Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is on the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa's mainland. I…
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is on the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa's mainland. In antiquity, Somalia was an important commercial center. During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade, including the Imamate of Awsame, Ajuran Sultanate, the Adal Sultanate, and the Sultanate of the Geledi. In the late 19th century, Somali sultanates were colonized by the Italian and British Empires, who merged all of these tribal territories into two colonies: Italian Somaliland and British Somaliland. In 1960, the two territories united to form the independent Somali Republic under a civilian government. Siad Barre of the Supreme Revolutionary Council seized power in 1969 and established the Somali Democratic Republic, brutally attempting to squash the Somaliland War of Independence in the north of the country. The SRC collapsed in 1991 with the onset of the Somali Civil War. The Transitional National Government of Somalia was established in 2000, followed by the formation of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia in 2004, which reestablished the Somali Armed Forces.
Official languages: Somali, Arabic
Government: Federal parliamentary constitutional republic
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