Djibouti (city)

Djibouti
Jabuuti
جيبوتي
—  City  —
Nickname(s): Pearl of the Gulf of Tadjoura.
Djibouti City (Black) within Djibouti (White)
Coordinates:
Country  Djibouti
Founded 1888
Area
 • City 200 km2 (77.2 sq mi)
Population
 • City 567,000
 • Urban About two-thirds of the residents of the country of Djibouti live in the capital city.
  [1]
Time zone EAT (UTC+3)

The City of Djibouti (Arabic: جيبوتي‎, French: Ville de Djibouti) is the capital and largest city in the Republic of Djibouti, a nation in the Horn of Africa. The biggest settlement on the Gulf of Tadjoura, it lies on a peninsula that separates that basin from the Gulf of Aden.

Contents

Overview

Djibouti is the capital and largest city of Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. Two thirds of the country's population live in the town.

The city is situated on the coast, on the Gulf of Tadjoura right across from Yemen.

Local features include beaches along its eastern shore and the large Central Market, the national stadium Stade du Ville, the Presidential Palace and Hamoudi Mosque.

On account of its numerous exotic buildings and structures, the city has been likened to a European settlement and described as a "French Hong Kong in the Red Sea".[2]

History

From 1862 until 1894, the land to the north of the Gulf of Tadjoura was called Obock and was ruled by Somali and Afar Sultans, local authorities with whom France signed various treaties between 1883 and 1887 to first gain a foothold in the region.[3][4][5]

The French subsequently founded Djibouti city in 1888, with the area at the time uninhabited. A few years later, in 1896, the French made the town the capital of French Somaliland.[6]

Demographics

According to a 2009 estimate, the population of the city was 567,000.[7]

Djibouti Region

The Djibouti Region is one of the six Regions of Djibouti. The Region borders the Gulf of Tadjoura to the north and east, and the Arta Region to the south and west.

Prior to the creation of the Arta Region in 2003, the Djibouti Region also had a border with the Ali Sabieh Region and Dikhil Region.

The Djibouti Region is the smallest Region in the country, but also the Region with the highest population. It contains the capital of Djibouti, Djibouti City.

The capital, and only settlement, of the Djibouti Region is Djibouti City.

Climate

Djibouti is generally very hot and dry throughout the course of the year. Featuring an arid climate, the city sees on average 131 mm (5.16 in) of precipitation per year. Temperatures range from very warm during the months of December, January and February to extremely hot in July, where temperatures routinely exceed 49°C (120°F).

Climate data for Djibouti
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 34
(93)		 37
(99)		 41
(106)		 44
(111)		 50
(122)		 52
(126)		 54
(129)		 53
(127)		 50
(122)		 45
(113)		 43
(109)		 37
(99)		 54
(129)
Average high °C (°F) 29
(84)		 29
(84)		 31
(88)		 32
(90)		 34
(93)		 37
(99)		 41
(106)		 39
(102)		 36
(97)		 33
(91)		 31
(88)		 29
(84)		 33
(91)
Average low °C (°F) 23
(73)		 24
(75)		 25
(77)		 26
(79)		 28
(82)		 30
(86)		 31
(88)		 29
(84)		 29
(84)		 27
(81)		 25
(77)		 23
(73)		 27
(81)
Record low °C (°F) 19
(66)		 18
(64)		 21
(70)		 21
(70)		 21
(70)		 22
(72)		 22
(72)		 22
(72)		 23
(73)		 21
(70)		 18
(64)		 17
(63)		 17
(63)
Precipitation mm (inches) 10
(0.39)		 13
(0.51)		 25
(0.98)		 13
(0.51)		 5
(0.2)		 0
(0)		 3
(0.12)		 8
(0.31)		 8
(0.31)		 10
(0.39)		 23
(0.91)		 13
(0.51)		 131
(5.16)
Source: BBC Weather [8]

Economy

During its existence, Djibouti Airlines had its head office in the city.[9]

Transportation

The Ethio-Djibouti Railways (formerly the Imperial Railway Company of Ethiopia) runs from the city to Addis Ababa. The city is also home to the Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport. Northwest of the city centre lies the city's port, used for international trade, for fishing, and for travel by ferry to the cities of Obock and Tadjoura. Djibouti's location on the Red Sea means there are some excellent diving and swimming opportunities particularly around the islands of Maskali and Moucha in the Gulf of Tadjoura. It takes 30-40 minutes to get to the islands by boat.

Twin cities

References

  1. ^ CIA World Factbook
  2. ^ Kevin Anglin, Becca Blond and Jean-Bernard Carillet, Africa on a Shoestring (London: Lonely Planet, 2004), p. 698.
  3. ^ Raph Uwechue, Africa year book and who's who, (Africa Journal Ltd.: 1977), p.209.
  4. ^ Hugh Chisholm (ed.), The encyclopædia britannica: a dictionary of arts, sciences, literature and general information, Volume 25, (At the University press: 1911), p.383.
  5. ^ A Political Chronology of Africa, (Taylor & Francis), p.132.
  6. ^ World Book, Inc, The World Book Encyclopedia, Volume 1, (World Book: 2007)
  7. ^ CIA World Factbook
  8. ^ "Average Conditions Djibouti, Djibouti". BBC Weather. http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/city_guides/results.shtml?tt=TT000150. Retrieved August 23, 2009. 
  9. ^ "Contact Us." Djibouti Airlines. 1 June 2006. Retrieved on 20 February 2011. "REPUBLIC OF DJIBOUTI DJIBOUTI AIRLINES HEAD OFFICE-PLACE LAGARDE."