AFRICA Definition & Meaning

Africa

[ af-ri-kuh ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a continent south of Europe and between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. About 11,700,000 square miles (30,303,000 square kilometers).

Africa

/ ˈæ�ڰ�ɪ��ə /

noun

the second largest of the continents, on the Mediterranean in the north, the Atlantic in the west, and the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Indian Ocean in the east. The Sahara desert divides the continent unequally into North Africa (an early centre of civilization, in close contact with Europe and W Asia, now inhabited chiefly by Arabs) and Africa south of the Sahara (relatively isolated from the rest of the world until the 19th century and inhabited chiefly by Negroid peoples). It was colonized mainly in the 18th and 19th centuries by Europeans and now comprises independent nations. The largest lake is Lake Victoria and the chief rivers are the Nile, Niger, Congo, and Zambezi. Pop: 887 964 000 (2005 est). Area: about 30 300 000 sq km (11 700 000 sq miles)

Africa

The second-largest continent , after Asia; located south of Europe and bordered to the west by the Atlantic Ocean and to the east by the Indian Ocean .

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Notes

Africa south of the Sahara is sometimes called sub-Saharan Africa.

Africa has been the home of great civilizations, particularly in Egypt (see also Egypt ), along the Mediterranean Sea . In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, European nations colonized much of the continent ( see colonialism ). In the twentieth century, the colonies became independent countries.

Sub-Saharan Africa has been hit especially hard by HIV/AIDS, drastically decreasing the life expectancy of much of the population.

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of Africa¹

See African ( def )

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Mrs Carter's husband, Alan, who is in South Africa, said she was "such a decent, lovely person", and spoke of the family's shock.

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One other location stands out: Mauritania on West Africa's Atlantic coast - the nerve-centre of his operation and the place from which the migrant boat started its perilous journey.

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When we see heat records challenged in the UK, there is often an influence of air coming from Iberia or north Africa involved.

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Kabila has been living outside the country, in South Africa, for the past two years.

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England have already qualified as hosts while Australia, India, New Zealand, West Indies, South Africa, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are already assured of their places.

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