Talk:Angola

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An automated Wikipedia link suggester has some possible wiki link suggestions for the Angola article:

  • Can link west coast: ... of the Congo|Congo-Brazzaville]] and [[Zambia]] and with a west coast along the [[Atlantic Ocean]]. A former [[Portugal|Portugue...
  • Can link natural resources: ... former [[Portugal|Portuguese]] colony, it has considerable natural resources, among which oil and diamonds are the most relevant. The c...
  • Can link national unity government: ...n of former [[UNITA]] [[insurgent]]s into the government. A national unity government was installed in [[1997]], but serious fighting resumed in ... (link to section)
  • Can link cease-fire: ...onas Savimbi]], the leader of [[UNITA]] was shot dead and a cease-fire was reached by the two factions. [[UNITA]] gave up its arme... (link to section)

Notes: The article text has not been changed in any way; Some of these suggestions may be wrong, some may be right.
Feedback: I like it, I hate it, Please don't link to — LinkBot 11:33, 1 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] Map

Cabinda isn't highlighted. Can we fix this? siafu 01:20, 29 Mar 2005 (UTC)

A controversy has erupted over the choice of map for this article. The two candidates are shown here, along with any others that other Wikipedians may choose to enter. Feel free to make any comments. The lower map may also appear in the corresponding Geography article for this country. Kelisi 02:14, 2 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Map of Angola Map of Angola

I prefer the lower Kelisi map, --SqueakBox 02:53, Apr 2, 2005 (UTC)


A controversy has erupted? Where? I was only referring to the wikipedia standard country-highlighted map, where Cabinda is not highlighted (I've since left a message for the image's creator about this). As for the more detailed map, the one from the CIA factbook, though less detailed, looks significantly less messy. I reccomend we stick with that one. siafu 21:19, 2 Apr 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Angola motto

Is this really the motto of Angola? It seems to be a result of an old mistake [1] when some of the data for Andorra were copied here and the motto was never deleted? --Elephantus 23:10, 1 October 2005 (UTC)

I looked around a bit and couldn't find any confirmation for the motto outside of Wikipedia and its forks (there are many of them :-)) so I'll remove it. --Elephantus 10:25, 5 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Mestizo - Mestiços

The wiki links for mestiços links to mestizo. Anyone know why? I suppose its the non-standard character.

[edit] Former Name

It said in the article that: "The country is nominally a democracy and is formally named the Republic of Angola". Shouldn't it be: "The country is nominally a democracy and is formally named the People's Republic of Angola"? -- G.S.K.Lee 10:38, 18 December 2005 (UTC)

  • I believe that the formal name was changed from "The People's Republic of Angola" to "The Republic of Angola". I'm not sure when the change happened though. --Nathan Holland 15:20, 1 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Philippe Le Billon

Not sure where 198.96.37.124 got the reference (LeBillon, 1999) from - his Ph.D. thesis? I think we need a better reference to the works of Dr Philippe Le Billon ...perhaps his recent book? Matt 03:06, 21 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Joan Ann

Would someone please add the missing lines in this article: "The Kongo State stretched from modern Gabon in the north outbreaks of infectious diseases. In April 2005, Angola..." Text is obviously missing between "in the north" and "outbreaks."

[edit] Portuguese language in Angola

Is it true that Portuguese is the most commonly spoken language of two-thirds of the Angolan population as claimed in the article ? I suspect those figures have been overstated (please add a reference).

Yes, I'm interested in this too - the map on the Portuguese language page is coloured in a way that makes it look like Portuguese is dominant in Angola. Is it really more commonly spoken than the Bantu languages? Joziboy 15:41, 12 July 2006 (UTC)
I've just completed a survey trip of 6 provinces in Angola, and our (rather unofficial) findings are that in Luanda, Portuguese is spoken almost to the exclusion of other languages, except in pockets of the surrounding low-class residential areas where communities of refugees from various areas have congregated according to background. In other cities around the country (we visited Luena, Namibe, Lubango, Huambo, and Kuito), Portuguese is still the most widely spoken language, though Bantu languages are also used. Sparsely populated rural areas speak Bantu languages predominantly, and in some areas Portuguese is not even understood by most of the population, though that is for a very small percent of the population.
For me, the most surprising element of all this was the cities. In other sub-Saharan countries, the Bantu languages predominate and the trade language is used just for trade. This was not the case in Angola. Portuguese is used in homes and among those who speak the same Bantu language. Anecdotal evidence may illustrate this: in Moxico province, the school system has recently added Chokwe classes to the primary schools, because Chokwe children are growing up not knowing "their own language." They only know Portuguese.
I'm not sure of the statistics, but they will all be just educated guesses - there hasn't been a census for decades. I'll look through my sources and see what they say.
--Danny Reese 16:21, 2 August 2006 (UTC)


About statistics, according to a survey in Tony Hodges, Angola: Anatomy of an Oil State as of 1996 26% of the population speaks Portuguese as their first language. Umbundu represented 30% of the population in 1996 though many of those most likely speak Portuguese as well. In that same survey, 42 percent of the children under 9 years of age spoke Portuguese as their first language. So that means today those children could be as old as 19 years. So Portuguese is beginning to become the dominant language, even over the Bantu languages. Kind of strange for Sub Saharan Africa huh?
--NathanHolland 16:21, 3 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] population figure

What is the source for the population figure? (- 2005 est. 15,941,000 (61st)) Why is this figure so different from the Wikipedia in other languages? Portuguese: População - Total (est. 2004)10.978.552- Densidade 71º mais populoso French: Population - Totale (2003)10 766 471 hab. - Densité Classé 72e Dutch: Inwoners: 10,6 miljoen German: Einwohnerzahl 13.964.000 (Dez. 2004) Spanish: Población • Total 10.978.552 • Densidad Puesto 71º

according to the site of the angolan ambassee in portugal the popultaion is 12 million ... http://www.embaixadadeangola.pt/geografia.htm


  • There has not been an official census of the entire country taken since 1960. Any population figures you see since that time are only estimates. Nobody really knows the population of Angola. --Nathan Holland 01:16, 29 August 2006 (UTC)
  • Estimates for many countries in Africa are partially based on Demographic and Health Surveys[2]. The listed figure is from the UN World Population Prospects Report (for the year 2005). --Polaron | Talk 01:58, 29 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "Origin and History of the Name" section

This section needs clarifying. I do not fully follow what is meant by "at the time of birth by the Portuguese." I think it might refer to a name that Portuguese colonists gave to Quimbundos Kingdom rulers when the rulers were born. But I am not sure. Someone who is familiar with the origin of name "Angola" should clarify this section. JackWilliams 22:57, 16 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Angola's diseases

Is disease a problem in Angola? Explain why please?

  • I'm no expert on diseases or Angolan ones for that matter. But yes, Angola has one of the highest infant mortality rates due to many including preventable diseases. Malaria is a problem in Angola like many other places. This summer there was a Cholera epidemic. I don't know any figures but there were many deaths related to cholera. The summer of 2005 was the largest and deadliest outbreak of the Marburg Virus in the Uige Province of northern Angola. I believe the figures are around 350 deaths to the highly contageous virus. Because Angola has been closed off to the rest of Africa, AIDS has not been a huge problem until recent years. As people are crossing the borders they are bringing AIDS with them. Sleeping Sickness has also been a problem in Angola but i'm not sure of the current status. Hospitals and doctors are scarce in the provinces and healthcare is limited in Luanda, the capital. Education about the origin and causes of many preventable diseases can and does help the healthcare situation. Angola has come a long way and is continuing to improve. Why do you ask?

--Nathan Holland 23:34, 19 October 2006 (UTC)

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