Facts About libya

Fun Facts About Libya You Probably Didn’t Know

Libya is an incredible country with a long history. Despite the current conflicts, the country is a beautiful place with a rich culture. Libyans are known for being warm and welcoming, with hospitality being very important in Libyan culture. There are so many facts about Libya that make the country unique, the following are just a few of them.

Libya has had only one king, King Idris I.

When Libya gained independence in 1951, the government placed Idris I as the king. Previously, he had been the Emir of Cyrenaica, and was part of the order of Senussi. King Idris I was unpopular with Libyans because of how conservative he was. He was overthrown in a coup in 1969.

The desert can go for decades without rain.

The Libyan Desert is part of the Sahara Desert, and makes up a majority of Libya’s land in the south. Its climate is very hot and dry, and is considered uninhabitable. For example, in Ghat, in the southwest region of Libya in the Sahara, the average rainfall per month, throughout the year, is zero. When it does rain, though, it is a downpour.

Most of the country’s food comes from imports.

As you can probably imagine, if many parts of Libya don’t get a lot of rain, agriculture is not possible. On top of that, the non-desert parts of Libya don’t have a good enough climate or good soil for farming. Instead, Libya has had to turn to importing a majority of food for people. In total, they import about 75% of their food so that the people can survive.

Its capital, Tripoli, is known as the Mermaid of the Mediterranean.

Tripoli is on the coast and is the country’s biggest city. It is also a port city. The nickname “Mermaid of the Mediterranean” came from the blue Mediterranean waters in comparison with the whitewashed buildings of the city.

Libya has the largest proven oil reserves in Africa.

In 2016, Libya officially held 43,363,000,000 barrels of proven oil reserves. That number places the country at 9th in the world for proven oil reserves, with 2.9% of the world’s total oil reserves. At current consumption levels, there would be 594 years’ worth of oil left in Libya alone.

The coast is home to many rare species of animals.

The climate of Libya’s coastline is perfect for many rare species of animals. These animals include loggerhead turtles, Egyptian tortoises, and the striped dolphin is in the water. Egyptian tortoises will nest on the beach, and sometimes, you can spot saker falcons or marbled polecats close to the coast.

Libya was inhabited starting in 1200 BC.

Before the Phoenicians inhabited the land, there were the Berbers. Many scholars believe that the Berbers inhabited Libya starting in 1200 BC, or the Late Bronze Age. Another more polite name for the Berbers are the Amazigh, who are spread across North Africa. The Amazigh are still in Libya today, with about 5% of the population being Amazigh.

Ghadames is known as the “Pearl of the Desert”.

Also spelled Gadamis, Ghadames is an oasis town about 300 miles away from Tripoli. Ghadames itself was founded when the Berbers were the only people in Libya, but none of the original buildings, or the buildings from the Roman period, still stand. The cream-colored buildings cool the city down when the heat is unbearable.

Cyrene is the oldest Greek city in the region.

Cyrene is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located close to Shahhat, a town in north Libya. The expedition from Greece to North Africa set out in 630 BC. It is the oldest of the five Greek cities in the region. Cyrene had many rulers, not all Greek. For example, in the Greco-Persian Wars, the Persian Empire controlled Cyrene in the Sixth Province of the Persian Kingdom. After that, Cyrene began to gain more independence and supported the Spartans in the Peloponnesian War. However, the Romans eventually conquered the city and took over until the Arabs invaded.

1.5% of Libya’s population are Tuareg.

The Tuaregs are a tribe within the Amazigh and are historically nomadic, but becoming semi-nomadic. They are primarily in the western part of Libya, with people also in Mali, Niger, Algeria, and Chad, however, they are not a majority within any of those countries. Numbers stating how many Tuareg people are in Libya are inaccurate, as they were not given Libyan citizenship under Gaddafi. For that reason, the estimates of their numbers are anywhere between 10,000 and 100,000 in Libya. Another Amazigh tribe in Libya is the Toubou.

Libya was the only country in the world with a plain flag

From 1977 until 2011, Libya became the Libyan Arab Republic to the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya by Gaddafi. During this time, the country had a plain green flag, the only country in the world with a designless flag. After Libya became independent, the country split into three regions: Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezza. Each region represented one of the three horizontal stripes of red, black and green on the flag. The star and crescent symbolize Islam.

Humans have lived in Libya for thousands of years

Humans have inhabited Libya for thousands of years. Originally occupied by Berber people, or Amazigh, from North Africa in around 2000 BC, the Phoenicians settled in Tripolitania in around the 7th century BC. They stayed until Carthage conquered the area in the 6th century, then the Greeks arrived in the 4th century and the Romans finally conquered the country in 74 BC. In fact, the UNESCO-listed Rock-Art Sites of Tadrart Acacus prove the existence of humans in Libya as far back as 12000 BC. These unique rock drawings provide insights into how much the region changed during this period too.

Libya has Africa’s largest proven oil reserves

Oil reserves in Libya are the largest in Africa and the ninth-largest in the world. In 2019, there were approximately 48 billion barrels. It’s a particularly appealing oil region due to its low cost of oil (around $1 per barrel), low sulfur content and proximity to European markets. Around 85% of Libya’s oil is exported to countries across Europe. Gaddafi famously used the oil revenues to ensure the stability of his rule by giving Libyan officials a significant percentage of revenues, thereby guaranteeing loyalty.

Over 90% of Libya is desert or semidesert

Over 90% of Libya is desert or semi-desert. It’s home to the Sahara Desert, the world’s largest hot desert. Parts of the Sahara Desert in Libya are called the Libyan Desert. The Libyan Sahara Desert also encompasses the Ubari Sand Sea – a deep red lake fed by springs from an underground aquifer created by ancient rains. The lake gets its striking colour from algae that have adapted to survive in the saline waters.

Libya is home to an ancient volcano

As well as an eye-popping lake, the Libyan Sahara Desert is also home to a rare volcanic phenomenon. Known as the Waw a Namus, this tremendous crater is actually the remnants of an ancient volcano that carried black ash 12 miles across the sand. The caldera is surrounded by an apron of dark tephra, which stands out against the miles of the surrounding desert. There are several small lakes and vegetation inside the caldera too.

Libya was once part of an Ancient Greek empire

Libya is often referred to as an ‘ancient crossroads of civilizations’. Today, you can still visit one of the main cities of the Greek Empire, the UNESCO-listed Archaeological Site of Cyrene. Founded in 631 BC, the Romans later incorporated it into the Roman Empire. In 365 AD an earthquake struck the city and destroyed it.

Libya was part of the Ottoman Empire

In the 16th century, the Ottomans took control of Libya. It remained part of the empire until Italy seized control of the country in 1911. Then, during World War II the Allied forces ousted Italy. Britain and France administered the country until 1951 when it became independent. King Idris, I became the first and last monarch of Libya. He became unpopular due to his conservatism and in 1969 was deposed in a coup d’état led by Colonel Gaddafi.