The Gambia PortalThe Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal, except for its western coast on the Atlantic Ocean. It is situated on both sides of the lower reaches of the Gambia River, which flows through the centre of the country and empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The national namesake river demarcates the elongated shape of the country, which has an area of 11,300 square kilometres (4,400 sq mi) and a population of 2,468,569 people in 2024. The capital city is Banjul, which has the most extensive metropolitan area in the country; the second- and third-largest cities are Serekunda and Brikama. Arab Muslim merchants traded with native West Africans in The Gambia throughout the 9th and 10th centuries. In 1455, the Portuguese were the first Europeans to enter The Gambia, although they never established significant trade there. The region was made a part of the British Empire by establishment of a colony in 1765, and exactly 200 years later, in 1965, The Gambia gained independence under the leadership of Dawda Jawara. Jawara ruled until Yahya Jammeh seized power in a bloodless 1994 coup, with Jammeh ruling until 2017. Adama Barrow became The Gambia's third president in January 2017, after defeating Jammeh in the December 2016 elections. Jammeh initially accepted the results, but then refused to leave office, triggering a constitutional crisis and military intervention by the Economic Community of West African States that resulted in his removal two days after his term was initially scheduled to end. The Gambia has been a member of the Economic Community of West African States since its conception in 1975 and is a member of the Commonwealth, with English being the country's sole official language, both legacies of its British colonial past. The Gambia's economy is dominated by farming, fishing, and especially tourism. In 2015, 48.6% of the population lived in poverty. In rural areas, poverty was even more widespread, at almost 70%. ( Full article...) Selected article -
Serer maternal clans or Serer matriclans (
Serer : Tim or Tiim;
Ndut : Ciiɗim) are the
maternal
clans of the
Serer people of
Senegal, the
Gambia and
Mauritania. The Serer are both
patrilineal (simanGol or Simangol) and matrilineal. Inheritance depends on the nature of the asset being inherited – i.e. whether it is a maternal
asset which requires maternal inheritance (ƭeen yaay or den yaay) or paternal asset requiring paternal inheritance (kucarla). The Serer woman play a vital role in and. In pre-colonial times until the abolition of their monarchies, a
Serer king would be required to crown his mother, maternal aunt or sister as
Lingeer (queen) after his own
coronation. This re-affirms the maternal lineage to which they both belong (Tim). The Lingeer was very powerful and had her own army and palace. She was the queen of all women and presided over female
cases. From a religious perspective, the Serer woman plays a vital role in
Serer religion. As members of the Serer priestly class (the
Saltigues), they are among the guardians of Serer religion, sciences, ethics and. There are several Serer matriclans; not all of them are listed here. Alliance between matriclans in order to achieve a common goal was, and still is very common. The same clan can be called a different name depending on which part of one finds oneself in. Some of these matriclans form part of
Serer mythology and dynastic history. The mythology afforded to some of these clans draws parallels with the Serer creation narrative, which posits that:
the first human to be created was a female. Many Serers who adhere to the tenets of Serer religion believe these narratives to contain profound truths which are historic or pre-historic in nature. (
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The Gambia women's national football team (recognized at The Gambia by FIFA) represents the Gambia in international women's football. It is governed by the Gambia Football Federation. As of December 2019, it has only competed in one major international competition, the 2018 Africa Women Cup of Nations qualification. The Gambia has two youth teams, an under-17 side that has competed in FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup qualifiers, and an under-19 side that withdrew from regional qualifiers for an under-19 World Cup. The development of a national team faces challenges similar to those across Africa, although the national football association has four staff members focusing on women's football. ( Full article...) SubcategoriesSelect [►] to view subcategories
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James Island, an island off
The Gambia
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