Gambia
Updated: Oct 1, 2022
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Country Name
The Gambia, or officially the Republic of The Gambia.
Location
The Gambia is located in Western Africa. The Gambia is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, and Senegal to the north, east, and south.
Capital
Banjul.
The reason for naming the country
The name "Gambia" is derived from the Mandinka term Kambra/Kambaa, meaning Gambia River.
Flag
This Gambian flag was adopted on February 18, 1965, the day it gained independence from Britain. The flag of Gambia consists of five horizontal stripes Red, Blue, and green stripes the red and the green stripes are equal in width; the blue stripe is bordered on the top and bottom by white stripes of equal width. The red color represents the sun shining on the Gambia River and the blue represents that river, which runs through the center of the country. The green symbolizes the land, forests, and agriculture and the white stripes stand for unity, peace, and purity.
Language
English is the official language in the Gambia. Other languages are Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, Serer, Krio, Jola, and other indigenous dialects. Due to the country's geographical place, french is also relatively widespread in many countries in western Africa French is their official language.
Religion
The majority of the Gambia’s population are Muslim, Muslims account for about 90% of the national population, while the remaining 10% practice other religions or are non-believers.
The majority of the Muslims in the Gambia adhere to Sunni laws and traditions. Most Muslims in the Gambia follow the Maliki school Also, a Shiite Muslim community exists mainly from Lebanese and other Arab immigrants to the region.
Currency
Dalasi (GMD).
Time Zone
+00:00 GMT.
Government Regime
Unitary presidential republic.
Climate
In the Gambia, a small country overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and crossed by the river of the same name, the climate is tropical, and hot all year round, with a dry season from November to May, and a rainy season from June to mid-October due to the African monsoon.
In winter, in December and January, it's hot during the day, with highs around 32/34 °C (90/93 °F) on the coast and 32/34 °C (93/97 °F) in inland areas, but with peaks of 38/40 °C (100/104 °F) even on the coast. However, the air is dry and nights are cool. The wind blowing from the desert, the Harmattan, can veil the sun and lift dust. Already in February, the temperature begins to increase in inland areas, reaching 37/40 °C (99/104 °F) from March to May, while along the coast, the heat is less intense, but moisture is higher. So, spring (which, as regards the temperature, should be considered as the real summer) is a very hot season everywhere. With the arrival of the rains, the temperature decreases, dropping to about 30 °C (86 °F) during the day, but the humidity increases and the heat becomes sweltering. Sometimes, however, it can get very hot even in summer, in the pauses between the rainy periods. Between October and November, after the rains, the temperature rises again, especially in inland areas.
International Phone Code
+220
Internet Code
.gm