Useful data for tourists about Libya, cities and resorts of the country. As well as information about the population, the currency of Libya, the cuisine, the features of visa and customs restrictions in Libya.
Geography of Libya
The Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya is a state in North Africa on the Mediterranean coast. In the west it borders with Algeria, in the northwest with Tunisia, in the south with Chad and Niger, in the southeast with Sudan, in the east with Egypt. In the north it is washed by the Mediterranean Sea.
The coastline of Libya in the central part of the coast goes deep into the land, forming the Gulf of Sidra (Greater Sirte), where the barren desert meets the Mediterranean Sea. In the northeast of the country is the higher and more populated plateau of Barqa el-Bayda, which forms the core of Cyrenaica. In the northwest is Tripolitania, and in the south is the Fezzan depression, hundreds of kilometers away from the coast.
State
State structure
Formally, Libya is a republic (jamahiriya), in reality it is a paramilitary dictatorship. The governing body of Libya - "Revolutionary leadership" (officially located outside the system of state power). The legislature is the General People's Congress.
Language
Official language: Arabic
Almost all Libyans speak Arabic. The Italian language was once widely used, especially among the educated stratum of Libyan society. During the years of the British administration (1943-1951), the English language became widespread, which became especially popular with the appearance of American and British oil companies in Libya.
Religion
With the exception of a very few Berbers belonging to the Ibadi or Kharijite sect of Islam, the Libyans are Sunni Muslims. Many residents of Cyrenaica are considered followers of the Senusite Dervish Brotherhood, a religious movement that spread to North Africa in the 18th century.
Currency
International name: LYD
The Libyan dinar is equal to 1000 dirhams. In circulation are banknotes in denominations of 10, 5 and 1 dinar, 1/2 and 1/4 dinar, as well as coins in denominations of 100 and 50 dirhams.
Currency can be exchanged at banks and officially authorized exchange offices. The circulation of foreign currency is formally prohibited.
Credit cards are limited to major hotels and airports. Traveller's checks are generally not accepted.
Libya Tourism
Holidays in Libya at the best price
Search and compare prices for all the world's leading booking systems. Find the best price for yourself and save up to 80% on the cost of travel services!
Libya country in North Africa. In the north it is washed by the Mediterranean Sea. In the east it borders with Egypt, in the southeast - with Sudan, in the south - with Chad and Niger, in the west - with Algeria, in the northwest - with Tunisia.
The name of the country comes from the name of one of the local tribes - Livu. The word "jamahi-riya" means "democracy".
Capital
Square
Population
5241 thousand people
Administrative division
The state is divided into 46 municipal districts.
Form of government
Republic.
governing body
revolutionary leadership.
supreme legislative body
General People's Congress.
Supreme executive body. Supreme People's Committee (VNKOM)
Big cities
Official language. Arab.
Religion
97% are Sunni Muslims, 3% are Catholics.
Ethnic composition
97% are Arabs and Berbers.
Currency
Libyan dinar = 1000 dirhams.
Climate
The climate of the state is tropical, hot and arid, in the north - subtropical. Average monthly temperatures + 11-12°C. Precipitation varies from 100-250 mm in the south to 400-600 mm per year in the north.
Flora
Vegetation in Libya is sparse. Deserts (occupying 98% of the territory) are almost devoid of vegetation. Date palms, orange and olive trees grow in a few oases. Juniper and pistachio trees are found in mountainous areas.
Fauna
The fauna of Libya is represented by a hyena, a gazelle, a wild cat, an antelope. Birds include eagle, hawk, and vulture.
Rivers and lakes
There are no permanent rivers. Significant reserves of groundwater, a water pipeline (Great Man-Made River) has been laid for irrigating the land.
Attractions
In Tripoli - the Museum of Natural History, the Archaeological Museum, the Ethnographic Museum, the Museum of Epigraphy, the Museum of Islam, the Arc de Triomphe in honor of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, the mosques of Karamanli and Gurgi, the Spanish fortress in Al-Khum, the Leptis Magna Museum. Along the coast, the ruins of Phoenician and Roman settlements, including Roman baths, have been preserved.
Useful information for tourists
The traditional drink of the Arab countries is coffee. The process of its preparation and drinking is a complex ritual. First, the grains are roasted, stirring them with a metal stick, after which they are crushed in a special mortar with the obligatory observance of a certain rhythm. Coffee is brewed in copper or brass vessels similar to teapots. The finished drink is served in small cups, in order of seniority. Guests are offered coffee three times, after which decency requires you to thank the owner and refuse. Coffee is drunk without sugar, but with the addition of spices - cloves, cardamom, in some countries - saffron and nutmeg. The diet in Arab countries is two times a day: usually it is a very hearty breakfast and the same hearty lunch.
1) Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamaheriya, state all in . Africa. The name of one of the tribes that lived in the oases 3. from the Nile - Libu - the Greeks transferred first to the name of the country, and then to the whole of Africa. However, later the toponym was forgotten and again put into use only at the beginning of the XX century. in. like the title ital. colonies in the North. Africa, which since 1951 G. is an independent state. The word Jamaheriya in official the name of the country is translated from Arab, about as "democracy", "state of the masses" (find the exact equivalent of this term in Russian language is not possible) .
Geographical names of the world: Toponymic dictionary. - M: AST. Pospelov E.M. 2001 .
Libya
(Libya, Arabic official al-Jamahiriya al-Arabiya al-Libiya ash-Shaabiya al-Ishtirakiya
), a state in S. Africa. Pl. 1759.5 thousand km², capital Tripoli
. In the 1st half of the 1st millennium BC. e. Phoenician colonies were founded in Z.L.; in the 7th century. BC e. in V. - Greek. In the V-II centuries. BC e. under the rule of Carthage, in the II century. BC e. – V c. n. e. - Rome. After the arrival of the Arabs (7th century), Islam spread and Arabic. In the XII century. subjected to a devastating invasion of nomads. From the 16th century to 1912 as part of the Ottoman Empire, in 1912–43. - Italian colony, in 1943-51. - under the control of the UK and France. Since December 1951 an independent kingdom, since 1969 a republic. In 1977, the Decree on the establishment of the "regime of people's power" was adopted, and the state was renamed Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
. The supreme body of legislative and executive power is the General People's Congress, according to the decision of March 1-2, 1979, Colonel M. Gaddafi headed the Revolutionary leadership, which is outside the state system. authorities, but in fact is the governing body.
The main part of the territory is a plateau with a height of 200–600 m, in the east. Libyan desert
, in the south spurs of the highlands Tibesti
(Bette, 2286 m). The climate is tropical desert, subtropical in the north. There are no permanent rivers, significant reserves of groundwater.
Population 5.2 million people (2001); density 8 pers. per 1 km²; Arabs over 80%, Berbers, Tuareg, Tubu; townspeople ok. 86% (1995). Official Arabic language. State. religion Islam (Sunnis) - 97%. The basis of the economy is the production and processing of oil. Also developed is cement, text, metallurgist. and food. prom. In the oases and on the coast, cereals, vegetables, peanuts, tobacco, fruits (dates, citrus fruits), grapes are grown. Extensive livestock; fish-in. The main oil ports: Es-Sider, Ez-Zuwaytina, Ras-al-Anuf and others. no. Ruins of ancient Greek, ancient Roman and Byzantine structures, mosques of the 18th–19th centuries. Most high level literacy in the North. Africa. National Kuf park. Cash unit - Libyan dinar.
Dictionary of modern geographical names. - Yekaterinburg: U-Factoria. Under the general editorship of Acad. V. M. Kotlyakova. 2006 .
Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, a state in North Africa. In the north it is washed by the Mediterranean Sea, in the east it borders with Egypt, in the southeast with Sudan, in the south with Chad and Niger, in the west with Algeria and in the northwest with Tunisia. Formerly an Italian colony, since 1951 an independent monarchy. As a result of a military coup in September 1969, King Idris I was overthrown, and Libya was proclaimed a republic. Until 1963, when Libya became a unitary state, the country had a federal structure and consisted of three historical regions - Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan. The capital is Tripoli. Although Libya is one of the largest countries in Africa in terms of area, its population in 1998 was only 5.7 million people. Most of the country's territory is occupied by desert. Thanks to the exploitation of rich oil resources, which began in 1961, the once impoverished Libya has become a prosperous state with the highest per capita income in Africa.
NATURE
Terrain relief. The coastline of Libya in the central part of the coast goes deep into the land, forming the Gulf of Sidra (Greater Sirte), where the barren desert meets the Mediterranean Sea. In the northeast of the country is the higher and more populated plateau of Barqa el-Bayda, which forms the core of Cyrenaica. In the northwest is Tripolitania, and in the south is the Fezzan depression, hundreds of kilometers away from the coast.
Tripolitania. The coastal plain of Jefar is developed here, where several areas of irrigated agricultural land are located. However, even this most favorable for life and economic activity part of Libya is an arid, sandy plain with sparse vegetation. To the south rise limestone hills and mountains with heights up to 760 m, in some places overgrown with shrubs. There is sufficient rainfall here for the development of agriculture; olives, figs and barley can be grown without irrigation. Further south, the mountains drop and give way to the desert plateau of El-Hamra, composed of red sandstones. In its northern part, nomadic tribes are engaged in cattle breeding. In the east, the plateau passes into the mountains of Es-Soda ("black mountains").
Fezzan. About 480 km south of Tripoli, the plateau descends to the Fezzan depression, composed of sands. There are several oases here. Life depends on water supplies in wells and springs. To the southeast of Fezzan, the surface rises to a desert plateau, and along the southern border of Libya, the high and dissected Tibesti highlands begin. Here is the highest point of the country - Mount Bette (2267 m).
Cyrenaica. The limestone plateau of Barka el-Baida, located near the Mediterranean coast, reaches a height of 910 m. The elevated parts of the plateau are overgrown with dense shrubs, and the remains of forests have been preserved there. Rainfall is sufficient for the cultivation of some crops, but the inhabited areas here occupy a smaller area than in Tripolitania. South of the Barqa el-Bayda plateau, there is a vast but lower sandstone plateau. Most of it, especially along the border with Egypt, is covered with sand dunes. This is the vast Libyan desert. Oases are dispersed on its western outskirts. The southernmost of them are the oases of Kufra, 800 km south of the Barqa el-Bayda plateau and about the same distance east of Fezzan. Between the oases of Kufra and the southern border of Libya, the desert stretches for 480 km.
Climate. On the coast of Libya, the climate is Mediterranean subtropical, in the south - desert tropical with sharp seasonal and daily temperature fluctuations and great dryness of the air. The average temperatures of the coldest month - January - in the north of the country are 11–12 ° C, in the south 15–18 ° C, the temperatures of the warmest month - July are 27–29 ° C and 32–35 ° C, respectively. In summer, daytime temperatures are above 40 -42 ° C, maximum - more than 50 ° C. In 1922, in El Azizia, 80 km southwest of Tripoli, a record high temperature of 57.8 ° C was the largest number precipitation. In Benghazi, the average annual rainfall is 250 mm, in Tripoli 360 mm. The nearby mountains and the Barqa el-Bayda plateau are slightly more humid. Not far from them are areas where less than 150 mm of precipitation falls annually. Rains on the coast fall during the winter months, and the summers are very dry and hot. In the deserts of the country, it is not uncommon for only 25 mm of precipitation to fall annually. There are often hot dry winds with dust storms - ghibli and khamsin.
Most of the territory of Libya, with the exception of certain coastal regions, mountains and oases, is characterized by an extremely dry climate and is unsuitable for agriculture.
The fauna of Libya is poor. There are many reptiles (snakes, lizards), rodents are abundant among mammals, predators (jackal, hyena, fennec fox) are found. Antelopes live in the south. Numerous insects. Birds are richly represented in the oases. Anchovy, mackerel, tuna, horse mackerel are found in coastal waters.
POPULATION
Demography. Due to rapid growth from 1973 to 1998, the population of the country increased from 2.2 to 5.7 million people. In the 1970s, the annual population growth rate exceeded 4%. The vast majority of the population is concentrated in a narrow coastal zone and in oases. About 75% of Libyans are engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry, but this ratio is constantly changing as people increasingly move from the countryside to the cities. Libya has two large cities - Tripoli (1.5 million inhabitants in 1990) and Benghazi (800 thousand inhabitants). There are also a number of small towns. These include Misurata (360 thousand people), Ez-Zawiya (280 thousand), Sebha (150 thousand), Tobruk (75.3 thousand), El Beida (67.1 thousand) and Ajdabiya ( 65.3 thousand). New cities arose near the oil terminals: Es-Sider, Ras al-Anuf, Marsa el-Bureika, Ez-Zuwaitina and Marsa el-Kharig.
Ethnogenesis. Unlike other North African states, Libya has an ethnically homogeneous population. Almost all of it consists of Arabs. True, a few Berbers live in the southwestern part of Tripolitania, and Tuareg live in Fezzan. There are small communities of Maltese and Greeks in the country; as a rule, the Greeks are engaged in the extraction of sea sponges. At the end of Italian colonial rule, approx. 20 thousand Italians, employed mainly in agriculture and trade. However, in 1970, the government confiscated property belonging to Italians and Jews, and strongly encouraged Italians to emigrate from Libya. Most of the small, but long-lived Jewish community in Libya emigrated from the country after 1948 and the persecution that followed the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
Language and religion. Almost all Libyans speak Arabic, which is the official language of the country. The Italian language was once widely used, especially among the educated stratum of Libyan society. During the years of the British administration (1943-1951), the English language became widespread, which became especially popular with the appearance of American and British oil companies in Libya.
With the exception of a very few Berbers belonging to the Ibadi or Kharijite sect of Islam, the Libyans are Sunni Muslims. Many people in Cyrenaica are considered followers of the Senusite Dervish Brotherhood, a religious movement that spread to North Africa in the 18th century.
GOVERNMENT
Until 1912, Libya was a province of the Ottoman Empire, and then until the Second World War - a colony of Italy. There was virtually no political activity in the poor, sparsely populated country. The most significant local traditional institution was the Muslim religious brotherhood of the Senusites, centered in Cyrenaica. During the Second World War, Libya was occupied by the troops of Great Britain and France, and after the end of the war remained under the control of the British and French administration.
Libya gained independence in 1951. At that time, it was a federal state, consisting of three provinces - Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan. According to the state structure, Libya was a constitutional monarchy, headed by the head of the Senusite brotherhood, Mohammed Idris al-Senusi, who was crowned under the name of King Idris I. During the Second World War, he actively collaborated with the British. The conservative regime of King Idris was closely associated with Britain and the United States. Although elections were held for the lower house of the bicameral parliament, there were virtually no political parties in the country. However, many Libyans shared the ideas of Arab nationalism in its modern form, which was put forward by Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser.
With the discovery of oil reserves in the late 1950s, Libya embarked on a path of economic prosperity, and soon an educated urban elite emerged in the country. Since 1963 the government has been trying to modernize the country; Libyan women were granted the right to participate in elections, Libya was declared a unitary state. Nevertheless, throughout the country, with the exception of Cyrenaica, the stronghold of the Senussi royal dynasty, dissatisfaction with the conservative policies of the pro-Western monarchy was growing. The defeat of the Arabs in the war with Israel in 1967 gave a strong impetus to the spread of the ideas of Arab nationalism in Libya.
In September 1969, a group of young army officers overthrew the monarchist regime and proclaimed Libya a republic. All power was transferred to the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), headed by the leader of the military coup, Muammar Gaddafi. The SRK dissolved parliament, suspended the constitution, and appointed a predominantly civilian cabinet of ministers. In 1973, Gaddafi organized the Arab Socialist Union (ASS), which became the only legal political organization in the country. In 1977, the General People's Congress (GPC), representing numerous people's committees, approved a new name for the country - the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya ("people's state"). The SRK was also renamed and transformed into the General Secretariat of the Congress. ACC actually merged with the VNK apparatus.
national government. A military regime has been established in Libya, professing the ideas of Arab nationalism, socialism and Islam. The supreme state body is the Supreme People's Commissariat, which includes representatives of the people's committees. In fact, the VNK has the functions of parliament. Its members are elected at the local and regional levels, some of them are appointed personally by Gaddafi. Gaddafi also appoints the ministers of his cabinet from among the members of the GNC. Although Gaddafi himself does not hold any official positions, he remains Libya's leading political figure.
Judicial system. The basis of legal proceedings is the Koran. Legal proceedings are carried out by a hierarchically built system of courts. The magistrates' courts deal with petty cases. Next come the first-tier courts, the courts of appeal and the Supreme Court.
Military establishment. At the end of the 1980s, the size of the armed forces was reduced, but in 1994 it was again restored to the level of the mid-1980s. In 1995-1996, the total strength of the Libyan armed forces was 80 thousand people, of which 50 thousand served in the ground forces. There are 2210 tanks and 417 units of aviation equipment in service, half of the tanks and aircraft are mothballed.
Foreign policy Libya in the 1950s - early 1960s was determined by dependence on the United States and Great Britain, which, in exchange for military assistance, kept their military bases in Libya. As oil revenues increased, Libya freed itself from economic dependence, the foreign military presence was also eliminated, and the country began to move closer to other Arab states. In foreign policy militant Arab nationalism was reflected. Libya has taken an uncompromising position in the Arab-Israeli conflict. In 1977, at a conference of Arab states held in Libya, negotiations between Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israel were sharply criticized. Following this, a break in diplomatic relations with Egypt was announced.
Based on the ideas of Arab nationalism, the leaders of Libya have repeatedly proposed to unite with other Arab countries or create confederations in the hope that this will contribute to the gradual unification of the entire Arab world. In 1972, Libya, Syria and Egypt announced their intention to create a federation, but things did not go beyond intentions. Plans for unification ended in 1972 with Egypt, in 1974 with Tunisia, in 1980 with Syria, in 1981 with Chad, in 1984 with Morocco and in 1987 with Algeria. Currently, Libya is part of the Arab Maghreb Union, a regional association created in 1989 that includes Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania and Libya.
In practice, Libya pursues an active foreign policy course, which has led to conflicts in relations with conservative Arab regimes and the United States. In 1973, Libya occupied the Aouzu strip in northern Chad, and in the 1980s, parts of the Libyan army took part in the civil war in this country. Libya supported the Polisario front, which in 1976-1991 waged an armed struggle with Morocco for control over the territory of the former Spanish Sahara. In 1984, an agreement on economic cooperation was reached between Libya and Malta. The accusation that Libya was supporting terrorists in Lebanon and international terrorism in general significantly worsened US-Libyan relations in the 1980s. In March 1986, a conflict broke out between the armed forces of both countries over territorial waters in the Gulf of Sidra. April 15, 1986 US aircraft bombed several Libyan cities.
In 1987, the armed forces of Chad, with the support of France, inflicted a humiliating defeat on the Libyan army. The question of the territorial belonging of the Aouzu strip was discussed at a meeting of the International Court of Justice in The Hague, which in 1994 ruled in favor of Chad, and Libya withdrew its troops from the disputed territory.
In 1988, the United States and Great Britain accused Libya of blowing up a Pan American cargo airliner over Lockerbie (Scotland), and France of shelling a French aircraft over Niger in 1989. In April 1992, in accordance with UN resolutions No. 731 and No. 748 for the refusal of the Libyan government to extradite the citizens of this country, suspected of carrying out explosions in the United States and Great Britain, economic sanctions were imposed against Libya. These included a ban on all flights to and from Libya, a ban on the sale of aircraft and aircraft parts to that country, and military equipment and equipment. In response to UN decisions in May 1992, Libyan officials issued a statement condemning terrorism, and also announced a decision to close the headquarters of the Palestinian organization Fatah in Tripoli - the Revolutionary Council headed by Abu Nidal. A few weeks later, representatives of Libya and Great Britain met in Geneva, at which the Libyan side conveyed information about Libya's ties with the Irish Republican Army. However, Gaddafi refused to hand over to the United States or Great Britain those suspected of committing sabotage on board the Pan American airliner, citing the fact that Libya does not have an extradition treaty with these countries. Instead, the Libyan leader offered to arrange a trial of them and hold it in different countries, or organize a trial at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Gaddafi's proposal was rejected, and since April 1992 UN sanctions against Libya have been renewed every six months.
Libya is among the non-aligned countries, is a member of the UN, the League of Arab States, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Organization of African Unity and the Islamic Development Bank.
ECONOMY
Prior to the development of oil fields, Libya was one of the poorest countries in Africa and did not have much prospects for economic development. Most of the Libyans were employed in agriculture, which is very unproductive due to the lack of rainfall and the lack of suitable land for cultivation. But by the mid-1960s, thanks to the development of oil fields, Libya was on a par with such countries as Venezuela, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. In 1983, per capita income rose to $8,480. The rapid development of the oil industry left all other sectors of the economy far behind. Libya's national industry is just beginning to take shape, and food still has to be imported to meet the needs of a growing population. Another problem is the lack of qualified personnel. In the late 1980s, more than 500,000 foreigners worked in Libya.
Oil industry. Back in 1955, anticipating the possibility of discovering oil, the Libyan government passed a law on oil concessions. Profits were to be shared equally between the oil companies and the Libyan government, and after a certain fixed period, part of the concession was to become the property of the state. In 1958, the first significant oil fields were explored, and in 1961 their exploitation began. More than 30 oil companies operate on a concession basis in the region of rich oil fields south of the Gulf of Sidra.
In 1970, the annual volume of oil production exceeded 160 million tons, but from the middle of 1970, after the introduction of government restrictions, it began to decline. The restrictions were partly to force oil companies to accept the government's demands, partly to prevent the country's oil resources from being depleted until its economy has reached the desired level of development. Among the oil-exporting countries, Libya most consistently pursued a policy of strengthening state control over the oil industry. As a result of agreements with some oil companies and the nationalization of others, the Libyan government has established control over six oil companies operating in the country. In September 1973, all other companies associated with the extraction and refining of oil were also under the control of the state. In 1973-1974, Libya, along with other members of OPEC, quadrupled the sale price of oil. In 1972-1978, the annual volume of oil production reached 96 million tons. However, after a two-fold increase in oil prices in 1979, a glut of the world oil market followed in the early 1980s. In an effort to keep prices at the same level, the Libyan government was forced to limit production volumes. By 1985, the level of oil production fell to 51 million tons per year, but in the next 10 years its production increased again. Although for 1994-1995 the quota set by OPEC for Libya was 69 million tons per year, the actual production volume reached 75 million tons.
In 1988, when the last significant oil deposits were discovered in the country, the volume of oil reserves was estimated at 3 billion tons (first place in the world). The largest oil fields - Serir, Bahi, Nafura, Raguba, Intisar, Nasser, Wakha, Samakh - are located south of the Gulf of Sidra and are connected by oil pipelines to the coast. Oil is shipped for export through five terminals for oil tankers located in the Mediterranean ports of Es Sider, Ras al Anuf, Marsa el Bureika, Marsa el Hariga and Ez Zuwaitina. In terms of natural gas reserves (657 billion cubic meters), Libya ranks third in Africa. The largest Khateiba field (339 billion cubic meters). In 1970, a plant for liquefied natural gas was put into operation in Marsa el-Bureika, and since 1971, the export sale of liquefied gas began for the first time. In the early 1990s, new natural gas reserves were discovered in the Surt (Sirte) oil and gas basin.
Agriculture. In addition to oil production, agriculture is an important component of the economy. Rural population cultivates the land in the narrow coastal strip of Tripolitania, using atmospheric precipitation in winter and irrigation from wells in summer. Around Tripoli, in the commercial horticulture area, citrus fruits, dates, olives and almonds are grown. In the southern oases, water from underground sources is used to irrigate fields. In the presence of a sufficient amount of precipitation, barley is cultivated on the periphery of the uplands. Arable land makes up only 1% of the country's area, and only 1% of it is included in the artificial irrigation zone. Since 1979, work has been underway to build a "great artificial river" - a conduit designed to transfer water from 250 underground wells from the Tazerbo and Sarir oases in the Sahara desert to the country's coast. By 1993, 1800 km of pipelines and canals had been laid, roads and reservoirs had been built. In Cyrenaica, crops, olives and fruit trees are cultivated on the Barka el-Bayda plateau. Libya has 8 million hectares of grazing land in Tripolitania and 4 million hectares in Cyrenaica. Nomadic pastoralists live in the region of the El-Akhdar plateau in Cyrenaica.
Other industries. The Libyan government is making efforts to expand and diversify the sectoral structure of the industry. In the early 1970s, new industries emerged, including cement and metal products. In subsequent years, a number of contracts were signed with Western European, Yugoslav and Japanese firms for the construction of several nuclear and thermal power plants, as well as heavy industry enterprises. At the same time, it was envisaged that some of these enterprises would use crude oil as a raw material. Among the largest enterprises in the manufacturing industry, the metallurgical plant in Misurata, which produced up to 1.5 million tons of steel and rolled products in 1996, plants for the production of pipes and electric cables stand out; assembly of cars and tractors has been established. The light and food industries are poorly developed. Traditional industries include the extraction of sea sponges, salt evaporation in the coastal zone and various handicraft industries: the manufacture of leather goods, copper, tin, ceramics and carpet weaving. There are also small enterprises in the processing of agricultural products, timber, paper, tobacco, textiles and soap.
The number of industrial workers is small, but is constantly growing as the oil industry develops and the construction of enterprises associated with the extraction and processing of oil. Since almost half of the people employed in the oil industry were foreign workers, in 1971 the government called on foreign companies to recruit as many Libyans as possible.
International trade. During Libya's first decade of independent development, import costs typically exceeded export earnings. By 1963, however, thanks to oil exports, Libya had achieved a positive trade balance. Due to the low sulfur content in oil and due to its proximity to the industrialized countries of Western Europe, Libya successfully competes with other states in the global oil market. The value of Libya's exports in 1991 amounted to 10.2 billion dollars, imports - 8.7 billion dollars. The sale of oil in 1997 brought over 95% of the total amount of export earnings.
The main imports are machinery, construction and transport equipment, textiles, manufactured goods and foodstuffs. In addition to oil, Libya exports natural gas. Libya's main trading partners are Italy, Germany, Spain and France.
Transport. The country's main seaport is Tripoli. It is followed by Benghazi, Derna and Tobruk, modernized and expanded in the 1960s. At the same time, oil terminals were built on the Mediterranean coast to load oil tankers. In the late 1970s, the ports of Tripoli and Benghazi were significantly expanded. After the modernization carried out in the mid-1990s, the capabilities of the ports of Misurata, Ras al-Anuf, Al-Sider and Al-Zuwaitina were significantly expanded. Libya has its own cargo marine fleet (26 ships, including 12 tankers) with a total tonnage of over 70,000 tons.
Total length highways with hard surface - more than 28 thousand km. The country's main highway runs along the Mediterranean coast from Tunisia to Egypt. The highway connecting the coast with Fezzan also plays an important role. Internal transport links are limited to unpaved roads and air traffic. Several international airlines connect Tripoli and Benghazi with European countries and the USA. In 1965, Libya created its own state-owned airline, which performs all domestic and partly international air transportation.
Money circulation and banking. The Central Bank of Libya, created in 1955, has the exclusive right to issue money and control foreign currency. In 1972, the Central Arab Foreign Bank was founded, which is a foreign branch of the Central Bank. The Libyan Arab Foreign Investment Company is responsible for the placement of the country's public funds in more than 45 countries. In 1970, by government decree, all banks in Libya were nationalized. The state currency is the Libyan dinar, which consists of 1000 dirhams.
Finance and economic development of the country. Under the Petroleum Contributions Act of 1958, 70% of government revenue from the sale of oil must be directed to the implementation of economic development plans. At the first stage, the main attention was paid to the development of agriculture, infrastructure, education and housing construction. In the 1970s, projects for the construction of power plants and the development of various industries were included in the list of priorities. The Libyan government is quite clearly aware that after the depletion of oil reserves, the welfare of the country will depend on the level of development of agriculture and industry.
The fall in world oil prices, which had an extremely detrimental effect on exports, in the mid-1980s led to a reduction in allocations for economic development. But the government continues to allocate significant funds for education, health care and support for the media. After 1992, with the imposition of UN sanctions against Libya and the withdrawal of Libyan troops from the disputed territory in northern Chad, public defense spending decreased significantly. The main item of expenditure is the construction of the "great artificial river", for which, by 1996, 18 billion dollars of budgetary funds had been spent. Since the mid-1980s, public investment in industrial production. In the 1989-1990 financial year alone, they decreased by 40% compared to the previous year. On the other hand, budget allocations for the development of agriculture in 1990-1991 fiscal year have quadrupled.
Prior to the influx of funds from the sale of oil, the country's economic development programs were financed mainly by assistance from the United States, Britain and the United Nations. By 1965, Libya was no longer in need of foreign financial assistance, and in the 1970s itself provided assistance to some, mainly Muslim, states in the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
SOCIETY AND CULTURE
social structure. For many centuries, the historical development of each of the two main regions of Libya - Tripolitania and Cyrenaica - went its own way. That is why social homogeneity is more manifested at the regional rather than at the national level. Distribution in the 19th century on the territory of Cyrenaica, the activities of the Senussi order further alienated these two areas, since the population of Tripolitania remained faithful to normative Sunni Islam. The Senussi religious-historical movement, founded by the grandfather of the former King Idris I, aimed to return to the origins of Islam. The population of Cyrenaica consisted mainly of nomads and semi-nomads, while a settled peasant and urban population lived in Tripolitania. A peculiar social organization is also characteristic of the population of the Fezzan desert region.
There is a small stratum of merchants and a small but ever-increasing group of officials, managers and qualified specialists. In the coastal zone and in Fezzan, the land is in individual private ownership. Areas with a nomadic population are characterized by collective ownership of land by tribal groups.
Public education. During the period of the Italian colonial presence in Libya, there was virtually no system of Western education. The beginning of its active distribution dates back to the time of the British military administration, and further development took place after the 1960s, when significant funds began to flow into independent Libya from the sale of oil. Education in the country is free at all levels and compulsory up to grade 9. In 1991-1992, there were 2744 elementary schools and 1555 secondary schools in Libya, 195 vocational and pedagogical colleges. There were also 10 universities and 10 pedagogical institutes (including corresponding departments at the universities of al-Fattah in Tripoli and Garyounis in Benghazi). 1.4 million children study in primary school, 310.5 thousand in secondary school, 37 thousand in vocational schools and in the system high school- 72.9 thousand students. The development of technical training is mainly driven by the needs of the oil industry. There are 14 research centers in the country. The State provides material assistance to a network of Islamic educational institutions, including the Islamic University of Al-Beida, which is also a center for religious studies.
In Libya comes out approx. 20 newspapers and magazines in Arabic and English, the number of published books is small.
STORY
The differences between the two main regions of the country - Tripolitania and Cyrenaica - go back to ancient times. In the 4th c. BC. Cyrenaica was colonized by the Greeks, then conquered by the army of Alexander the Great, then was under the control of the Ptolemaic dynasty, and already from them in 96 BC. went to the Roman Empire. The island of Crete was also part of the Roman province of Cyrenaica. Tripolitania was initially in the zone of influence of Phoenicia, and then Carthage. Ultimately, both areas became the possessions of the Roman Empire, but when it was divided, Cyrenaica became part of the eastern possessions, while Tripolitania remained under the direct control of Rome. In 455, the Vandals attacked the territory of Libya from the west, but in 533 the troops of Emperor Justinian managed to oust them from the country. In 642–644, the Arab cavalry invaded Libya, and the country became part of the Arab Caliphate, but until the 11th century. the local population was not converted to Islam. After the Arab conquest, Cyrenaica moved closer and closer to Egypt, while Tripolitania became part of the Western Arab world (Maghrib).
Between 1517 and 1577 Libya was conquered by the Ottoman Empire and until 1711 was under the control of governors from Istanbul. In 1711-1835, the local dynasty of Karamanly established itself in Libya, nominally remaining loyal to the sultan. In 1835 the country came under direct control of the Ottoman Empire. The Sultan personally appointed the wali, who had full power in Libya, turned into a vilayet (province).
Italy, which in 1911 began to seize the territory of Libya, ran into stubborn armed resistance from the local population. Until 1922, the Italians managed to maintain control over only some coastal areas, and only by 1932 did they manage to subjugate the entire country. Until 1934, Cyrenaica and Tripolitania were considered separate colonies of Italy, although they were under the control of one governor-general. Under Mussolini in 1939, Libya was incorporated into Italy.
During the Second World War, Libya became the scene of fierce hostilities, and in 1943 was occupied by the Allied forces. Under the 1947 peace treaty, Italy lost all rights to the territory of its former colony, the fate of which was to be decided during negotiations between France, Great Britain, the USA and the USSR. It was envisaged that if within a year the great powers could not come to an acceptable agreement, the fate of the country would be decided by the UN. In November 1949, the UN General Assembly decided to grant independence to Libya until January 1, 1952.
In 1950-1951, the work of the National Constituent Assembly took place, which included an equal number of representatives from all three regions of the country. The deputies of the assembly adopted a constitution and in December 1951 approved the Emir of Cyrenaica, Mohammed Idris al-Senusi, as king of Libya. On December 24, 1951, an independent federal kingdom was proclaimed, which included the provinces of Cyrenaica, Tripolitania, and Fezzan.
An independent Libya inherited a very poor and mostly illiterate population. In exchange for substantial economic and technical assistance, the Libyan government allowed the United States and Britain to maintain their military bases in the country. Since there were not enough lawyers and teachers in the country, specialists from Egypt were invited to the civil service.
The second decade of the country's independent path of development was strikingly different from the first. The flood of oil revenues into Libya allowed the government to forego foreign aid, and it terminated the agreement to keep American and British military bases on its territory. In 1963, the federal structure was abolished, which took into account the peculiarities historical development and the traditions of the three parts of the country, and Libya was declared a unitary state.
On September 1, 1969, a group of young army officers led by Muammar Gaddafi overthrew the regime of King Idris I. The country was named the Libyan Arab Republic, and all power was transferred to the Revolutionary Command Council. Gaddafi led the country in accordance with his proclaimed principle of "Islamic socialism" and was determined to reduce Libya's dependence on foreign influence. By 1973, 51% of the shares of all foreign oil companies had become state property. An important step was the nationalization of the retail network for the sale of petroleum products and gas, as well as the introduction of a state monopoly on the export of petroleum products. At the initiative of Gaddafi, the process of strengthening national sovereignty was carried out in the country: foreign military bases were withdrawn from Libya, nationalization of foreign property was carried out, and control over the production and sale of oil was introduced. Many leading positions in the economy and other spheres of life were occupied by citizens of the country. In the mid-1970s, after the deterioration of relations with Egypt, many Egyptians who worked in Libya were forced to leave it.
In 1977, M. Gaddafi, who served as General Secretary of the General People's Congress, became head of state. Measures have been stepped up in the country to oust private capital from retail and wholesale trade and eliminate private ownership of real estate. Gaddafi proclaimed a foreign policy course to provide active assistance to "revolutionary movements and regimes that oppose imperialism and colonialism", and supported international terrorism. In 1979, he resigned, declaring his intention to devote himself to developing the ideas of the Libyan revolution. Nevertheless, Gaddafi still remained a key figure in the political life of the country.
In the 1970s, oil prices rose significantly on world markets, which led to the accumulation of significant funds in Libya, which was a supplier of oil to Western countries. Government revenues from oil exports were used to finance urban development and the creation of a modern system of social security for the population. At the same time, to increase the international prestige of Libya, huge sums were spent on the creation of a well-armed modern army. In the Middle East and North Africa, Libya acted as a carrier of the ideas of Arab nationalism and an uncompromising opponent of Israel and the United States. The sharp drop in oil prices in the mid-1980s led to a significant weakening of Libya. Meanwhile, the US administration accused Libya of complicity in international terrorism, and on April 15, 1986, the US bombed several cities in Libya.
In 1992, sanctions were applied against Libya after Libyan citizens blew up two passenger airliners. She denied all accusations and refused to extradite her citizens suspected of committing sabotage. In late 1993, Gaddafi suggested that the two Libyans accused of the Lockerbie bombing should be tried in any country in the world, but that the court should either be Muslim, or the composition of the court should consist entirely of Muslims. The proposal of the Libyan leader was rejected, and since 1992, UN sanctions have been renewed against Libya every six months, including the termination of military-technical cooperation and air travel, the freezing of Libyan assets, a ban on the import of certain types of equipment for the oil industry to Libya, etc. After the International a court in The Hague issued a verdict on the right of Chad to the Aouzu strip, occupied in 1973 by Libyan troops, Libya in 1994 withdrew its troops from the area.
In September 1995, as a sign of dissatisfaction with the peace agreements concluded earlier between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel, Gaddafi announced the deportation of 30 thousand Palestinians living there from Libya.
LITERATURE
Proshin N.I. History of Libya(end of XIX - 1969).
M., 1975
Fatis V.L. .
M., 1982
Lavrentiev V. L. . Directory. M., 1985
Proshin N.I., Roshchin M.Yu., Smirnova G.I. . –
In the book: recent history Arab countries of Africa, 1917-1987. M., 1990
Encyclopedia Around the World. 2008 .
LIBYA
SOCIALIST PEOPLE'S LIBYAN ARAB JAMAHIRIA
State in North Africa. In the north it is washed by the Mediterranean Sea. In the east it borders with Egypt, in the southeast - with Sudan, in the south - with Chad and Niger, in the west - with Algeria, in the northwest - with Tunisia. The area of the country is 1759540 km2. About 90% of the territory is bare rocky plains and deserts, only in the northeast and northwest there are low (up to 900 m) mountain plateaus; in the south, along the border with Chad, lies the Tibetsi massif.
The population of Libya (estimated in 1998) is about 5,690,700 people, the average population density is about 3 people per km2. More than two-thirds of the population lives in the northern coastal regions. Ethnic groups: Arabs and Berbers - 97%, Greeks, Italians, Pakistanis, Egyptians, Turks, Indians. Language: Arabic (state), Berber, sometimes Italian and English are used. Religion: Sunnis - 97%, Catholics. The capital is Tripoli. Largest cities: Tripoli (2595000 people), Benghazi (1059000 people). State structure- Islamic Arab socialist people's state. Head of State - Secretary of the Supreme People's Committee Abdel Majid al-Gaud. The monetary unit is the Libyan dinar. Average life expectancy (for 1998): 62 years - men, 65 years - women. The birth rate (per 1000 people) is 44.0. Mortality rate (per 1000 people) - 7.2.
The first settlements on the territory of modern Libya were founded by the Phoenicians, and in the VI century BC. conquered by Carthage. Later, Libya became part of the Roman Empire, and in 455 AD. was conquered by vandals. In 643, the country was captured by the Arabs, under whose rule, with a short break, the country was until the 16th century, when it became part of the Ottoman Empire. At the beginning of the 20th century, Italy made several attempts to occupy Libya. In 1943, after the expulsion of Italian and German troops, Libya came under joint French and British administration. On December 24, 1951, King Idris I proclaimed the independent United Kingdom of Libya. A new era in the history of Libya began on September 1, 1969, when a group of young officers led by Muammar Gaddafi staged a coup and proclaimed the country the Libyan Arab Republic. Libya is a member of the UN, the Arab League. Organization of African Unity, OPEC.
The climate of the country is hot and arid, the annual rainfall on the coast rarely exceeds 400 mm, the average July temperature is about 28 ° C. The vegetation is poor: date palms, orange and olive trees grow in a few oases. In mountainous areas, juniper and pistachio trees are found. Among mammals, the hyena, gazelle and wild cat are the most common; among the birds are the eagle, the hawk and the vultures.
As for sights, the ruins of Phoenician and Roman settlements have been preserved along the coast. In Tripoli: Museum of Natural History; Archaeological Museum; ethnographical museum; Museum of Epigraphy, which contains written monuments of the Phoenician, Roman and Byzantine periods; Museum of Islam. Among the architectural monuments: a triumphal arch in honor of the emperor Marcus Aurelius, erected in the 2nd century AD; the mosques of Karamanli and Gurgi; Spanish fortress of the 16th century. In the city of Al-Khum is the famous Museum "Leptis Magna", which houses exhibits from the Roman period.
Encyclopedia: cities and countries. 2008 .
Libya is a state in the central part of North Africa on an area of 1759.5 sq. km. In the north, Libya is washed by the Mediterranean Sea. The country gained independence in 1951. The official language is Arabic. The state religion is Islam. Administrative-territorial division: 13 municipalities.
The population (6.3 million people) is quite homogeneous: over 90% are Libyans - a nation formed as a result of a mixture of Arabs and Berbers. Traditional crafts include pottery and leather embossing.
natural conditions
Almost the entire territory of Libya is occupied by desert. The surface of the country is a plateau 200-600 m above sea level, divided by extensive depressions into separate sections, in the south - spurs of the Tibesti highlands (up to 2286 m high). The coast, washed by the Mediterranean Sea, is slightly dissected, the only large bay of Sidbra is shallow. The climate is tropical, in the north - subtropical, Mediterranean. On the coast, the average temperatures in January are 11–12 ° C, in July - 26–29 ° C, precipitation falls up to 250–350 mm per year, and on the El-Akhdar plateau - even up to 600 mm. Throughout the rest of the territory, average July temperatures rise to 36 ° C, but at night the air cools to zero or even lower. Precipitation everywhere falls below 100 mm per year. In some areas, it does not rain for several years in a row. There are no permanently flowing rivers, all of them are filled with water only during a short rainy period.
Desert vegetation is extremely poor. Only on the coast near the border with Tunisia (cm. Tunisia (state)) there are Mediterranean communities of shrubs (maquis), groves of Aleppo pine, junipers and single cedars. Not rich and animal world: only occasionally you can meet herds of gazelles, in the extreme south - antelopes. More numerous are jackals, hyenas, as well as reptiles and birds (the latter - especially during seasonal passages passing over the territory of Libya).
Story
In the 1st half of the 1st millennium BC. e. Phoenician colonies were founded in the west of Libya, in the 7th century. in the east - the Greek city-colonies. In the middle of the 5th-2nd centuries. a significant part of Libya (in the west) under the rule of Carthage, in the 2nd century. BC e. - 5 in. n. e. - Rome. After the arrival of the Arabs (seventh century), Islam and the Arabic language spread. In the 11th century Libya was subjected to a devastating invasion of nomads. In the 16th century - 1912 as part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1912-43. Italian colony. In December 1951 - 1969. independent kingdom. On September 1, 1969, the royal regime was overthrown and a republic was proclaimed. In 1977, a decree was adopted on the establishment in Libya of a "regime of people's power" (the so-called direct people's democracy); The country was renamed the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya.
Attractions
capital and most Big city country Tripoli is located on the coast. In Tripoli, which is also called the "Bride of the Mediterranean", you can see the ruins of Phoenician, Carthaginian and Roman buildings. The old part of the city retains the appearance characteristic of many cities of the Arab East: low (one or two floors) houses with flat roofs, minarets of mosques directed to the sky, colorful bazaars. Among the mosques, the 25-domed mosque of Ahmad Pasha Karamanli (1711) stands out. It was built by order of the founder of the Karamanli dynasty, the ruler of Tripoli, Ahmad Pasha, whose tomb is located in a separate annex. Other interesting mosques: In-Naka (Camel Mosque), the oldest mosque in the city; 16-domed Gurgi Mosque (1833); Al-Jami Mosque (1640) - "Great Mosque" of Tripoli.
The Roman city of Leptis Magna is located 120 km from Tripoli. The triumphal arch of Septim Sevres, the forum, the basilica, the Baths of Hadrian and the amphitheater, from where a panorama of the city opens, have survived to our times. The main attraction of the city of Tolomey (Ptolemy) is the Hellenic Palace (1st century BC - 1st century AD). In the city of Sirena, the temple of Apollo (7th century BC) has been preserved. The city of Ghadames, located on the border of the Sahara, is called the "Pearl of the Desert". It is distinguished by a peculiar architecture: the second floors of the buildings hang over the streets, connecting into a bizarre indoor labyrinth. This unusual city is recommended to visit for everyone who decides to go on a trip to Libya.
And, female derivatives: Liva. Origin: (Female to (see Livy)) Name day: July 8 Dictionary of personal names. Libya July 8 (June 25) - Martyr Libya. Day Angel. A guide to names and birthdays ... Dictionary of personal names
- (Libia, Λυβία). Northern part of Africa. In ancient times, Africa was generally designated by this name. (
Libya (Arabic: ليبيا Libya, in Berber) is one of the Maghreb countries in North Africa. The state of Libya is washed by the Mediterranean Sea from the north. It has an eastern border with Egypt, with Sudan in the southeast. On the south side - with Chad and Nigeria, in the western part - with Algeria and Tunisia. With an area of almost 1.8 million square kilometers, Libya is the 17th largest country in the world.
The largest city and capital of Libya, Tripoli, is home to about 6.4 million people. The country is traditionally divided into three parts, preserved from ancient times: Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan.
The name Libya was introduced in 1934 during the Italian occupation. ancient civilization received the historical designation of Northwest Africa, which sounds in ancient Greek as "Libie" - Λιβύη (Libúē).
The State of Libya became independent in 1951 as the United Libyan State Organization (Arabic: المملكة الليبية المتحدة al-Mamlakah al-Lībiyyah al-Muttaḥidah, Italian: Regno Unito di Livia). The name was later abolished and the state in northwestern Africa became known as the Kingdom of Libya (Arabic: المملكة الليبية et Mamlakah-al-Lībiyyah, Italian: Regno di Livia) in 1963.
After the coup d'état led by Muammar Gaddafi in 1969, the name was changed to the Libyan Arab Republic (Arabic: الجمهورية العربية الليبية al-Jumhūriyyah al-‘Arabiyyah al-‘Arabiyyah al-Lībiyblica, Arabic: Lipubica al-Lībiyblica).
Prehistoric proto-state of Libya
Sahara Desert, LibyaTens of thousands of years ago, the part of the Sahara desert, which now covers about 90% of Libya, was occupied by lush green vegetation and was distinguished by a variety of tropical wildlife, a concentration of small lakes and a temperate Mediterranean climate.
Archaeological evidence suggests that the coastal plain of ancient Libya was inhabited by Neolithic peoples as early as 8000 BC. Apparently, the mild climate of these places contributed to the resettlement and favorable growth of the population in this area. The ancient Libyans were well versed in the issues of domesticating cattle and growing crops. The images indicate that Libya's grassy plateaus were home to a vast array of wildlife such as giraffes, elephants and crocodiles.
The part that was engaged in livestock breeding and agriculture has survived to this day, they are called "Berbers". Berber clans still exist in Libya. They are distributed from the Atlantic coast in Africa to the Siwa oasis in Egypt. The nomadism of the people over such a vast territory is associated with gradual climate change and desertification, drainage of the territory. It is believed that the original inhabitants of the Libyan civilization were the Garamantes, who lived in the settlement of Germa, which existed thousands of years ago, when the Sahara was still green.
The Garamantes were of Berber origin and used sophisticated underground irrigation systems. And they founded the kingdom of Fezzan, which is currently one of the regions of modern Libya. They had a tribal settlement in Fezzan around 1000 BC. and became in power in the Sahara between 500 BC. and 500 AD By the time of contact with the Phoenicians, representatives of the first of the Semitic civilizations who arrived in Libya from the East, the Garamantes, Berbers and other tribes who lived in the Sahara were already well known.
The onset of global warming processes led to the fact that the "green Sahara" eventually turned into the Sahara desert.
Politics of ancient Libya
Libya, Sabratha Colosseum There were the first who established trade in Libya. They developed commercial relations with the Berber tribes to ensure cooperation in the use of raw materials. In the 5th century BC, the greatest of the Phoenician colonies, Carthage, occupied most of North Africa. A new civilization was formed here, called the Punic.
Punic settlements on the territory of the modern state of Libya were concentrated in the province of Oea (later Tripoli), Libda (later Leptis Magna) and. These cities were then merged into one area, which formed the "Three Cities", the modern Libyan capital of Tripoli.
In 630 B.C. the ancient Greeks colonized Eastern Libya and founded the city of Cyrene. Over the next 200 years, four more important Greek cities were consolidated into the area that became known as Cyrenaica: Barsa (later Marge); Ehesperides (later Berenice, modern Benghazi); Taucheira (later Arsinoe, modern Taucheria); Balagre (later Baida and Bede Littoria, which were under Italian occupation for a long time, modern Bayda), and Apollonia (later Susa), the port of Cyrene.
Together with Cyrene, they were known as the Pentapolis (five cities). Cyrene became one of the greatest intellectual and artistic centers of the Greek world, and was renowned for its medical school and architecture. The Greeks of Pentapolis resisted the ancient Egyptians from the East, as well as the Carthaginians from the West. But in 525 BC. The Persian army of Cambyses II captured Cyrenaica, which for the next two centuries remained under the control of the Persians and Greeks.
When he entered Cyrenaica in 331 BC, he was welcomed by the Greeks. Eastern Libya again fell under the control of the Greeks, but this time from the dynasty of the Ptolemaic Kingdom.
After the fall of Carthage, the Romans did not take control of Tripolitania (the region around Tripoli), but left it under the control of the king of Numidia. Ptolemy Apion, the last Greek ruler, bequeathed Cyrenaica to Rome, who formally annexed the area in 74 BC. and annexed it as a Roman province in Crete. During the Roman civil war, Tripolitania and Cyrenaica became the scene of an unfolding political struggle between Pompeii and Mark Antony against Caesar and Octavian. The Romans completed the conquest of the region occupying northern Fezzan ("Phasania") under Augustus. The state of Tripolitania flourished in the 2nd and 3rd centuries, when a city was formed under the Severan dynasty. In Cyrenaica, under the emperor Claudius, the first Christian communities were formed. The city was badly destroyed during the Kitos war, and its decline began.
Despite multiple conquests, Tripolitania and Cyrenaica were part of the same cosmopolitan state, whose citizens had a common language, legal system and were guided by Roman customs. Roman ruins, like those of Leptis Magna and Sabrath, preserved in the modern state of Libya, testify to the prosperity of a densely populated city with its own markets, public entertainments, which can be found in any corner of the Roman Empire of those times.
Many merchants and artisans from Rome settled in North Africa, which created the infrastructure of cities. By the nature of the regions, Tripolitania remained Punic. And Cyreaike has a Greek image. Tripolitania became a center of trade as the area was the largest exporter of olive oil, ivory and wild animals. Kiranaike is an important supplier of wine and horses. The bulk of the population in the countryside consisted of Berber farmers, who were thoroughly "Latinized" in languages and customs.
The decline of the Roman Empire resulted in cities falling into ruins. Vandalism becomes the main cause of the decline and destruction of Northern Africa in the 5th century AD.
During the reign of Justinian, attempts were made by the so-called Eastern Romans to fortify the old cities. However, these were the last efforts to recreate the former power of the ancient cities after their final destruction and desolation.
Conquests of the State of Libya
Conquests of the State of Libya In the 7th century, an Arab Muslim invasion began on the territory of the modern country of Libya.
Byzantine control of Libya consisted of the weak fortification of several coastal fortresses. Arab horsemen who crossed the Pentapolis of Cyrenaica in September 642 AD met with no serious resistance. Under the command of Amr ibn al-As, the armies of Islam conquered Cyrenaica and renamed Pentapolis Barka. They also took Tripoli, but after destroying the city's Roman wall and receiving tribute, they left. In 647, an army led by Abdullah ibn Saad finally took Tripoli.
Supporters of the Coptic Church in Cyrenaica hailed Muslim Arabs as liberators from Byzantine oppression. Berber tribes converted to Islam, but resisted Arab political power.
After the successful Habsburg invasion of Spain at the beginning of the 16th century, Charles V entrusted the defense of his to the Knights of St. John in Malta. The threat of piracy, which was particularly prevalent in the Maghreb countries with coastlines such as Barbarossa and its successors, consolidated Ottoman control.
The Ottoman Turks captured Tripoli in 1551 under the command of Sinan Pasha, then his successor Turgut Reis, who received the title of Pasha Tropili in 1556. As Pasha, he embellished and sculpted Tripoli, which has become one of the most impressive cities along the northern coast of Africa.
From 1912 to 1927 the territory of Libya was known as Italian North Africa. From 1927 to 1934 the country was divided into two colonies, Italian Cyrenaica and Italian Tripolitania, which were under the jurisdiction of the Italian kings. About 150,000 Italians were settled in Libya at this time, who made up about 20% of the population of the entire territory.
In 1934, Italy adopted the name "Libya", which was used by the Greeks for all the countries of North Africa except Egypt, as the official name of the colony, consisting of the three parts of Cyrenaica, Tripolitania and Fezzan.
The current state of the state of Libya
City of Sabratha, Libya In December 1951, King Idris I declared the independence of Libya, and ruled the state until the revolutionary coup that overthrew the government in 1969.
In 1959, significant oil reserves were discovered in Libya, which brought the country to the list of one of the richest on the African continent.
In 1969, a small group of officers led by 27-year-old army officer Muammar Gaddafi staged a coup d'état against King Idris and started the Libyan revolution.
Since 1977, the country's per capita income has grown by more than US$11,000, the fifth highest in Africa. While the development index became the highest in Africa and even surpassed Saudi Arabia. All this in the absence of attracting any external investment and debts. The country's literacy rate has risen from 10 percent to 90 percent. Opportunities were created for the employment of emigrant workers, the population received access to free education. Free health care, state assistance for housing construction, access to drinking water was provided in large parts of the country.
The coastline of Libya stretches for 1770 km along the Mediterranean Sea and is the largest among the African countries of the Mediterranean. Therefore, the part of the Mediterranean Sea to the north of the country's territory is often called the Libyan Sea.
The oases of Libya are scattered throughout the country. The most important of these are Ghadames and Kufra.
The Libyan desert, which covers most of the state, is one of the driest places on Earth. In some places, precipitation occurs extremely rarely, once every 5-10 years. The highest air temperature was recorded in Tripoli in 1922. +57, 8C.
Cities of Libya
In 2007, Libya was divided into 22 districts:
1. Butnan,
2. Turf,
3. Jebel el-Akhdar,
4. Marge,
5. Benghazi,
6. El Ouhat,
7. Kufra,
8. Sirte,
9. Murzuk,
10. Sabha,
11. Wadi al-Khaya
12. Misrata
13. Murcube
14. Tripoli
15. Jafar
16. Zawiya
17. Nukat Hams
18. Jebel al-Gabri
19. Nalut
20. Gat
21. Jufra
22. Wadi al-Shatti
The largest cities in Libya are Tripoli, Benghazi, Misrata, Baida and Zawiya.
State language of Libya
Taureg Tribes Libya, Africa The main language in Libya is Arabic, the Libyan dialect, spoken by 95% of the population. The remaining 5% use Berber languages in everyday speech, that is, the languages of the Berbers and Tuareg, which do not have official status.
96.7% of the Libyan population is Muslim, 2% is Christian, and 1.3% is other religions. The majority of Libyan Muslims adhere to Sunni Islam. The Coptic Orthodox Christian, led by the patriarchy in Egypt, is the largest and dominant Christian community in Libya. Also in Libya, there are about 60,000 Egyptian Copts, who make up 1% of the population. And 4,000 Catholics who identify themselves with two bishops, one of whom is in Tripoli (Italian community) and the other in Benghazi (Maltese community). There is also a small Anglican community.
Landmarks of Libya
The sights of Libya are many architectural and archaeological monuments, especially Leptis Magna, which is under the protection of UNESCO. The Libyan capital Tripoli has many museums and archives, which include the Government Library, the Ethnographic Museum, the Archaeological Museum, the National Archives, the Museum of Epigraphy and the Islamic Museum. Not far from the Mediterranean coast, in cooperation with UNESCO, the Red Museum was built in Libya.
Until 2009, the state of Libya ranked fifth in terms of GDP per capita in Africa behind Equatorial Guinea, the Seychelles, Gabon and Botswana. Libya has the tenth largest oil reserves in the world.
As a result of the civil war in 2011, the country is undergoing political reconstruction, the leadership of the country is carried out by the General National Congress on the basis of an interim constitution.
Watch "Libya under the open sky"
Libya is located in northeast Africa. It is located between 19° and 33° north latitude and 9° and 26° east longitude. It is washed in the north by the waters of the Mediterranean Sea. The total area of the country is 1.759.540 km2. The total length of the land borders is 4.383 km. Including with such countries as: Algeria - 982 km, Chad - 1.055 km, Egypt - 1.150 km, Niger - 354 km, Sudan - 383 km, Tunisia - 459 km. Coastline of the country: 1.770 km.
Libya is dominated by barren and flat plains in the northeast with the vast Libyan Desert, the western part is covered by an elevated plateau with the deserts of Idekhan-Marzuk in the south and Aubari in the north. The highest point is Bikku Bitti 2.267 m, the lowest is 24 m below sea level. Arable land makes up 1%, but with a huge territory and a population of only 5.7 million people, it is enough to provide the country with food. On the Mediterranean coast, several crops are harvested a year.
More than 9/10 of the territory is occupied by desert and semi-desert spaces of the Sahara (in the east called the Libyan Desert). Plateaus and plains (200-600 m) alternate with basins (up to 131 m below sea level), low (up to 1200 m) mountain ranges and ridges with extinct volcanoes. Only the northern spurs of the Tibesti highlands rise higher in the southeast and extreme south, where the highest point of Libyan territory is located - Bette Peak (2286 m). Among mineral wealth proven reserves of oil - 4130 million tons and natural gas - 1314 billion m3 (at the beginning of 2001, respectively, the first and third largest in Africa). Other resources are poorly explored. It is known about the reserves of iron ore with a volume of approx. 5.7 billion tons, magnesia (total reserves 7.5 million tons) and potassium (1.6 million tons) salts, the presence of phosphates, gypsum and raw materials for cement production, as well as other minerals.
Relief of Libya
Geologically, the territory of Libya is part of the northern slope of the ancient African platform, which was formed at the base by Precambrian crystalline rocks. The ledges of this crystalline basement are exposed in the south, in the center and in the southeast of Libya. Large depressions of the ancient basement (El-Hamra, Murzuk, Kufra oasis, East Libyan, etc.) are filled with sedimentary marine and continental deposits, and from the surface they are most often covered with sand accumulations. The central part of Libya is crossed by tectonic faults, in the area of which volcanic rocks come to the surface. The coast of the Mediterranean Sea is also bordered by faults, and a huge fault adjoins the Gulf of Sidra from the southeast - a graben filled with limestone and other marine sediments of the Mesozoic-Tertiary age. The richest oil deposits are confined to them: its reserves amount to more than 3 billion tons. In addition to oil, gas, various mineral salts, and gypsum, the bowels of Libya are also rich in ore minerals, but their exploration is still a matter of the future.
Most of the country's territory is plateaus and plains with heights up to 200-600 m, separated in separate areas by extensive underestimations. In the northwest, in Tripolitania, the Al-Hamra plateau stands out - a rocky desert composed of Cretaceous limestones. The northern edge of the plateau ends with the ledge of Nefus (height up to 719 m), which abruptly breaks off to the coastal plain - a continuation of the Tunisian lowland of Jefar. In the south, this plateau rises sharply above the huge Fezzan basins filled with giant accumulations of sands (edeyens) - Ubari, Murzuk.
Sand ridges here reach a length of tens and hundreds of kilometers and a height of 150-200 m. These two largest sandy massifs of Western Libya are separated by a narrow and low mountain range Amsak-Settafed. Western Libya is separated from the eastern part of the country by separate mountain ranges and ranges: the Tummo mountains near the border with Niger (1043 m), the Ben Guneima plateau (740 m) and the El Kharuj al-Aswad massif (1200 m) in the center of the country.
In the north of Cyrenaica, the mountains of Barka el-Bayda (average heights 500-600 m) are bordered off the coast of the El-Akhdar plateau (878 m). This name means "green mountains" and arose because here is the most lush subtropical vegetation in the country. The nature of the mountains contrasts strongly with the waterless desert surrounding the mountains of Barka el-Bayda.
The entire eastern part of the country, except for the mountains of Barka el-Bayda, is occupied by the harsh deserts of the Sahara, usually united under the name of the Libyan Desert. In its north, low-lying pebble-rubbly, almost lifeless expanses of the Serirs stretch. In the east, near the borders with Egypt, and in the south, these are almost entirely sandy deserts. In the extreme south, near the borders with Chad, stony bare expanses of the Serirs reappear, and in the spurs of the volcanic Tibesti highlands, which enters Libya from Chad, there is the highest point of the country - the ancient Bette volcano (2286 m).
To the south of the mountains of Barqa el-Bayda, a tectonic depression extends, the level of which in some places drops to sea level, and near the border with Egypt, in the Jaghbub oasis, elevations are even several meters below sea level. In the low places of the Libyan Desert, where it is possible to extract groundwater even by the most primitive means, the largest oases have long appeared - Jaghbub, Tazerbo, Kufra, etc.
Soils of Libya
The soil cover is almost absent in most of the territory, which is occupied by lifeless spaces, mainly sandy, clayey, pebble-rubbly or stony and salt marshes. The exceptions are a narrow (8-15 km wide) strip on the coastal plains of the north, except for its middle part along the Gulf of Sirte, as well as oases in deep areas, usually low-lying, covered with fertile silty deposits. Only in the extreme east in Cyrenaica and in the west in Tripolitania does this fertile zone expand in places up to 40 km.
Climate of Libya
On the coast of Libya, the climate is Mediterranean subtropical, in the south - desert tropical with sharp seasonal and daily temperature fluctuations and low air humidity. The average temperatures in July are 27–29° C in the north and 32–35° C in the south; in January, 11–12° C in the north and 15–18° C in the south. Summer temperatures during the day are above 40–42° C, sometimes above 50 ° C. In 1922, a record high temperature of 57.8 ° C was recorded 80 km southwest of Tripoli in El Azizia. The largest amount of precipitation falls in the coastal regions of the country. The average annual rainfall in Benghazi is 250 mm, in Tripoli - 360 mm. A little more precipitation falls in the nearby mountains and on the Barqa el-Bayda plateau. In the rest of the territory there are areas where less than 150 mm of precipitation falls annually. On the coast, the rains fall during the winter months, and the summers are very dry and hot, with little to no precipitation. In desert areas, it is not uncommon for only 25 mm of precipitation per year to fall, and hot, withering winds with dust storms - ghibli and khamsin - are frequent.
With the exception of certain coastal regions, mountains and oases, the territory of Libya is characterized by an extremely dry climate and is unsuitable for agriculture.
Water resources of Libya
There are no rivers in Libya with a permanent flow, but there are numerous dry valleys of the ancient rivers of the Oueds, which, during periods of rainfall, are partially filled with rainwater for a short time. In the mountains of Barqa el Bayda, during the rainy season, some of the bridles resemble mountainous Mediterranean rivers, but in the dry season they are as lifeless as the desert bridles. The deserts, however, are rich in underground waters, significant accumulations of which are found under the edeyens and in sandy basins in the east of the country. Where water is close to the surface, oases and areas of irrigated agriculture have arisen.
Flora of Libya
The natural vegetation of the deserts is very poor - these are dry-loving thorny plants, saltworts, rare shrubs, single trees in the valleys of the oueds, where moisture is stored in the alluvium. Vast areas are almost completely devoid of vegetation. In more humid areas of the coast, on gray-brown soils and gray soils, cereals, tamarisks and other shrubs grow, as well as individual clumps of acacias. Between the zone of coastal subtropical vegetation and deserts stretches several tens of kilometers wide a strip of semi-desert vegetation with a sparse grass cover dominated by hard-leaved xerophytic grasses, wormwood and salt-loving plants.
In humid places near the coasts, small areas of wild forests, thickets of Phoenician juniper, maquis (dense evergreen shrubs and low trees - myrtle, oleander, pistachio), groves of Aleppo pine, acacia, sycamore (fig tree, or fig), tamarisk, olive, carob wood, cedar, cypress, holm oak, Euphrates poplar. Around the cities, plantations of eucalyptus, palm, pine, fruit trees and shrubs are expanding: pomegranate, apricot, citrus, olive, banana, almond, grape, laurel. It is mainly cultivated agricultural land, together with land in the interior oases, barely reaching 1.9% of the Libyan territory.
Animal world of Libya
The animal world is not diverse. Reptiles (snakes, lizards), insects and arachnids (scorpions, phalanges) predominate; from mammals - rodents, hares are less common, from predators - jackals, hyenas, red foxes, fenech (small representatives of wolves weighing up to 1.5 kg); wild boars are more common in the north, artiodactyls - antelopes, gazelles - in the extreme south. Birds (pigeons, swallows, crows, eagles, falcons, vultures) nest more in oases, mountainous areas and seaside. Many migratory birds from European countries also winter there. Coastal waters are rich - more than 300 species of fish, including commercial (anchovy, mackerel, tuna, horse mackerel, sardine, eel), as well as valuable types of sponges.
Few migratory birds pass over Libya, and some of them even winter here. There are many birds in oases, where they, especially passerines, cause great harm to poor crops. Small rodents are also a scourge, living everywhere, even in almost waterless parts of the desert.
The population of Libya
The relatively small population of Libya (6.5 million people) lives on a vast territory (1,800,000 km2). In the two northern regions of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, the population density is about 50 people/km². The rest of the territory accounts for less than one person per 1 km2. Nine-tenths of the population lives in less than one-tenth of the territory of Libya, mainly on the coast of the Libyan Sea. 88% of the population lives in cities, mainly in Tripoli and Benghazi. More than a third of the population is under the age of 15.
The population of Libya is homogeneous, the majority are Arabs, Circassians live in Tripoli and a number of large cities, Berbers also live in the southwestern part of Tripolitania, and a small Tuareg community lives in Fezzan. There are also small communities of Greeks, Turks, Italians and Maltese, the Greeks are mainly engaged in the extraction of sea sponges.
Sunni Muslims 97%, Christian (Coptic Orthodox, Catholic, Anglican) 3%, others - less than 1%.
Source - http://www.sqom.ru/saar/glivia.html
http://www.geografia.ru/Libya-Gmap.html