Central African Republic Map

The Central African Republic is a nation in the very center of Africa, which shares borders with Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Congo. Central African Republic is an entirely landlocked country and has an area of 622,984 square kilometers (240,534 square miles). Central African Republic is primarily located in the Sudano-Guinean savanna, as well as equatorial forest and the river basins of the Ubangi, Congo, and Chari Rivers.The capital and largest city of the Central African Republic is Bangui.

People have inhabited the region that includes the Central African Republic since the migration of the Ubangian people beginning around 1000 BC. The Bantu people also immigrated into the region. Muslim traders began arriving in the region in the nineteenth century, leading to the start of the slave trade there around 1850. The Europeans arrived during the Scramble for Africa in the late nineteenth century, and the French established the French Congo, which included the area of the Central African Republic, and built a colony in the land. The colony called Ubangi-Shari within the French Community became autonomous in 1958, taking the name Central African Republic, and gaining independence in 1960.

Today, the population of the Central African Republic is estimated at 4,422,000, which is divided into various ethnic groups including Baya, who make up about one-third of the total, Banda, at about 27 percent, Mandjia with 13 percent, Sara at 10 percent, and Mboum, M'Baka, Yakoma and others making a total of 80 ethnic groups. The official languages of the Central African Republic are French and the native Sango. Christianity is the predominant religion with about 80 percent of the total population, followed by Islam which makes up about 10 percent.

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Last Updated On : March 14, 2013