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Country name and land area
The Republic of Congo; French: La République du Congo), abbreviated as "Congo-Brazzaville" or simply "Congo".
The name of the country comes from the ancient Kingdom of Kongo, which is named after the Congo River, which is the name of the indigenous people for the lower reaches of the Congo River, "Congo" means "big river" in the local language, and the ruler of the Kingdom of Congo is called "Wene wa Kongo", which means "King of the Congo".
Before the establishment of the independent state, it was called the "Moyen-Congo", after independence on August 15, 1960, it was named "Republic of the Congo", on December 31, 1969 it was renamed "The Peoples Republic of Congo" (La République Populaire du Congo), and on June 4, 1991, the name of the country was restored. Congo (Brazzaville) has a total land area of 342,000 square kilometers.
geographical location
Congo Brazzaville is located between 4° north and 5° south latitude, between 11° east longitude and 19° east longitude, and straddles the equatorial line.
Congo (Brazzaville) is geographically advantageous, bordering five African countries, its southeast is bordered by Angola's enclave Cabinda Province, Gabon to the west, Cameroon to the northwest, the Central African Republic to the north, the Congo River and its tributary the Ubangi River to the east and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as the border, the Atlantic Ocean to the southwest, and the coastline is 156 kilometers long.
Congo (Brazzaville) is located in the equatorial region, straddling the southern and northern hemispheres, is a transportation hub and transit point between Central Africa and West Africa, and an important bridge from the sea to Central Africa, Southern Africa, East Africa and other regions.
In addition, the geographical importance of Congo (Brazzaville) is also that it is close to the Congo River and Ubangi River and adjacent to the Congo (Kinshasa), these two rivers are important international rivers in the equatorial African region, because they flow through both sides of the equator, obtaining alternating supplies of abundant precipitation in the northern and southern hemispheres, Congo (Brazzaville) has always been an important channel for foreign exchanges between countries in Central Africa.
Topographic climate
The Great Central African depression through which the Congo River and its tributaries run is called the "Congo Basin" and is surrounded by arc-shaped mountains. Congo (Brazzaville) is located on the western edge of the basin, with complex terrain, lowlands, swamps, mountains, hills and flat rivers.
The general topography is high in the middle, low in the north and south, high in the west and low in the east. The average altitude of the whole territory does not exceed 1000 meters. The morphological characteristics of the surface of Congo (Brazzaville) can be roughly divided into three parts:
In the southwest is a narrow coastal lowland with an average altitude of less than 300 meters, about 50 km wide and 140 km long; The average altitude in the central and western regions is between 500~1000 meters, mostly mountainous and plateau; In the northeast, there are plains and basins at an altitude of about 300 meters.
There are more than 30 rivers in Congo (Brazzaville). Among them, the Congo River has a total length of about 4640 kilometers, flowing through the Congo (Brazzaville) for more than 1000 kilometers, if calculated according to the flow and basin area, the Congo River is second only to the Amazon River in South America, is the world's second largest river, is one of the world's eight major navigable rivers.
In addition, the Ubangi River on the northeastern border, the Sangha River, the Likouala River and the Alima River in the north are the main tributaries of the Congo River. The Kouilou River flows through southwestern Congo and eventually flows into the Atlantic Ocean.
The southwestern region is mainly divided into two parts: one is the coastal lowlands; The other part is a low, hilly valley, mainly consisting of the Mayomba Fold Mountains.
The coastal lowlands have a narrow trapezoidal shape, extending from northwest to southeast, with an average altitude of less than 300 meters, about 50 km wide and about 140 km long.
The outer edge of the coastal lowlands is influenced by sea breezes and tides, forming a series of sand dunes, and the southern part is mostly mangrove-covered swamps. There are also low hills above 200 meters on the flat ground, some of which reach the shore to form rocky headlands, two of which are famous port cities of Point-Noire and Indien-Noire, the former being an important harbour. The coastline is basically straight except for the curve near the cape.
The low hilly valleys mainly refer to the Mayombe Fold Mountains. It is located in the interior of the southwest, extending from northwest to southeast, about 100 kilometers long, about 60 kilometers wide, with an average altitude of 600~800 meters, and the highest point is about 1000 meters, roughly parallel to the coast.
The Kuilu River flows through the middle of the mountain, forming the famous Songda Gorge, dividing the Mayombe Mountain Range into east and west, with the eastern part being the most beautiful.
The inner side of the mountain is the Niari sloping valley on the upper reaches of the Quelu River, which is wide, with an average elevation of less than 200 meters, flanked by hilly and lone peaks. On the periphery of the valley, the plains are layered to form a series of stepped platforms, overlooking the middle of the valley from the high terrace, which is green and lush with vegetation.
The Central Plateau region is geologically part of the African paleofloor massif. Composed mainly of ancient rock, most of which has been flattened due to erosion and weathering. The region is the watershed of three river systems: the Congo River, the Quelu River and the Ogooue River (Gabon's most important river).
Roughly from south to north there are several different block plateaus: the waterfall plateau in the south, straddling the border between Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, because the sandstone layer is mostly well preserved, the Congo River and its tributary the Foulakari River (Foulakari) cross it, forming a series of steep cliffs and waterfalls, rich in hydraulic resources, but not conducive to the navigation of the Congo River to the Atlantic Ocean.
The central part is the Batéké plateau, which has a wide area and high terrain, with an average altitude of 700~1000 meters, and is composed of several blocky plateaus of different areas.
Mount Chaillou enters from Gabon and forms the western boundary of the plateau. The Mbè plateau in the southeast, with an average altitude of about 650 meters, is the largest. In addition, it is hilly, with a meandering river valley in between, which is highly permeable, but most areas lack water and the scenery is monotonous. Lèkèti Mountain in the north is the highest peak in the country at 1,040 meters above sea level, which is not only the watershed of the eastern and western water systems, but also the natural border between Congo (Brazzaville) and Gabon.
The northern region is dominated by the Congo Basin. The Congo Basin has obvious asymmetrical structure, and the Congo River basin is divided into two parts: east and west. Congo (Brazzaville) has most of Hexi, covering an area of about 150,000 square kilometers.
The terrain is high in the west and low in the east, and the altitude is less than 300 meters, forming a large swamp. The flow of the river in the area is erratic, diverted by floods. The interior of the basin is also a few high-lying areas, often the location of settlements.
Most of the surface of the basin is covered by clay, which not only has high natural fertility and great agricultural production potential, but also has strong viscosity and is not easy to permeable, which is the best raw material for burning bricks and pottery.
The northwestern edge of the basin is the highlands, which are the eastern extension of the Gabonese Gaire Mountains, which rise from 500 to 1000 meters above sea level and are granite blocks, multi-peaked and wide valleys. In the northwest, near the border with Gabon, is the famous Mount Nabemba, with an average elevation of 1,020 meters, a densely forested and sparsely populated area about 50 kilometers from the city of Souanké in Sangha province.
climate
Congo (Brazzaville) generally belongs to the equatorial tropical climate, of which the south belongs to the savannah climate, the central and northern parts are tropical rainforest climate, and the annual average temperature is between 24 °C ~ 28 °C. The whole territory of Congo (Brazzaville) is hot and rainy all year round, and the temperature difference is small throughout the year. However, the daily temperature difference is large, the sun is like fire during the day, and the temperature drops faster at night, so it feels cooler, so there is a saying that "night is equatorial winter".
Congo (Brazzaville) has a hot and humid climate throughout the year, divided into large and small dry and rainy seasons. January ~ May is the heavy rainy season, May ~ September is the big dry season, October ~ December is the light rainy season, and December to January is the small dry season.
The seasonal temperature difference does not vary much, but the amount of precipitation varies greatly from place to place. For example, except for December and January, which can be called the dry season, the rest of the northern region is basically the rainy season. The annual precipitation is 1000~1600 mm, and the northern area can reach more than 2000 mm.
The seasonal distribution of rainfall in Congo (Brazzaville) is relatively uniform in the northern half, with March ~ May and September ~ October being two exceptionally heavy rainy seasons, forming two major rainfall peaks, and other months also often rain.
Due to the distance from the equator, the southern half is the rainy season from November to April, with only one peak of rainfall, which occurs from December to January; May ~ September is a clear dry season, and it lasts longer and longer.
Rainfall is rapid, mainly convective thunderstorms. During the rainy season, it rains every afternoon and at dusk, and at the beginning and end of the rainy season, there are many large storms. Although there is less rainfall during the dry season, the humidity is high and the weather is often gloomy and muggy.
Population, ethnicity, language
Congo (Brazzaville) has a population of 5.26 million (2017 statistics), and two-thirds of the country's population is concentrated in cities, and Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire alone account for more than 50% of the country's total population.
The number of Chinese in Congo (Brazzaville) exceeds 1,000, mainly concentrated in the capital Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire, and a considerable number of Chinese are engaged in commercial activities in cities such as Oyo and Vesso, which are undergoing large-scale infrastructure construction.
In the early days of independence in the 60s of the 20th century, the population of the country was small, only about 1 million. Since then, the population of Congo (Brazzaville) has shown a trend of increasing year by year.
On the one hand, the government's vigorous development of the economy, especially the oil industry, provides more space for absorbing domestic labor; On the other hand, the medical and living standards in Congo (Brazzaville) have been continuously improved and enhanced, the birth rate has gradually increased, the mortality rate of the population, especially the infant mortality rate, has decreased year by year, and the life expectancy of the population has shown a trend of extension.
According to World Bank statistics, the total population of Congo (Brazzaville) in 1970 was 1.34 million, and in 1980 the population growth rate was 2.92%, and the total population increased to 1.8 million
In 1990, the population of the country was 2.39 million, and the population growth rate decreased slightly to 2.68%. [1] In 2000, the country's population increased to 3.11 million, and the population growth rate remained at 2.52%.
In 2010, the country's population continued to grow, reaching 4.06 million, and the population growth rate increased to 2.88%. In 2017, the total population of Congo (Brazzaville) reached 5.26 million.
This means that in the more than 50 years since independence, the population of Congo (Brazzaville) has increased more than fourfold. From the perspective of future population development, the population of Congo (Brazzaville) will enter a stage of medium and low growth.