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Africa: The Shape of the Land
Quick Facts
• Second largest continent
– Largest Asia
– 3 times the size of US
• More independent nations than any continent
on earth
– 55
Location
• Centrally located on Earth’s Surface
• Straddles Equator
– Extends thousands of miles North and South of it
• Bordered by:
– Between 2 Oceans
• Atlantic (West) and Indian (East)
– 2 Seas to its North
• Mediterranean Sea (North) Red Sea (North East
– Water bodies link Africa with the rest of the world
• In Ancient Times these waters helped transfer people, goods, and
ideas between Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
• Today they place it in the center of world transportation routes.
Regions
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Many distinct regions exist in Africa
Geographic features give each its own identity
Variety exists within regions
Regional differences create cultural diversity
Main Regions:
– North Africa- closely linked to Middle East and Europe
– The rest are referred to often as Sub-Saharan Africa
• West Africa
• East Africa
• Central Africa
• Southern Africa
Landforms
• Most of Africa is a vast Plateau
• Mountain Ranges exist on the Edges of the
Continent
– Atlas Mountains- Northwest
– Drakensberg Mountains- Southeast
• Narrow Plains along the Coast
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Plateaus
– Lie at many different elevations
• Highest in East and South
– Continent tilts gradually downward towards west and north.
– Large basins, swamps, and lakes are scattered across the plateaus.
– Land drops sharply as you move from the plateaus toward the coast.
– Escarpments- steep cliffs divided plateaus from coastal plains in some places.
– Changes in elevation effect the course of African Rivers
• Often contain a series of cataracts- large waterfalls and rapids due to elevation
change.
– Africans have migrated across the plateaus over thousands of years
– Traders followed well traveled routes across the continent
– Early Europeans were discouraged from exploring the continent because of the
blockage by cataracts.
• Great Rift Valley
– Slices through the Eastern part of the continent
– A giant fault or break in the Earth’s crust
– Runs from Red sea to Zambezi River
– Creates a series of mountains and valleys formed millions of
years ago.
– Flanked by high cliff-like walls
• Rich soils have washed down from these highlands over
centuries
– Creates some of Africa’s Most fertile farmland
– Rich in minerals and metals, but mining and transportation
is difficult
– May be the site of human origin
Rivers
• Provide fish, water for irrigation, and a source of
transportation
• Used today for Hydroelectric power to provide cities with
electricity
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Key Rivers:
– The Nile River
• Longest in world 4,160 Miles
• Perfect for farmlands to support a large population (Ancient Egypt)
• Now a source of power with the Aswan Dam (Mixed Blessing)
– The Congo River
• Empties into Atlantic from Central Africa
• Used for hydroelectric power
• Not useful fro transportation
– Niger River
• In West Africa
• First flows north then south.
• Used for irrigation, fishing and some travel
– Zambezi River
• In southern Africa
• Rushes over Victoria Falls
• Provides a border and power to Zimabwe
and Zambia
Natural Resources
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River’s are a source of precious metals
– Gold and diamonds
• West Africa caught European interest for its gold
Today African Nations sell many other valuable resources to the industrial world
– D.R. of Congo and Zimbabwe- copper
– South Africa, D.R. of Congo, Botswana- platinum and cobalt
– Nigeria and Angola- offshore oil platforms
– Libya, Algeria, Gabon and Sudan- Oil deposits
Many resource profits flow out of Africa due to lack of money
Resources in Africa are unevenly distributed
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Some can farm like Uganda, but most is not fertile and rainfall is inconsistent
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