing.ISBN0-7546-7418-5.
1Entirely claimed by both Morocco and theSADR.2Spanish exclaves claimed by Morocco.3Portuguese archipelago claimed by Spain.4Disputed between Egypt and the Sudan.5Unclaimed territory located between Egypt and the Sudan.6Disputed between South Sudan and the Sudan.7Part of Chad, formerly claimed by Libya.8Disputed between Morocco and Spain
.svg)
.svg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_(cropped).jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.svg)
