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Country: Libya ( ليبيا ).
Demonym: Libyan ( ليبي ).
Nationality: Libyan ( لیبی , ليبيية ).
Location: North Africa.
Area: fourth largest country in Africa: 1.759.540 sq. km.
The Flag of Libya:
The flag of Cyrenaica.
The name Sanusi (or Senusi) refers to a political-religious
order, said to have been founded by the grandfather of King Idris, the Grand
Sanusi (Sayyid Muhammad Ibn Ali as-Senussi), in 1837. The black
flag with the white star and the crescent was adopted by Idris as-Sanusi after
he proclaimed the eastern region of Libya as "The Emirate of
Cyrenaica" on
the 1st of March 1949, and appointed himself the Emir of Cyrenaica. Even though
the UK did aknowledge the Emirate, the UN failed to recognise the new
country. Two years later (in 1951) he was installed the King of Libya.
The Current Flag of Libya.
On the 24th of December 1951 Libya became an independent state,
under the name of The Libyan Kingdom, also known as
The United Kingdom of Libya - uniting Cyrenaica, Tripolitania and Fezzan. After
the Emir of Cyrenaica was declared the King of Libya, the king carried his Cyrenaica
flag to the new kingdom, with the addition of red and green, supposedly to represent
Tripolitania and Fezzan. The flag is now once more the official flag of Libya,
after it was adopted by the early rebels of Benghazi and the National Transitional
Council (NTC) in 2011.
The name Rebu in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.
The Origin of The Name Libya:
The name Libya is often written in various forms including Lybia,
Libia, Libye and Lebya. There are several theories attempting to explain the
origin of the name, but it is almost certain that it comes from the ancient Berber
tribe known to the ancient Egyptians as Rebu or Ribu;
from which the Greeks derived
"Libya", and which the Arabs of today's Egypt know as Lubia,
whence Lubians, in line with their relatives and neighbours the Nubians.
The name Libia, as found in the archaeological site of Qasr
Libya or Qaser Libia, in Cyrenaica, is widely thought to have been derived
from the ancient Libyan village of Olbia. According to (the African)
Leo Africanus (1600, p.13), it was called Libya by the Greeks:
"Because it was in old time conquered by Libs the king of Mauritania.
In the holie scriptures it is called Chamesis, by the Arabians and Ethiopians
Alkebulam, and by the Indians Besecath.” In the Bible the Libyans appeared
as the Lubim, where the -m denotes the plural form; but after
the Hebrews decided to add the letter H to several names, like Abram becoming
Abraham, and Sara > Sarah, the Lubim appeared in the Old Testament
as Lehabim, the son of Mizraim; which Oric Bates, in his unique
book The Eastern Libyans, was the first to identify with the modern variant Ta-Mazigh-t (Tamazight),
an appellation widely applied to the whole Berbers of North Africa. The proposed
etymology of 'Libya' being moisture has no support other than the Libyan
wind which brought rain to Greek mainland, and, as it is obvious that the
Greek Libu is the same as Egyptian Ribu (following the universal rule
of L = R) one does not need to propose a Greek etymology for a name that is not
Greek. The proper etymology must be sought in the mother language of the given
word - the ancient Libyan language: Tamazight or Berber. Egyptian and Berber
are both members of the Hamitic branch of the Hamito-Samitic linguistic family,
and many of the ancient Egyptian and Berber mythical gods and goddesses are still
represented on the rock art of the great Sahara, in what is known as the largest
collection of prehistoric
art in the world: well over a hundred thousand sites.
Ancient Libyans, as pictured by the ancient
Egyptians.
The Mythology of The Name Libya:
Libya was also the name of the Goddess known to the Greeks as the Goddess Libya, and also of the whole continent before the Romans named it Africa
after the Berber Goddess Afri. In mythology, the Goddess Libya had three
sons by the Libyan Sea-God Poseidon: Belus, Agenor and Lelex. King Belus ruled at Chemmis or Chamesis of Leo Africanus, Agenor migrated to Cana'an (the Middle East), and Lelex became king of Megara. The wife of Belus Anchinoe, daughter of the Nile-god Nilus, bore him three sons: Aegyptus, Danaus and Cepheus, and one daughter: Lamia,
the Libyan Snake-goddess. The myth relates an interesting "deception tale" in
which Danaus was sent to rule Libya where he had fifty daughters, and
Aegyptus, who had fifty sons, ruled over Egypt.
Ancient Libyans
The Political Name of Libya:
Map of Libya &
North Africa Prior to WW2, Showing The Country
Tripoli (in green).
This map shows how Libya looked like during the colonial
periods.
A look at the map of Egypt (bordered red) shows traces of the
ancient Libya, as in
"Libyan Desert", the site of the Libyan
Desert Glass, and "Libyan Plat" (The Libyan Plateau). The
British-controlled Sudan extended quite a distance in today's Libya and Chad. As
mentioned above, there was no such thing as Libya then; there was only an Italian-occupied
country (regency) called TRIPOLI. In
1917-1918 the Republic of Tripoli was created to become the first ever republic
in the Arab world. The republic, also called
Tripolitanian Republic, which
involved Berber elements in the leadership,
did not gain enough support in the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, even
though was fully recognised by Italy, and consequently disappeared
from history by 1923.
The actual name Libya, as a modern country, came into effect
for the first time around 1934 when the provinces of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica
were united as Libya during the Italian occupation; initially Fezzan was not
included, but after independence the three provinces were united as one country,
when on the 24th of December 1951 Libya was declared as the United Kingdom
of Libya. Shortly after the installation of Colonel Mua’mmar al-Qaddafi
(Gaddafi) in 1969, Libya became known as the Great Socialist People’s
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, where the last word became synonymous with Libya. Many
Libyans feel the introduction of the term "Arab" by the government
into the name of Libya does not democratically represent all the true populations
of Libya, originally inhabited by the Berbers ('Imazighen'), and still
is inhabited by the Berbers in various parts of the country, including most of
Nafousa Mountain, Zuwarah, Ghadames, Ghat, Jalo, Awjlah, and most of the Sahara,
the home of the Tuareg Berber confederacies. However, LIBYA is
back as the official name of the country after the arrival of the National Transitional
Council (NTC) in 2011.
Map of Ancient Libya, showing the locations of the native Libyan tribes of Egypt.
The above ancient map of Libya, which is over 2000
years older than the colonial map, shows there was no Egypt, just
a huge expanse of land known to classical geographers and historians
as Libya, to the extent that the name Libya also came to designate
the whole of the continent of Africa. For more information about
the native inhabitants of ancient Libya, including the Berber tribes
of the Delta and the western banks of the Nile, please visit The
Temehu Tribes
of Ancient Libya.
When the Romans arrived through the western gates of Libya (Tripolitania
and Tunisia), they adopted the name Aprica or Africa from the
Berber name of the local tribes who inhabited the region, as in Yefren today,
and thereafter Libya became known as Africa.
This means that the names
"Libya" and "Africa"
are both Berber in origin.
Statistical Information & Facts About Libya:
- Name: Libya.
- Capital: Tripoli.
- Area: 1.759.540 sq. km.
- Coastline: 1,770 km.
- Official holiday: Friday.
- Libyan population: 5 million approximately.
- Immigrant population: 1.5 million approximately.
- Total Population: 6,461,454 (July 2010).
- Literacy: 82.6%.
- King Idris' installation: 24/12/1951.
- Gaddafi's installation: 01/09/1969.
- NTC's arrival: 23/10/2011 (Liberation Day).
- GDP per capita: $16,000.
- Internet domain name (TLD): .ly
- Workweek: Sunday to Thursday.
- Mobile: GMS 900
&
1800 networks.
- Telephone: country code: +218; Tripoli: 021.
- Driving: on the right-hand-side of the road.
- Local Time: Greenwich Mean Time + 2 hours (UTC+2).
- Alcohol: all alcoholic drinks are prohibited.
- Natural resources: petroleum,
natural gas, gypsum.
- Weights: kilograms, measurements: meter.
- Life expectancy: 77 years (women), 72 years (men).
- Monetary unit (currency): Libyan Dinar (LYD).
- Climate: Mediterranean along
the coast; dry desert
in the interior.
- Average annual rainfall: 400 mm.
- Average January Temperature: 12 degrees Celsius (about 53 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Average July Temperature: 40 degrees Celsius (about 104 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Ethnic groups: Arabs, Berbers and Tebu
(97%); Africans, Asians,
Europeans (3%).
- Post:
ordinary and express mail; international
DHL available in large cities.
- Electricity:
220, 230, 240 volts - 50 Hz (plugs: two
round pins, and tree square pins).
- Industries: petroleum, textiles,
handicrafts, cement and food processing.
- Working hours Summer: 7:30 am to 2:30 pm; Winter: 8:00 am to 3:00
pm.
- Natural Hazards: sand storms; hot, dry, dust-laden wind (gibli) in
Spring and Autumn.
- Emergency telephone line: 193 - equivalent to 999 (UK), or 911
(USA).
- Major Exports: (US$37 billion,
mostly from crude oil and refined petroleum products): Italy (38%),
Germany (15%), Spain (9%), France (6%), Turkey (6%), U.S. (5%).
- Major Imports: (US$14.47
billion, mostly of machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured
goods): Italy (21.2%), Germany (10%), Tunisia (6%), UK (5%), Turkey
(5%), France (5%), South Korea (5%), China (4%).
- Location: North Africa, bordering
the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria, southern
border with Niger, Chad and Sudan.
Administrative Divisions of Libya:
At the highest level, Libya is divided into three regions
or provinces: Tripolitania, with its capital Tripoli; Cyrenaica, with Benghazi
as its capital; and Fezzan, with Sabha being the modern capital. These then became
the three mouh'afadat or muhafazat (municipalities), compromising
twenty five districts or baladiyat (town halls), which were later replaced
by thirty two sha'biyat (plus three administrative regions), before they
were finally reduced to twenty two districts, known as sha'biyat or shabiyat (شعبيات),
which can be translated as '*populates'. It is almost certain
that these will change again to their original names or to new names after the
new government of the NTC resumes affairs of the country. It is also possible
the boundaries themselves will change, as they always seem to do whenever a new
government is replaced.
Administrative Divisions of Libya.
The current administrative municipalities include:
An-Nuqat Al-Khams (1), Az-Zawyah (2), Tarabulus (Tripoli) (3), Al-Murgub (4), Mesratha (5), Surt (6), Al-Wahat (7), Benghazi (8), Al-Marj (9), Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar (10), Darnah(11), Al-Butnan (12), Al-Kufra (13), Murzuq (14), Aj-Jufrah (15), Sabha (16), Wadi Al-Hayat (17), Ghat (18),Wadi As-Shati (19), Nalut (20), Al-Jabal Al-Gharbi (21), Aj-Jfarah (22).
The Libyan Shabiyat in Arabic
Click here for an image of a table showing the administrative municipalities and their constituent towns and cities.
Demographic Data:
The population density varies from region to region. For example, along the coast and in the regions of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica the density is about 50 persons per a square kilometre, while in Fezzan it drops to less than one person - the reason, of course, being nothing other than the huge expanse of barren sand we know as desert. The ethnic groups of Libya are mainly Arabs, who arrived in Libya in the 7th centruy AD, Berbers, the native and indiginous inhabitants of Libya, Hausa and Tebu. There are also immigrant communities, mostly from North African countries, like Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco; the Middle East; Sub-Saharan Africa; and a very small number from European and Asian countries.
History of Libya:
North Africa was originally inhabited by an indigenous group
of
Berber tribes whose linguistic unity proves that an ethnic sub-stratum of "autochthons" single
race existed in North Africa from the Mediterranean to the Sudan and from the
Atlantic to the Red Sea. These people spoke a Hamitic language which together
with ancient Egyptian, Chadic, Ethiopian, Semitic and Omotic make up the Afro-Asiatic
family of languages. The positive side of Libya's
history is that it was the ancient centre from which civilisations
radiated to spread around the whole of the Mediterranean sea. According to
Herodotus, the ancient Libyans were the first to know civilisation, and no one
knew of Poseidon and Athena before them. Among the things invented by the ancient
Libyans are the wheel, the chariot, and the banking system (the Berber fortified
granaries of today). The advancements made by the ancient Libyans in the fields
of art, science, mythology and in many other aspects of human culture require
decades of work to catalogue.
1 - Ancient Libya:
Libya's ancient history goes back millions of years, but
it is enough here to start from the most important Neanderthal site in Libya,
namely the Cave of Haua Fteah' in eastern
Libya - the largest cave in the Mediterranean basin, providing
continuous archaeological record from 100,000 years ago to the present. According
to C.B.M McBurney (Libya in History, p. 7), 90000 years ago Eastern Libya was
occupied by an exceptionally inventive and the most advanced group of Paleolithic
hunters so far known to have existed at the time. Then around 40000 years ago
Libya was occupied by the large-brained Cro-Magnon - the
direct ancestors of the Berbers and the Iberians. Cultural evidence
from southern Libya, particularly from Fezzan, the home of the classical Garamantes
Kingdom,
goes back to more
than 30000 years. Around 12000 years ago heavy rainfalls slowly turned the
Sahara to lush-green land once more, and consequently a number of civilisations
flourished in the area, leaving behind rich representations of what life once
was, as preserved by the breathtaking treasures of the Sahara's prehistoric
drawings and engravings.
2 - Ancient Egyptian Libya (3300 BC - 750 BC):
During the time of the Pharaohs Libya's borders extended all
the way to the river Nile, as told by various geographers and historians including
Strabo and Herodotus. These areas were inhabited by various Libyan tribes including
the Temehu,
the Tehenu, the Ribu, and the Meshwesh.
When Greek and Roman historians arrived in
Libya and Egypt, the name Ribu became Libu, whence
present day “Libya”, and the name Meshwesh became Masuch (Herodotus), Maksiz (Ptolemy)
and Mazic (Latin
inscriptions), whence present day Tamazight,
and thus Imazighen: the indigenous inhabitants of North
Africa as a whole. The Palermo
stone,
the oldest document in the world, further illustrates the antiquity
of the Libyans in Lower Egypt by listing a succession of Libyan
pre-Dynastic kings and queens from Lower Egypt, long before the menace of
Menes. Ever since, the Berbers
were attempting to regain control over Lower Egypt and the Libyan
Desert Oases. It seems that they had managed to find their way
back into the Egyptian army of the Pharaohs, and some even rose to high positions
in the palace; eventually leading the Libyans to regain complete control over
Egypt about (ca. 945 BC) by establishing the Libyan Dynasties
on the hands of the King Shishenq or Shishonk.
The Libyan
dynasties continued to rule until the 25th
dynasty, shortly after which the Pharaohs disappeared
from history altogether. (See Temehu for more on the ancient Egyptian period.)
3 - The Phoenician Period (1000 BC - 200 BC):
In the
legend of Dido the Berber king Iarbas granted Dido as
much land as could be covered by an ox-hide. The agreement was that the Phoenicians can stay and conduct business in the Mediterranean on peaceful terms - and this they happily did. The Phoenicians quickly adopted Berber gods and goddesses, like the Libyan Goddess Tannit and the God Amon, and established several colonies in
Libya, including Leptis Magna, Oea (Tripoli),
Sabratha, and Carthage (Qert Hadasht ' The New Village'). By 517 BC, the powerful Carthage was the
leading city in North Africa, controlling the entire North
African coast from Tripolitania to the Atlantic Ocean, and eventually the Berber-phoenician empire brought terror to
the Romans' hearts. Seeing danger on their footsteps, the Romans, after Hannibal's daring 12-years siege of Rome, diverted the war to Carthage, where the Carthaginian government recalled Hannibal from Rome to defend the capital; only to be let down and loose control of the whole campaign. With Hannibal and Carthage out of the way, Rome was ready to spread terror around the Mediterranean world.
4 - The Greek Period:
The Greek colonists arrived in Eastern Libya in the 7th century BC, apparently on the advice given to them by their gods, and soon afterwards they colonised five cities in Cyrenaica, which later became known as the Pentapolis ('the Five Cities of Cyrene, Apollonia, Ptolemais,
Taucheira and Berenice'). The Berber areas, further inland, remained
free from Greek rule, many of which have led a number of revolts against the Greeks. The Greeks also attempted to start another colony near Leptis Magna, but local Libyan and Carthaginian resistance proved to be fatal and as a result they retreated to Cyrenaica - perhaps feeling closer to Apollo's home; whence Apollonia. About two hundred years
later, the Greek influence began to dwindle and the last Greek
ruler, Ptolemy Apion, finally surrendered Cyrenaica to Rome.
5 - The Roman Period:
The Roman invasions of Libya proved to be disastrous in many
ways. Carthage was destroyed completely and then grazed to the ground. The marble
columns and slabs that once held Carthage high in the sky were taken and sent
to Rome for recycling. Shortly after the Carthaginian-Roman battle at Zama, the Berber kingdoms began to suffer the impact of
the Roman invasions and by 46 BC Julius Caesar deposed the
final Numidian king, Juba I; and thereafter Tripolitania
was incorporated into the province of Africa
Proconsularis to begin the export of goods to Rome. By the end of
the first century AD Rome had completed the pacification of Sirtica
and Cyrenaica was
handed over to them by the Greeks. Under the influence of the
Libyan-Berber Roman emperor
Septimius
Severus
Libya enjoyed a massive
development as witnessed by the spectacular achievements built
in Leptis Magna, Tripoli and Sabratha. Then in the 5th century (around 431 AD) Libya was taken over by the Germanic vandals, who remained in charge until the arrival of the Muslims in the 7th century AD.
6 - The Muslim Period:
The arrival of Islam in North Africa began around 642 AD
when Umr Ibn Al-A's, under the command of the Caliph Umr I, arrived in Cyrenaica
from Egypt and successfully established his base at Barqa (Cyrenaica). From the
Green Mountain he then moved farther west and reached Tripolitania where he removed
the last Byzantine garrisons and took control of Tripoli; effectively marking
a new period of Libyan history which continues to this day. Then the Caliph sent
Uqba Bin Nafi, who moved towards Fezzan in 663 and took Germa, the capital of
the Garamantean Kingdom, and then moved on the Roman province of Africa (Western
Libya including today's Tunisia) in 670 AD, where he established another military
base at Al Qayrawan. From this base he began to plan his attack
on Byzantine Carthage (or what had remained of Carthage), which he
finally took in 693 AD. Shortly after their arrival in Morocco
the Muslim army, under the command of the Berber general Tarek Ben Zeyyad, crossed
the sea and moved on to Spain.
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The Climate:
The highest temperature in the
world was recorded in Libya on the 13th of September 1922, in el-Azizia,
was a staggering 136.4 degree Fahrenheit (or
58°C: degrees Celsius). During the period between May
and September the coastal temperature
can rise to 38°C (100F), while
in the southern parts of the
country it can reach
50°C. Generally it is recommended to visit Libya between
late October and April, when the temperature is generally mellow.
However, be prepared as winter temperatures,
especially at night, can drop to
below 0C. Snow does fall sometimes in Libya, but only in the mountains,
just like in Algeria or Morocco’s Jebel Toubkal
–
North Africa’
s highest peak (4167 km).
Economy
The Libyan economy, one of the richest in Africa, is largely
fuelled by oil. Libya has one of the highest GDPs per person in Africa, despite
the rise of unemployment, which currently stands at 21%. The manufacturing power
of Libya accounts for nearly 21% of GDP, primarily from agricultural products,
iron, and petrochemicals. Libya has a social security system, and provides free
housing, health services and education to all Libyans. Recent economic reforms
have brought major changes to the Libyan economic system, including inviting
international investors and foreign bankers to invest in Libya's free trade zones;
privatising government owned companies, and opening the country to tourism. It
was estimated that Libya will eventually be able to handle 10 million tourists
a year. After the 2011 war, Libya's infrastructure was said to require
at least 10 years of work to put back on its feet.
Agriculture:
Before the discovery of oil in 1950s agriculture supplied
about 26% of GDP, some of which was exported; by 1978 this figure was reduced
to a mere 2%. Analysts blame the oil industry which enticed many peasants to
migrate to the wealthy cities. However, the value of food imports was more than
37% greater than it had been in 1950s. Currently, agriculture employs about 14%
of Libya's workforce. Several projects and initiatives were established after
1969. The largest project to come out of the 1981-85 agricultural development
was the Great Man-Made River (GMMR) -- a massive network of water pipelines planned
to transport water to urban and arid desert areas. Agricultural credit and substantial
amounts of funds were made available to the Libyan people by the National Agricultural
Bank, thereby encouraging nearly 20% of the labour force to remain in the agricultural
sector. Despite this massive development, agriculture accounted for about 3.5%
of GDP.
Food:
Today, approximately 80% of Libya's
food is imported. Libya's Food Buying Agency NASCO buys about 400 thousand
metric tons (400 TMT) of durum, 350 TMT of bread wheat, and 400-800 TMT of flour
and semolina per year. Most of Libya's bread-wheat comes from the EU, while Canada
and Syria are major suppliers of durum. The main crops produced in Libya include
wheat, barley, palm dates, olives, figs, grapes, apples, oranges, watermelons,
tomatoes, cucumber, almonds, apricots, peaches, truffles, vegetables, peanuts
and soybeans. Food in Libya includes a wide variety of local and foreign dishes,
like European, Indian and Chinese. At the top of the list of traditional dishes
are couscous and bazin. Most restaurants and cafes provide a menu very similar
to the menus found elsewhere in North Africa and Europe, like steak, scallop,
burgers, roast chicken, rice, pasta, soups, sandwiches, etc. Couscous is
originally a Berber dish, made of wheat or barley semolina, rolled into tiny
balls (the size of half rice grain) and then steamed and served with sauce. Bazin is
also made of wheat or barley, boiled in water until forms a hard doughy lump,
which then is knead to achieve consistency, before it was placed in the middle
of a large bowl and served with sauce.
Tea and coffee are served without milk, and Green
tea is
normally served after a meal to aid digestion. All other types of drinks are
also available, with the exception of alcoholic drinks which became illegal after
the arrival of Gaddafi in 1969.
The Internet in Libya
Libya Telecom and Technology (www.ltt.ly/) is Libya's first
Internet service provider (ISP). Internet cafes are widely
available and provide free access
to the Internet that is not free of charge - you would expect to pay a pound
or two for one hour access. Yahoo and Hotmail emails are the most popular webmails
among the Libyans. The speed, however, is still mostly dial-up (at 0.40 LYD per
hour for home use only). Some new companies started to provide high speed DSL
Internet connection (which is only 256 kbps download). The Phoenicia Group
(in partnership with other companies)
have recently agreed to provide VSAT connectivity solutions to selected Libyan
institutions. VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) is a satellite Internet system
without cable-based infrastructure (wireless), which is ideal for companies
operating in the desert like
oil and gas companies, as well as for the government, military and corporate
clients. The Group also provides a 3G-based satellite Internet service launched
by Inmarsat (about 428 Kbps), using a mobile lap-top sized terminal which can
be set up almost anywhere worldwide. This services is known as BGAN (Broadband
Global Area Network). The most
recent service to enter the market is the wireless internet from Libyana Net,
where a personal package provides 1 GB a month at up to 3.6 Mb/Sec for a one-off
payment of 335 Libyan Dinars and then 15 LYD per a month, with 5 LYD for each
additional 1MB (
http://www.libyana.ly/). The Libyana cellphone network is owned and run
by the Tripoli-based Libyan General Telecommunications Authority. During the
February war, the mobile telephone network Libyana Al Hura was set up in Eastern
Libya, apparently after disconnecting part of Libyana's mobile phone network
from its central control in Tripoli, and rewiring it as an "independent network". Many
Libyans find the
service provided by Almadar (www.almadar.ly/) more stable
and reliable.
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