Happy independence day Djibouti

Djibouti was part of the French colony of Somaliland from 1888 to 1977. In 1967, Djibouti was renamed the ‘French Territory of the Afars and the Issas’ before becoming the fully independent ‘Republic of Djibouti’ on june 27th 1977.

Things you may not know about Djibouti:
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– Djibouti is the 3rd smallest country after Swaziland and Gambia in Africa.
– Djibouti has 195 miles of coastline. Much of this coastline consists of gold and white, sandy beaches.
– Approximately 90% of Djibouti’s land is desert. Djibouti has no permanent rivers, only salt lakes in the desert.
– Lac Assal, a crater lake in the centre of Djibouti, is 10 times saltier than the sea. In fact, it’s the second saltiest body of water in the world after Don Juan Pond in Antarctica.
– Lac Assal is also the lowest point in Djibouti, it is also the lowest point in Africa.
– Djibouti is home to the bizarre dystopian landscape of Lac Abbé, a plateau dotted with hundreds of limestone chimneys, some standing 50m (160ft) high and belching puffs of steam.
– Moucha Island is the largest island in Djibouti.
– The Gulf of Tadjoura is one of the richest areas in the world for coral and fish species located in eastern Djibouti.
– Whale sharks – the largest known fish in the world – regularly visit the coast of Djibouti, making the country a prime spot for swimming with whale sharks.
– The Djibouti Francolin (one of over forty species of francolins, a group of birds) is only found in the horn of Africa.
– The main exports including hides, skins and coffee.
– The official languages of Djibouti are Arabic and French.
– Nearly 94% of the population is Muslim while the remaining 6% are Christian. Christmas in Djibouti is celebrated on 7 January.
– Djibouti comprises two main ethnic groups: the Somali and the Afar.
– The Afar and the Somali ethnic groups have a rich musical heritage that focusses on folk tales and legends. Somali songs use only five pitches per octave and are called pentatonic.
– Some of the common instruments used to play music include the oud (pear-shaped, lute-like string instrument), the tanbura (a string instrument) and drums.

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