Jabutti, officially the republic of Djibouti is a country located in the horn of Africa. It gained Independence from France on 27th of June 1977. It is bordered by Somalia in the south, Ethiopia in the south and west, Eritrea in the north, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden in the east. Across the Gulf of Aden lies Yemen, which does not share a land border with Djibouti. The country has a total area of 23,200km² (8,958sq mi). The state of Djibouti is predominantly inhabited by two ethnic groups, the Somali and the Afar people with the former comprising the majority of the population.
Djibouti is a multi-ethnic nation with a population of over 1,007,457 inhabitants (the smallest in mainland Africa). French and Arabic are the country’s two official languages. About 94% of residents adhere to Islam, which is the official religion and has been predominant in the region for more than a thousand years. The Somali (issa clan) and Afar make up the two largest ethnic groups. Both speak the Cushitic branch of the Afro-asiatic languages.
Through close contacts with the adjacent Arabian Peninsula for more than 1,000 years, the Somali and Afar ethnic groups in the region became among the first populations on the continent to embrace Islam.
Islam was introduced to the area early on from the Arabian Peninsula, shortly after the Hijra. Zelia’s two – mihrab masjid al– qibia tayn dates to the 7th century, and is the oldest mosque in the city.
In the late 9th century, Al– yaqubi wrote that Muslims were living along the northern Horn seaboard. He also mentioned that the Adal kingdom had its capital in Zelia, a port city in the northern western Awdal region a butting Djibouti.
In 1977, a third referendum took place. A land slide 98.8% of the electorate supported disengagement from France, officially making Djibouti’s Independence. Hassan Gouled , a Somali politician who had campaigned for a yes vote in the referendum of 1958, became the nation’s first president (1977–1999).
During its first year, Djibouti joined the Organization of African Unity (now the African Union), the Arab League and United Nations. In 1986, the nascent republic was also among the founding members of the intergovernmental Authority on Development regional development organization.
A lot of Djibouti’s original art is passed on and preserved orally, mainly through songs, culture, cuisine etc.
FADESERE DAVID
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