Angola

How is the land laid out?

Angola consists of 1.2 million square kilometers of western south-central Africa. There is a narrow coastal plain, but most of the land is a plateau, often above 1,000 meters and topping out at more than 2,500 meters.

Two great river systems are represented, plus some shorter, Atlantic-flowing ones and one inland basin. In the north the Congo¹ reaches the sea along Angola's north border.² Important tributaries flow north in the nation's northeast; these include the Cuango,³ the Luangue⁴ and the Cassai.⁵

In the east-center and southeast, the Zambeze⁶ system drains Moxico and eastern Kuando-Kubango⁷ provinces. The Kuando is the most important tributary.⁸

Also in the southeast, and heading further southeast, is the Kubango⁹ and its tributary, the Cuito.

The Kwanza and Cunene are the most important Atlantic-feeding rivers after the Congo.

Who lives there?

Angola is home to 13.3 million people. In the far north Kongo¹⁰ is spoken. In the northwest, where more than half of the nation lives, the majority speak Mbundu.¹¹ In the southwest,where most of the rest of Angolans live, the majority speak Umbundu.¹² In much less populous Lunda, the majority speak Chokwe. In Moxico, the majority speak languages in the Chokwe-Luchazi group. In sparsely populated Kuango-Kubango, the Ndongo group accounts for over half.

As a national generality, Christianity is the religion of a slight majority of Angolans. It is stronger near the coast, especially in the north. Catholicism is strongest among the Kongo, still strong among the (North) Mbundu, and weaker among the Umbundu. Besides Protestantism, a 20th century messianic variant of Christianity, Kimbanguism, locally called Mtokoism, is important to some, especially among Umbundu.

Local traditional religion typically includes a deus otiosus, equated by Christians to their one god. The older beliefs recognize ancestral and place-centered spirits as important in explaining events, good and ill. And may people in difficulty consult specialists in understanding the supernatural, most commonly called kimbanda. Typically traditional people believe that there are witches or sorcerors, although the distinction varies.

Luanda is the only city with more than a million residents. Other cities that are historically or regionally important or popular with tourists are Malanje, Dongo, Huambo, Lubango, Namibe, Luena and M'banza-Kongo.

Cabinda Province
Zaire, Uige, Luanda, Bengo, Kwanza-North, Kwanza-South and Malanje provinces
Namibe, Huila, Cunene, Bie, Huambo and Benguela provinces
North and South Lunda provinces
Moxico Province
Kuando-Kubango Province

Footnotes

1. Its lower course goes by this name.
2. Not counting the discontiguous Cabinda Province, which is further north.
3. Spelled Kwango in the Congo.
4. Spelled Loange in the Congo.
5. Spelled Kasai in the Congo.
6. Elsewhere spelled Zambezi.
7. Also spelled Cuando-Cubango.
8. Elsewhere it connects tenuously to the Zambezi through the Linyanti and Chobe.
9. It is considered distinct from the Zambezi, although the swamp it goes to in Namibia occasionally spills over into the Zambezi system. The river is called the Okavango in Namibia.
10. The dialects are Koongo and San Salvador Kongo.
11. Also called Luanda Mbundu, North Mbundu, Kimbundu, Quimbundu and Ndonga.
12. Also called South Mbundu or Benguela Mbundu.