TUNISIA

Republic of Tunisia
‫(الجمهورية التونسية‬Arabic)
al-Jumhūrīyah at-Tūnisīyah
République tunisienne (French)

Flag

Coat of arms
Motto: ‫ نظام‬،‫ عدالة‬،‫ كرامة‬،‫حرية‬
"Ḥurrīyah, Karāma, 'Adālah, Niẓām"
"freedom, dignity, justice, and order"[1]
Anthem: ‫حماة الحمى‬
"Humat al-Hima"
(English: "Defenders of the Homeland")

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 Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
Capital Tunis
and largest city 36°49′N 10°11′E
Official languages Arabic[2]
Spoken languages • Tunisian Arabic[3]
• Berber[4][5][6][7]
• French (administrative, commercial and educational)
Ethnic groups Arab-Berber 98%, European 1%, Jewish and other 1% [8][9]
Religion Islam (official)[10]
Demonym(s) Tunisian
Government Unitary semi-presidential constitutional republic[11][12]

• President Kais Saied

• Prime Minister Najla Bouden Romdhane
• Assembly Speaker Rached Ghannouchi
Legislature Assembly of the Representatives of the People
Establishment

• Ancient Carthage inaugurated 814 BC

• Vandal Kingdom inaugurated 435
• Aghlabids inaugurated 800
• Fatimid Caliphate inaugurated 909
• Zirid dynasty inaugurated 972
• Hafsid dynasty inaugurated 1207
• Husainid Dynasty inaugurated 15 July 1705
• Independence from France 20 March 1956
• Republic declared 25 July 1957
• 1987 Tunisian coup d'état 7 November 1987
• Revolution Day 14 January 2011
• 2nd republic declared 10 February 2014
Area
• Total 163,610 km2 (63,170 sq mi) (91st)
• Water (%) 5.04
Population
• 2020 estimate 11,708,370[13] (81st)
• Density 71.65/km2 (185.6/sq mi) (110th)
GDP (PPP) 2020 estimate
• Total

$159.707 billion[14]
 • Per capita

$13,417[14]
GDP (nominal) 2020 estimate
• Total

$44.192 billion[14]
• Per capita

$3,713[14]
Gini (2017) 35.8[15]

medium
HDI (2019) 0.740[16]
high · 95th
Currency Tunisian dinar (TND)
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
Driving side right
Calling code +216
ISO 3166 code TN
Internet TLD • .tn
• .‫[تونس‬17]
Tunisia,[a] officially the Republic of Tunisia,[b][19] is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a part of the
Maghreb region of North Africa, and is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the
southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east; covering 163,610 km2 (63,170 sq mi), with a
population of 11 million. It contains the eastern end of the Atlas Mountains and the northern reaches of the
Sahara desert, with much of its remaining territory arable land. Its 1,300 km (810 mi) of coastline include the
African conjunction of the western and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Basin. Tunisia is home to Africa's
northernmost point, Cape Angela; and its capital and largest city is Tunis, located on its northeastern coast,
which lends the country its name.

From early antiquity, Tunisia was inhabited by the indigenous Berbers. Phoenicians began to arrive in the
12th century BC, establishing several settlements, of which Carthage emerged as the most powerful by the
7th century BC. A major mercantile empire and a military rival of the Roman Republic, Carthage was defeated
by the Romans in 146 BC, who occupied Tunisia for most of the next 800 years, introducing Christianity and
leaving architectural legacies like the amphitheatre of El Jem. After several attempts starting in 647, Muslims
conquered all of Tunisia by 697, bringing Islam and Arab culture to the local inhabitants. The Ottoman Empire
established control in 1574 and held sway for over 300 years, until the French conquered Tunisia in 1881.
Tunisia gained independence under the leadership of Habib Bourguiba, who declared the Tunisian Republic in
1957. Today, Tunisia is the smallest nation in North Africa, and its culture and identity are rooted in this
centuries-long intersection of different cultures and ethnicities.

In 2011, the Tunisian Revolution, triggered by the lack of freedom and democracy under the 24-year rule of
president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, overthrew his regime and catalyzed the broader Arab Spring across the
region. Free multiparty parliamentary elections were held shortly after; the country again voted for
parliament on 26 October 2014,[20] and for president on 23 November 2014.[21] Tunisia remains a unitary semi-
presidential representative democratic republic; and is the only North African country classified as "Free" by
Freedom House,[22] and considered the only fully democratic state in the Arab World in the Economist
Intelligence Unit's Democracy Index.[23][c] It is one of the few countries in Africa ranking high in the Human
Development Index, with one of the highest per capita incomes in the continent.

Tunisia is well integrated into the international community. It is a member of the United Nations, La
Francophonie, the Arab League, the OIC, the African Union, the Non-Aligned Movement, the International
 Criminal Court, and the Group of 77, among others. It maintains close economic and political relations with
some European countries, particularly with France,[24] and Italy,[25][26] which geographically lie very close to it.
Tunisia also has an association agreement with the European Union, and has also attained the status of major
non-NATO ally of the United States.

Recently, anti-government protests stemming in part from the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in an ongoing
political crisis.