Republic of Djibouti (Jumhuriyyat Jibuti, Jamhuuyiyadda Jabuuti, Republique de Djibouti) Djibouti - capital city
Djibouti (Arabic: جيبوتي Jībūtī, Somali: Jabuuti), officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. On the other side of the Red Sea, on the Arabian Peninsula, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the coast of Djibouti, is Yemen. Djibouti's size is just over 23,000 square kilometres (8,900 sq mi) with an estimated population of under 500,000. Its capital is the city of Djibouti. (Wikipedia.org)
The history of Djibouti is recorded in poetry and in songs of its nomadic people and goes back thousands of years to a time when Djiboutians traded hides and skins for the perfumes and spices of ancient Egypt, India, and China. Through close contacts with the Arabian peninsula for more than 1,000 years, the Somali and Afar ethnic groups in this region became among the first on the African continent to accept Islam. (Wikipedia.org)
French interest developed in the nineteenth century when the area was ruled by the sultan of Raheita, Tadjoura and Gobaad. The French bought the anchorage of Obock in 1862 and expanded it eventually to a colony called French Somaliland with essentially the current boundaries. In 1967 the area became the French Territory of the Afars and the Issas. (Wikipedia.org)
The Republic of Djibouti gained its independence from France on June 27, 1977. Djibouti is a Somali, Afar and Islamic country which regularly takes part in Islamic affairs as well as Arab meetings. (Wikipedia.org)
Djibouti - Chief port and capital of the Republic of Djibouti, on a peninsula 240 km/149 mi southwest of Aden, Yemen, and 565 km/351 mi northeast of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; population (2002 est) 534,700. Industries include petroleum refining, textiles, and rail freighting. The city is an important regional bunkering and supply centre for the export trade in petroleum, and is the main export route for Ethiopian coffee; other exports include hides and salt. (http://encyclopedia.farlex.com)
The city succeeded Obock as capital of French Somaliland in 1892 and was the official port of Ethiopia from 1897 to 1949. The closure of the Suez Canal (1967–75) hit the port's trade badly. Djibouti is the terminus of the rail link from Addis Ababa. (http://encyclopedia.farlex.com)
