Welcome To Angola! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Atlantic Ocean

Angola is close to the center of Africa on the southern side. Its western border with the Atlantic Ocean is about 1,600 km (994 miles), and forms the country's lowest point at 0 m. The coastline is generally flat, and shallow bays are quite common. The Benguela current in the Atlantic reduces the rainfall over the country, especially south of the city of Benguela (situated in the center of the coastline) - this forms the northern part of the Namib desert.

Answer: Portugal

Unfortunately, Angola was worse off after the win of independence from Portugal, as was the case with many African countries that had recently won independence from Portugal. Angola suffered from economic recession and had one of the lowest GDP per capita values of the world. Sadly the situation in the country was so bad that it entered a 27 year civil war, which ended in 2002. Approximately 500,000 people lost their lives in the civil war.

Portuguese remains Angola's only official language, although some regional languages are recognized, such as Kongo and Chokwe.

Answer: False

Luanda (formerly Loanda) is situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline of Angola; it is the capital of Luanda Province and is Angola's main seaport. The city was founded in 1575 by a Portuguese explorer named Paulo Dias de Novais, and approximately a third of Angolans live there.

Answer: Black

The flag was adopted under a Marxist government, and the red stripe was originally supposed to represent Communism. The design in the center consists of a cog wheel and a machete, said to represent the workers and industry, and peasantry respectively. This symbol is reminiscent of the hammer and sickle symbol of the Soviet Union, continuing the Communism theme.

Answer: Kwanza

The Kwanza (also Cuanza) river empties into the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 60km (37 miles) south of Luanda, and has a rich biodiversity. The two provinces with the name are Cuanza Norte and Cuanza Sul, situated on the north and south banks of the river respectively.

The Capanda Dam on the river provides a source of hydroelectric power. The kwanza, which is the currency, is made up of 100 centimos.

Answer: Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo-Kinshasa)

The area called Cabinda today was previously three different kingdoms: N'Goyo, Loango, and Kakongo. The Portuguese arrived in around the 15th century, settling along with the English and the Dutch. Portugal lost all of its overseas territories in 1974; the next year, the Treaty of Alvor declared Cabinda as part of Angola. The treaty was rejected by all political organizations in Cabinda.

Answer: Zaire

Zaire Province is located on Angola's border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which was previously called Republic of Zaire (from 1971 to 1997). Zaire Province has an area of approximately 40,130 square kilometers (approx. 15,500 square miles), and its capital is M'banza Kongo (formerly São Salvador).

Answer: Mount Moco

Mount Moco forms Angola's highest point at 2620 m (approx. 8600 ft). Unfortunately, the cloud forest areas, also called montane forest, are among the most threatened habitats in Angola, and the endemic animals there are becoming endangered. Thankfully, a group of ornithologists and biologists are working on the Mount Moco Special Reserve to preserve the areas of forest and protect the animals who live there.

More information can be found at www.MountMoco.org.

Answer: Bantu

Bantu is quite a general label, and includes many hundreds of tribes ranging across central and southern Africa. Bantu tribes form about one third of Africa's population, and the three tribes mentioned in the question form approximately three quarters of Angola's population.

These tribes have their own native Bantu languages, but unfortunately the Portuguese influence in Angola has been so strong that these languages are spoken by minorities. Despite this, there are many tribal languages that are recognized as regional languages.

Answer: Agostinho Neto

Antonio Agostinho Neto was born in 1922. He left for Portugal to study medicine in two universities. In 1956, the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) was formed by the merging of the Angolan Communist Party (ACP) and Party of the United Struggle for Africans in Angola (PLUA). Neto served as its President.

He was arrested in 1960 by Portuguese authorities; many people marched and protested for his release, but sadly Portuguese soldiers fired at them, killing and wounding many. Neto was put under house arrest, but escaped.

He died in 1979 in Moscow.