什麼是甘比亞

正式名稱甘比亞共和國（Republic of the Gambia）

非洲西部共和國。是塞內加爾境內的一塊飛地，國土從大西洋沿着甘比亞河往內陸延伸達475公里。面積10,689平方公里。人口約1,411,000（2001）。首都︰班珠爾。約有2/5的人口是馬林克人，其次是富拉尼人（約佔1/5）、沃洛夫人（約佔1/7）和其他民族。語言：英語（官方語）。宗教：伊斯蘭教。貨幣：達拉西（D）。甘比亞境內普遍多丘陵，屬亞熱帶氣候。高地為稀樹草原，低窪地區為沼澤。甘比亞屬開發中的市場經濟，主要以花生種植和出口為基礎。然而全國的可耕地面積僅約1/6。甘比亞河是主要的運輸動脈。旅遊業也是重要的歲收來源。政府形式是共和國，一院制。國家元首暨政府首腦是總統。

約西元13世紀初，沃洛夫、馬林克和富拉尼人即開始在今甘比亞各地定居，並在該地區建立村落，後來又建立王國。從1455年葡萄牙人發現甘比亞河時起。歐洲人便開始在此地區探險。17世紀英國和法國在該地區設居民點，英國並在距甘比亞河口32公里處的島上建立英屬詹姆斯堡，為奴隸買賣的重要集聚點。1783年「凡爾賽和約」把甘比亞河劃歸英國。1807年英國廢除奴隸制度後，在甘比亞河口建立一座城堡，對繼續進行的奴隸販賣實行封鎖。1889年英、法兩國畫定了甘比亞現在的疆界。1894年英國宣佈該區為其保護地。1965年甘比亞宣佈獨立。1970年成為國協內的一個共和國。1982年與塞內加爾結為有限的聯邦，聯邦於1989年解散。1990年代，政府處在動亂當中。

Gambia, The

Republic, western Africa. Constituting an enclave in Senegal, it lies along the Gambia River stretching inland 295 mi (475 km) from the Atlantic Ocean. Area: 4,127 sq mi (10,689 sq km). Population (1997 est.): 1,248,000. Capital: Banjul. About two-fifths of the population is Malinke, followed by Fulani (about one-fifth), Wolof (about one-seventh), and other groups. Language: English (official). Religion: Islam. Monetary unit: dalasi. Gambia is generally hilly and the climate subtropical, with savanna in the uplands and swamps in low-lying areas. It has a developing market economy based largely on the production and export of peanuts, though only about one-sixth of the country is arable. The river serves as a major transportation artery. Tourism is an important source of revenue. It is a republic with one legislative body; its head of state and government is the president. Beginning around the 13th century AD, the Wolof, Malinke, and Fulani peoples settled in different parts of what is now Gambia and established villages and then kingdoms in the region. European exploration began when the Portuguese sighted the Gambia River in 1455. In the 17th century, when Britain and France both settled in the area, the British Fort James, on an island about 20 mi (32 km) from the river's mouth, was an important collection point for the slave trade. In 1783 the Treaty of Versailles reserved the Gambia River for Britain. After the British abolished slavery in 1807, they built a fort at the mouth of the river to block the continuing slave trade. In 1889 Gambia's boundaries were agreed upon by Britain and France; the British declared a protectorate over the area in 1894. Independence was proclaimed in 1965, and Gambia became a republic within the Commonwealth in 1970. It formed a limited confederation with Senegal in 1982, which was dissolved in 1989. During the 1990s, the government was in turmoil.