Somalia
The Country of the Week
Quick Facts
- Capital
- Mogadishu
- Population
- 20,324,160 (2025 est.)
- Area
- 637,657 sq km
- Government
- federal parliamentary republic
- Religions
- Muslim 99.9% (Sunni Muslim 98.1%, Shia Muslim 1.2%, Islamic schismatic 0.6%), ethnic religionist 0.1% (2020 est.)
- Ethnic Groups
- predominantly Somali with lesser numbers of Arabs, Bantus, and others
- Currency
- Somali shillings (SOS)
- Life Expectancy
- 56.5 years (2024 est.)
- Internet Domain
- .so
- Climate
- principally desert; northeast monsoon (December to February), moderate temperatures in north and hot in south; southwest monsoon (May to October), torrid in the north and hot in the south, irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili) between monsoons
- Terrain
- mostly flat to undulating plateau rising to hills in north
- Natural Resources
- uranium and largely unexploited reserves of iron ore, tin, gypsum, bauxite, copper, salt, natural gas, likely oil reserves
- Major Exports
- sheep and goats, gold, postage stamps/documents, other animals, cattle (2023)
Source: CIA World Factbook (public domain)
Overview
Between A.D. 800 and 1100, immigrant Muslim Arabs and Persians set up coastal trading posts along the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, solidifying present-day Somalia’s close trading relationship with the Arab Peninsula.