Madagascar

Population=22.92 million (2013)

Language= Malagasy, French

The Malagasy language of Malayo-Polynesian origin is generally spoken throughout the island.
The official languages of Madagascar are Malagasy and French. Madagascar is a Francophone
country, and French is spoken among the educated population of this former French colony.

Total area=587,041 km2

226,597 sq mi

Total population density= 35.2/km2

GDP= 2014 estimate Total= $3 Per capita = $1,429

History
Early History: The first humans were from india and arrived from boats.
Colonial History: In 1896 the French officially annexed Madagascar after invading in 1894.
Independence: Madagascar became independent on June 26, 1960
Current events: When Madagascar discovered sapphire in Ankeniheny Zahamena, it has
caused a rapid flow of miners and traders there.
Religion: An estimated 52 percent of the people hold indigenous beliefs; 41 percent are
Christian (evenly divided between Roman Catholic and Protestant); and 7 percent are Muslim.
However, many people hold a combination of indigenous and Christian or Muslim beliefs.

Human geography
Ethnicities: Antaifasy, Antaimoro, Antaisaka, Antahkarana, Antambahoaka, Antandroy, Antanosy,
Bara, Betsileo, Betsimisaraka, Bezanozano, Mahafaly, Makoa or Mikea, Merina , St. Marians,
Sakalava, Sihanaka, Tanala: Ikongo and Menabe, Tsimihety, Vezo, and Zafimaniry.
Food: The most eaten food is rice; they have rice with every almost every meal. They eat with
their cutlery.
3 other cultural facts: Their language is Malagasy, their main religion is Indigenous Beliefs 52%
and christian 41%, and one holiday is New Year's Day January 1.

Flag

The colors of the flag represent Madagascar's history, yearning for independence, and
traditional classes. Red and white were the colors of the Merina kingdom, which succumbed to
France in 1896. They were used in the flag of the last Merina monarch, Queen Ranavalona III.
They may indicate the ethnic origins of the Malagasy people in Southeast Asia, and are shared
by the flag of Indonesia. Green was the color of the Hova, the largest class of peasant
commoners, who played a significant role in anti-French agitation and the independence
movement.

Physical Geography
Madagascar rewards those who make the long journey inbound from Johannesburg, or Paris
via Nairobi. The worlds fourth-largest island, separated from mainland Africa for 165 million
years, Madagascar features unusual plants and creatures, including giant lemurs and
chameleons, and towering avenues of baobab trees. Intensive agriculture and soil erosion of its
red laterite soils create a looming problem for the human population and the incredible
biodiversity of the Great Red Island.
East
Madagascar is shaped somewhat like a giant right footprint. Its eastern edge on the Indian
Ocean consists of a smooth, straight, little-indented coastline backed by steep bluffs. Much of
the islands evergreen rainforest lies just inland of the coast. The island of Ile Sainte-Marie
stands off the northeast shore.

North
The northern port of Diego Suarez lies around a natural harbor and once was the province of
pirates. South of Diego Suarez lies the Tsaratanana Massif with once-volcanic mountains; this
area houses the Montagne DAmbre National Park and the highest point on the island, at 9,448
feet. Nosy Be -- Nosy means island in Malagasy -- lies off the northwest coast and attracts
savvy travelers for its beaches and painterly views of the mainland. Nearby tiny islets contain
hamlets and groves of brown lemurs, with unspoiled reefs offshore.

Central and West

The central highlands, which range from 2,600 to 5,900 feet in altitude, mark the interior of
Madagascar. Here the valleys contain farming hamlets. The landlocked capital of Antananarivo,
locally called Tana, lies in the highlands on the Betsiboka River, about halfway between the
northern and southern tips of the island and closer to the east than west coast. Betsiboka
empties in the Mozambique Channel at the port of Mahajanga. A rift valley east of Tana runs
north to south and contains a 25-mile-long lake, Lac Alaotra. West of Tana lies the Itasy Volcanic
Field, with hot springs and volcanic landforms including lava domes, craters and ash cones;
however, there are no active volcanoes on the island. The western edge of the island features
broad plains created by sedimentary deposits as well as protected harbors.

South
Plateaus and deserts mark the south of Madagascar, bounded by the east by the Ivakoany
Massif and the north by the Isala Roiniforme Massif, notes the Library of Congress online
version of the Area Handbook for Madagascar. The spiny desert here features succulent
plants and sifaka and brown lemurs, as well as baobabs in profusion. The southern coast also
features at least two chevrons, a landform of sediment shaped like a narrow arrow, deposited
long ago. NASA reports that these chevrons indicate a mega-tsunami followed the landing of a
comet or meteorite in the Indian Ocean around 2,800 B.C, and a resulting tsunami wave almost
300 feet high.

Economy of Madagascar

Industry is a growing sector in Madagascar, providing only 13.6 percent of GDP (1998),
but one showing definite potential. Mineral deposits are substantial and largely
unexploited. Gold and Chromite are both mined a lot, as are, on a smaller scale,
graphite, mica nickel, ilmenite, and marble. Iron and bauxite, as well as semi-precious
stones (especially sapphires) are being developed, and have a combined export
potential of up to US$380 million. The industry is still riddled with problems ,however.
Many of Madagascar's deposits are inside national parks and hence off-limits to
development. Low investment is also a hindrance, as isin the case of gold and
gemstoneschronic smuggling.
Manufacturing is an area of some success, greatly stimulated by the formation of the
export processing zone (EPZ) in 1996, which offers tax exemptions for export-focused
industries. The project has grown to include 150 companies and has generated 80,000
jobs, producing 37.4 percent of Madagascar's foreign trade revenue. Its main products
are clothing (48 percent), handicrafts (13 percent), and agro-processing (9 percent).
Textiles are another important export, supported by Madagascar's cotton industry and
low wage rates, and accounts for 15 percent of manufacturing production. Other
products include plastics, pharmaceuticals, leather goods, footwear, and tobacco.