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N'Djamena[a] (English: / əndʒɑːˈmeɪnə / ⓘ ən-jah-MAY-nə[3][4]) is the capital and largest city of Chad. It is also a special statute region, divided into 10 districts or arrondissements. The city serves as the centre of economic activity in Chad.
N’Djamena, city, capital of Chad, located on the country’s southwestern border, adjacent to Cameroon. It lies on the east bank of the Chari River at its confluence with the Logone River, in an alluvial plain that is flooded during the rainy season (July–September).
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Chad, landlocked country in north-central Africa. The terrain is that of a shallow basin that rises gradually from the Lake Chad area in the west and is rimmed by mountains to the north, east, and south. Natural irrigation is limited to the Chari and Logone rivers and their tributaries, which flow from the southeast into Lake Chad. The capital, N’Djamena (formerly Fort-Lamy), is almost 1,000 miles (1,600 km) by road from the western African coastal ports.
Although it is the fifth largest country on the continent, Chad—much of the northern part of which lies in the Sahara—has a population density of only about 20 persons per square mile (8 persons per square km). Most of the population lives by agriculture; cotton is grown in the south, and cattle are raised in the central region. Chad joined the ranks of oil-producing countries in 2003, raising hopes that the revenues generated would improve the country’s economic situation.
Chad is bounded on the north by Libya, on the east by Sudan, on the south by the Central African Republic, and on the west by Cameroon, Nigeria, and Niger. The frontiers of Chad, which constitute a heritage from the colonial era, do not coincide with either natural or ethnic boundaries.
In its physical structure Chad consists of a large basin bounded on the north, east, and south by mountains. Lake Chad, which represents all that remains of a much larger lake that covered much of the region in earlier geologic periods, is situated in the centre of the western frontier; it is 922 feet (281 metres) above sea level. The lowest altitude of the basin is the Djourab Depression, which is 573 feet (175 metres) above sea level.
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In the early Holocene Epoch, possibly until as recently as 7,000 years ago, the lake stood at a level of about 1,100 feet (335 metres) above sea level, or some 180 feet (55 metres) higher than today, and was as much as 550 feet (170 metres) deep. At that stage Mega-Chad, as it has been called, occupied an area of some 130,000 square miles (336,700 square km) and overflowed southward via the present-day Kébi River and then over the Gauthiot Falls westward to the Benue River and the Atlantic Ocean. Older dune systems, flooded by Mega-Chad, form linear islands in the present lake and extend hundreds of miles to the east, the interdunal hollows being occupied by diatomites and other lake sediments.
The mountains that rim the basin include the volcanic Tibesti Massif to the north (of which the highest point is Mount Koussi, with an elevation of 11,204 feet [3,415 metres]), the sandstone peaks of the Ennedi Plateau to the northeast, the crystalline rock mountains of the Ouaddaï (Wadai) region to the east, and the Oubangui Plateau to the south. The semicircle is completed to the southwest by the mountains of Adamawa and Mandara, which lie mostly beyond the frontier in Cameroon and Nigeria.
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Several types of soil formation occur in Chad, apart from the sand of the desert zone and the sheer rock of the mountainous areas. On the south side of Lake Chad the soils are derived from clayey deposits that accumulated on the floor of Mega-Chad. Along the seasonally flooded banks of the Chari and Logone rivers and the Salamat Wadi, hydromorphic ...
Chad has a population of 16 million, of which 1.6 million live in the capital and largest city of N'Djamena. With a total area of around 1,300,000 km 2 (500,000 sq mi), [ 8 ] Chad is the fifth-largest country in Africa and the twentieth largest nation by area in the world.
Apr 10, 2018 · N'Djamena is the largest and capital city of Chad, founded by the French in 1900. Learn about its history, demography, climate, economy and tourist attractions.
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Aug 29, 2024 · Chad emerged from a collection of powerful states that controlled the Sahelian belt starting around the 9 th century. These states focused on controlling trans-Saharan trade routes and profited mostly from the slave trade.
N'Djamena is the largest and most populous city in Chad, located on the Chari River. Learn about its history, geography, economy, and attractions in this comprehensive guide.
