LIBYA

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Location

 

Libya, the fourth largest state in Africa, is located in North Africa and lies between latitudes 33°N and approximately 20°N and longitudes 8°E and 25°E. It possesses a Mediterranean coastline of approximately 1820 Km in length. It is bordered by Egypt to the east, Sudan to the south-east, Chad and Niger to the south with Algeria and Tunisia to the west and north-west respectively. Libya has an area of approximately 1,775,500 sq. km, 3 times the surface area of France, and a population of about 4,500,000 (1995), the capital city being Tarabulus (Tripoli).

 

  

Libya is a cultural and geographic bridge firstly between Egypt and the Arabian lands to the East, the mashreq and the territory of the Arab W, the maghreb. Secondly, Libya acts as a link between the Mediterranean/Europe and Saharan Africa. The Arabic spoken in Libya is generally different from the French-influenced Arabic of the Maghreb with its quite separate accent and dialect from the Arabic of the Nile valley.

 

 

            

 

 

Climate:

Due to the lack of natural barriers, the climate is greatly influenced by  the desert to the south and the Mediterranean Sea to the north. The coastal regions have a Mediterranean climate with moderate temperatures and enough    rain during the winter months for         grain farming. In Tripoli average    temperatures are 30 deg C (86 deg      F) in summer and

8deg  (46 deg F) in winter; annual precipitation averages 380 mm (15      in) and falls mainly in winter. The    mountains of the Jabal Al-Akhdar    attract considerably more reliable     rainfall in winter and early spring,      while in summer the heights are      cooler than the surrounding plains. Semiarid conditions predominate in the AL MARJ and JAFFARA plains,and in

the southern deserts frequent periods of drought occur. A scorching wind called the "GHIBLI" which is a hot, very dry, sand laden wind which can raise the temperatures in a matter of hours to between 40 deg C and 50 deg C, occasionally blows into the usually humid coastal towns. The wind is most noticeable in W Libya and is often associated with the spring solstice.