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135-709: Congo , officially the Republic of the Congo or Congo Republic , also known as Congo-Brazzaville , is a country located on the western coast of Central Africa to the west of the Congo River . It is bordered to the west by Gabon , to the northwest by Cameroon , to the northeast by the Central African Republic , to the southeast by the Democratic Republic of the Congo , to the south by

270-650: A constitutional referendum in October resulted in a changed constitution that allowed him to run during the 2016 presidential election . He won the election believed by some to be fraudulent. After violent protests in the capital, Sassou attacked the Pool region where the Ninja rebels of the civil war used to be based, in what was believed to be a distraction. This led to a revival of the Ninja rebels who launched attacks against

405-494: A death squad known as Les Effaceurs ("the erasers") who wanted to clear the land of people to open it up for mineral exploitation. Both sides of the war regarded them as "subhuman", and some say their flesh can confer magical powers. Makelo asked the UN Security Council to recognize cannibalism as a crime against humanity and an act of genocide . According to Minority Rights Group International there

540-618: A 4-month conflict that destroyed or damaged some of Brazzaville and caused tens of thousands of civilian deaths. In October, the Angolan government began an invasion of Congo to install Sassou in power and the Lissouba government fell. After that, Sassou declared himself president. In the elections in 2002 , Sassou won with almost 90% of the vote cast. His 2 main rivals, Lissouba and Bernard Kolelas, were prevented from competing. A remaining rival, André Milongo advised his supporters to boycott

675-599: A Cameroonian musical artist. Polyphonic music is found among the Aka–Baka and the Mbuti, but not among the Gyele (Kola) or the various groups of Twa. In the Republic of Congo , where Pygmies are estimated to make up between 1.2% and 10% of the population, many Pygmies live as slaves to Bantu masters. The nation is deeply stratified between these two major ethnic groups. The Pygmy slaves belong from birth to their Bantu masters in

810-601: A Kongolese army of 5,000, was destroyed by an army of Afro-Portuguese at the Battle of Mbwila . The empire dissolved into petty polities, fighting among each other for war captives to sell into slavery. Kongo gained captives from the Kingdom of Ndongo in wars of conquest. Ndongo was ruled by the ngola . Ndongo would also engage in slave trading with the Portuguese, with São Tomé being a transit point to Brazil. The kingdom

945-748: A coast on the Atlantic Ocean. The southwest is a coastal plain for which the primary drainage is the Kouilou-Niari River ; the interior of the country consists of a central plateau between 2 basins to the south and north. Forests are under increasing exploitation pressure. Congo had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 8.89/10, ranking it 12th globally out of 172 countries. Congo lies within 4 terrestrial ecoregions: Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests , Northwestern Congolian lowland forests , Western Congolian swamp forests , and Western Congolian forest–savanna mosaic . Since

1080-604: A common ancestral population. Moreover, most Pygmy-like groups around the world dwell in tropical forests, and hence are likely to have iodine-deficient diets. The possibility that independent adaptations to an iodine-deficient diet might therefore have contributed to the convergent evolution of the short stature phenotype in Pygmy-like groups around the world deserves further investigation. The African Pygmies are particularly known for their vocal music, usually characterized by dense contrapuntal improvisation. Simha Arom says that

1215-436: A consequence of genetic alterations in the thyroid hormone pathway. [...] [T]his would suggest that short stature [...] arose as an indirect consequence of selection in response to an iodine-deficient diet. Second, since different genes in the thyroid hormone pathway show signals of selection in Mbuti vs. Biaka Pygmies, this would suggest that short stature arose independently in the ancestors of Mbuti and Biaka Pygmies, and not in

1350-472: A fee to use this area. The governments only enforced rules and regulations to a limited extent. Local governments and traditional authorities are increasingly engaged in rent-seeking , collecting license fees with the help of the police or army. Oil is also a major export of the countries of northern and eastern Central Africa, notably making up a large proportion of the GDPs of Chad and South Sudan. Following

1485-511: A government characterized by budget problems and "overstaffing". Petroleum extraction has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy. In 2008, the oil sector accounted for 65% of the GDP , 85% of government revenue, and 92% of exports. The country has untapped mineral wealth. In the 1980s, rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance larger-scale development projects. GDP grew an average of 5% annually. The government has mortgaged

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1620-838: A group of 45 indigenous organizations successfully petitioned the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) government, and the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Indigenous Pygmy Peoples, the first legislation in the country that recognizes and safeguards the specific rights of the Indigenous pygmy peoples, was signed into law. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, during the Ituri Conflict , Ugandan backed rebel groups were accused by

1755-772: A halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. When Sassou Nguesso returned to power in October 1997, he publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was "badly hurt" by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which "worsened" the republic's budget deficit. The administration presides over an "uneasy internal peace" and faces "difficult" economic problems of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty, with record-high oil prices since 2003. Natural gas and diamonds are other exports, while Congo

1890-523: A modern western Central African hunter-gatherer unit, a modern West African unit, existing locally before 8000 BP, and a modern East African /West African unit likely from further north in the regions of the Sahel and Sahara . The two earlier Shum Laka foragers from 8000 BP and two later Shum Laka foragers from 3000 BP show 5000 years of population continuity in region. Yet, modern peoples of Cameroon are more closely related to modern West Africans than to

2025-579: A new investment code intended to attract foreign capital. The country also adopted a new investment code intended to attract foreign capital. Despite these success, Congo’s investment climate has challenges, offering few meaningful incentives for new investors. Economic reform efforts continued with the support of international organizations, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund . The reform program came to

2160-529: A period of isolation, during which current phenotype differences between Pygmies and Bantu farmers accumulated, Pygmy women started marrying male Bantu farmers (but not the opposite). This trend started around 40,000 years ago, and continued until several thousand years ago. Subsequently, the Pygmy gene pool was not enriched by external gene influxes. Mitochondrial haplogroup L1c is strongly associated with pygmies, especially with Bambenga groups. L1c prevalence

2295-643: A period of reform in French colonial policy. Congo "benefited" from the postwar expansion of colonial administrative and infrastructure spending as a result of its central geographic location within AEF and the federal capital at Brazzaville. It had a local legislature after the adoption of the 1946 constitution that established the Fourth Republic . Following the revision of the French constitution that established

2430-590: A portion of its petroleum earnings, contributing to a "shortage of revenues". On 12 January 1994, the devaluation of Franc Zone currencies by 50% resulted in an inflation of 46% in 1994, and inflation has subsided since. Between 1994-96, the economy underwent a difficult transition. The Congo took a number of measures to liberalize its economy, including reforming the tax, investment, labor, timber, and hydrocarbon codes. In 2002-03, Congo privatized parastatals, primarily banks, telecommunications, and transportation monopolies, to help improve and unreliable infrastructure. By

2565-589: A range of smaller parties. Sassou's regime has seen corruption revelations, with attempts to censor them. One French investigation found over 110 bank accounts and dozens of "lavish properties" in France. Sassou denounced embezzlement investigations as "racist" and "colonial". Denis Christel Sassou-Nguesso, son of Denis Sassou Nguesso, has been named in association with the Panama Papers . On 27 March 2015, Sassou Nguesso announced that his government would hold

2700-432: A referendum on changing the country's 2002 constitution to allow him to run for a third consecutive term in office. On 25 October, the government held a referendum on allowing Sassou Nguesso to run in the next election. The government claimed that the proposal was approved by 92% of voters, with 72% of eligible voters participating. The opposition who boycotted the referendum said that the government's statistics were false and

2835-619: A relationship some refer to as slavery. The Congolese Human Rights Observatory says that the Pygmies are treated as property in the same way as pets. On 30 December 2010, the Congolese parliament adopted a law to promote and protect the rights of indigenous peoples. This law is "the first" of its kind in Africa. The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based mainly on petroleum , support services, and

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2970-457: A relationship that the Bantus call a time-honored tradition. Even though the Pygmies are responsible for much of the hunting, fishing and manual labor in jungle villages, Pygmies and Bantus alike say Pygmies are often paid at the master's whim: in cigarettes, used clothing, or even nothing at all. In 2022, after decades of facing these conditions and working to get legal protections for the Pygmies,

3105-501: A set of presently extinct Sub-Saharan West African languages . In the northeastern region of Nigeria , Jalaa , a language isolate, may have been a descending language from the original set(s) of languages spoken by West African hunter-gatherers. Genetic studies have found evidence that African Pygmies are descended from the Middle Stone Age people of Central Africa, with a separation time from West and East Africans of

3240-434: A single sound, however, the person using this instrument would wield their breath and inhale making high-pitched sounds; this allows the individual to make polyrhythmic music using a one-note instrument. Along with the different sounds of the breath and the n'dehou, the musician may also stomp their feet or tap on their chest to add even more dimension and complexity to the music. The n'dehou was popularized by Francis Bebey ,

3375-784: A split between eastern and western pygmy groups about 20,000 years ago. Ancient DNA was able to be obtained from two Shum Laka foragers from the early period of the Stone to Metal Age, in 8000 BP, and two Shum Laka foragers from the late period of the Stone to Metal Age, in 3000 BP. The mitochondrial DNA and Y-Chromosome haplogroups found in the ancient Shum Laka foragers were Sub-Saharan African haplogroups. Two earlier Shum Laka foragers were of haplogroup L0a2a1 – broadly distributed throughout modern African populations – and two later Shum Laka foragers were of haplogroup L1c2a1b – distributed among both modern West and Central African agriculturalists and hunter-gatherers. One earlier Shum Laka forager

3510-445: A state level, Pygmies are not considered citizens by most African states, and are refused identity cards, deeds to land, health care and education access. There are roughly 500,000 Pygmies remaining in the rainforest of Central Africa. This population is rapidly decreasing as poverty, intermarriage with Bantu peoples, Westernization, and deforestation gradually destroy their way of life and culture. The greatest environmental problem

3645-503: Is an analogous term used by the United Nations in its geoscheme for Africa and consists of the following countries: Angola , Cameroon , Central African Republic , Chad , Democratic Republic of the Congo , Republic of the Congo , Equatorial Guinea , Gabon , and São Tomé and Príncipe . The United Nations Office for Central Africa also includes Burundi and Rwanda in the region, which are considered part of East Africa in

3780-579: Is derived from πυγμή pygmē, a term for " cubit " (lit. "fist"), suggesting a diminutive height. The use of "Pygmy" in reference to the small-framed African hunter-gatherers dates to the early 19th century, in English first by John Barrow, Travels Into the Interior of Southern Africa (1806). However, the term was used diffusely, and treated as unsubstantiated claims of "dwarf tribes" among the Bushmen of

3915-666: Is evidence of iron smelting in the Central African Republic that may date back to 3000 to 2500 BCE. Extensive walled settlements have recently been found in Northeast Nigeria, approximately 60 km (37 mi) southwest of Lake Chad dating to the first millennium BCE. Trade and improved agricultural techniques supported more sophisticated societies, leading to the early civilizations of West Africa: Sao , Kanem , Bornu , Shilluk , Baguirmi , and Wadai . Around 2500 BCE, Bantu migrants had reached

4050-637: Is extensive evidence of mass killings, cannibalism and rape of Pygmies, and they have urged the International Criminal Court to investigate a campaign of extermination against pygmies. Although they have been targeted by virtually all the armed groups, much of the violence against Pygmies is attributed to the rebel group the Movement for the Liberation of Congo , which is part of the transitional government and still controls much of

4185-820: Is from June to August, while in the majority of the country, the wet season has 2 rainfall maxima: 1 in March–May and another in September–November. In 2006–07, researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society studied gorillas in "heavily forested" regions centered on the Ouesso District of the Sangha Region . They suggest a population on the order of 125,000 western lowland gorillas whose isolation from humans has been mostly preserved by "inhospitable" swamps. The government of

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4320-487: Is no clear replacement for the term "Pygmy" in reference to the umbrella group. A descriptive term that has seen some use since the 2000s is "Central African foragers". Regional names used collectively of the western group of Pygmies are Bambenga (the plural form of Mbenga), used in the Kongo language , and Bayaka (the plural form of Aka/Yaka), used in the Central African Republic . The Congo Pygmy speak languages of

4455-637: Is now the country of Chad. Baguirmi emerged to the southeast of the Kanem–Bornu Empire . The kingdom's first ruler was Mbang Birni Besse. Later in his reign, the Bornu Empire conquered and made the state a tributary. The Wadai Empire was centered in Chad from the 17th century. The Tunjur people founded the Wadai Kingdom to the east of Bornu in the 16th century. In the 17th century, there

4590-464: Is possible only in the southern belt. Slash-and-burn agriculture is a common practice. Flood recession agriculture is practiced around Lake Chad and in the riverine wetlands. Nomadic herders migrate with their animals into the grasslands of the northern part of the basin for a few weeks during each short rainy season, where they intensively graze the highly nutritious grasses. When the dry season starts they move back south, either to grazing lands around

4725-453: Is used for disambiguation from "Asiatic Pygmy", a name applied to the Negrito populations of Southeast Asia. Dembner (1996) reported a universal "disdain for the term 'pygmy ' " among the Pygmy peoples of Central Africa: the term is considered a pejorative, and people prefer to be referred to by the name of their respective ethnic or tribal groups, such as Bayaka , Mbuti and Twa . There

4860-489: The Angolan exclave of Cabinda , and to the southwest by the Atlantic Ocean. The region was dominated by Bantu -speaking tribes at least 3,000 years ago, who built trade links leading into the Congo River basin. From the 13th century the present day territory was dominated by a confederation led by Vungu which included Kakongo and Ngoyo . Loango emerged in the 16th century. In the late 19th century France colonised

4995-775: The Bantu Migration , Central Africa is primarily inhabited by Native African or Bantu peoples and Bantu languages predominate. These include the Mongo , Kongo and Luba peoples. Central Africa also includes many Nilo-Saharan and Niger-Congo Ubangian communities: in north western Central Africa the Nilo-Saharan Kanuri predominate. Most of the Ubangian speakers in Africa (often grouped with Niger-Congo) are also found in Central Africa, such as

5130-632: The Central Sudanic and Ubangian phyla beginning after about 5,500 years ago , and, beginning about 3,500 years ago , by the Bantu , adopting their languages. Substantial non- Bantu and non- Ubangian substrates have been identified in Aka and in Baka, respectively, on the order of 30% of the lexicon. Much of this vocabulary is botanical, deals with honey harvesting , or is otherwise specialized for

5265-700: The Congo Crisis (1960–1965) which ended with the installment of Joseph Mobutu as president and renamed the country Zaire in 1971. Equatorial Guinea gained independence from Spain in 1968, leading to the election of Francisco Macías Nguema , now widely regarded as one of the most brutal dictators in history. In 1961, Angola became involved in the Portuguese Colonial War , a 13-year-long struggle for independence in Lusophone Africa . It gained independence only in 1975, following

5400-651: The Congo River was a confederation of three small states; Vungu (its leader), Kakongo , and Ngoyo . Some Bantu kingdoms—including those of the Kongo , the Loango , and the Teke —built trade links leading into the Congo Basin . The Portuguese explorer , Diogo Cão reached the mouth of the Congo in 1484. Commercial relationships grew between the inland Bantu kingdoms and European merchants who traded in commodities, manufactured goods, and people captured and enslaved in

5535-692: The Fifth Republic in 1958, AEF dissolved into its constituent parts, each of which became an autonomous colony within the French Community . During these reforms, Middle Congo became known as the Republic of the Congo in 1958 and published its first constitution in 1959. Antagonism between the Mbochis (who favored Jacques Opangault ) and the Laris and Kongos (who favored Fulbert Youlou ,

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5670-724: The Gbaya , Banda and Zande , in northern Central Africa. Notable Central African supra-regional organizations include the Lake Chad Basin Commission and the Economic Community of Central African States . The predominant religions of Central Africa are Christianity and traditional faiths . Islam is also practiced in some areas in Chad and the Central African Republic . Due to common historical processes and widespread demographic movements between

5805-478: The Kingdom of Kongo under a ruler called the manikongo , residing in the fertile Pool Malebo area on the lower Congo River . The capital was M'banza-Kongo . With superior organization, they were able to conquer their neighbors and extract tribute. They were experts in metalwork, pottery, and weaving raffia cloth. They stimulated interregional trade via a tribute system controlled by the manikongo . Later, maize (corn) and cassava (manioc) would be introduced to

5940-586: The Latin Brattius or Braccius , both meaning literally " arm ". Bantu-speaking peoples who founded tribes during the Bantu expansions , mostly displaced and absorbed the earlier inhabitants of the region, the Pygmy people, about 1500   BC. The Bakongo , a Bantu ethnic group that occupied parts of what later became Angola, Gabon, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formed the basis for ethnic affinities and rivalries among those countries. By

6075-488: The Niger–Congo and Central Sudanic language families. There has been significant intermixing between the Bantu and Pygmies. There are at least a dozen Pygmy groups, sometimes unrelated to each other. They are grouped in three geographical categories: African Pygmies are often assumed to be the direct descendants of the Middle Stone Age hunter-gatherer peoples of the central African rainforest . Genetic evidence for

6210-693: The People's Republic of the Congo , and announced the decision of the National Revolutionary Movement to change its name to the Congolese Labour Party (PCT). He survived an attempted coup in 1972 and was assassinated on 18 March   1977. An 11-member Military Committee of the Party (CMP) was then named to head an interim government, with Joachim Yhombi-Opango serving as president. Two years later, Yhombi-Opango

6345-499: The forest–savanna region, were ultimately acculturated and admixed into larger groups of West African agriculturalists, akin to the migratory Bantu-speaking agriculturalists and their encounters with Central African hunter-gatherers. The term Pygmy , as used to refer to diminutive people, derives from Greek πυγμαῖος pygmaios (via Latin Pygmaeus , plural Pygmaei ), a term for "dwarf" from Greek mythology . The word

6480-441: The hinterlands . After centuries as a central hub for transatlantic trade, direct European colonization of the Congo River delta began in the 19th century, subsequently eroding the power of the Bantu societies in the region. The area north of the Congo River came under French sovereignty in 1880 as a result of Pierre de Brazza 's treaty with King Makoko of the Bateke . After the death of Makoko, his widow Queen Ngalifourou upheld

6615-464: The manikongo . In 1506, Afonso I (1506–1542), a Christian, took over the throne. Slave trading increased with Afonso's wars of conquest. About 1568 to 1569, the Jaga invaded Kongo, laying waste to the kingdom and forcing the manikongo into exile. In 1574, Manikongo Álvaro I was reinstated with the help of Portuguese mercenaries. During the latter part of the 1660s, the Portuguese tried to gain control of Kongo. Manikongo António I (1661–1665), with

6750-538: The 1-party state. Following the presidential elections, fighting restarted in the Pool region between government forces and rebels led by Pastor Ntumi ; a peace treaty to end the conflict was signed in April 2003. Sassou won the following presidential election in July 2009 . According to the Congolese Observatory of Human Rights, a non-governmental organization, the election was marked by "very low" turnout and "fraud and irregularities". In March 2015, Sassou announced that he wanted to run for yet another term in office and

6885-457: The 13th century, there were three main confederations of states in the western Congo Basin. In the east were the Seven Kingdoms of Kongo dia Nlaza , considered to be the oldest and most powerful, which likely included Nsundi , Mbata , Mpangu , and possibly Kundi and Okanga . South of these was Mpemba which stretched from modern-day Angola to the Congo River . It included various kingdoms such as Mpemba Kasi and Vunda . To its west across

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7020-480: The 1963 constitution, Massamba-Débat was elected president for a five-year term. During Massamba-Débat's term in office , the regime adopted " scientific socialism " as the country's constitutional ideology. In 1964, Congo sent an official team with a single athlete at the Olympic Games for the first time in its history. In 1965, Congo established relations with the Soviet Union , the People's Republic of China , North Korea , and North Vietnam . Under his presidency,

7155-406: The 1974 Carnation Revolution in Lisbon . São Tomé and Príncipe also gained independence in 1975 in the aftermath of the Carnation Revolution. In 2011, South Sudan gained its independence from the Republic of Sudan after over 50 years of war . In the 21st century, many jihadist and Islamist groups began to operate in the Central African region, including the Seleka and the Ansaru . Over

7290-405: The Atlantic coast. Congo is located in the central-western part of sub-Saharan Africa , along the Equator , lying between latitudes 4°N and 5°S , and longitudes 11° and 19°E . To the south and east of it is the Democratic Republic of the Congo . It is bounded by Gabon to the west, Cameroon and the Central African Republic to the north, and Cabinda ( Angola ) to the southwest. It has

7425-440: The Bornu empire had expanded and recaptured the parts of Kanem that had been conquered by the Bulala. Satellite states of Bornu included the Damagaram in the west and Baguirmi to the southeast of Lake Chad. The Shilluk Kingdom was centered in South Sudan from the 15th century from along a strip of land along the western bank of White Nile, from Lake No to about 12° north latitude . The capital and royal residence were in

7560-418: The British and French concluded an agreement to clarify the boundary between French West Africa and what would become Nigeria . A boundary was agreed along a line from Say on the Niger to Barruwa on Lake Chad , but leaving the Sokoto Caliphate in the British sphere. Parfait-Louis Monteil was given charge of an expedition to discover where this line actually ran. On 9 April 1892 he reached Kukawa on

7695-420: The Congo Civil War . President Denis Sassou Nguesso , who first came to power in 1979, ruled until 1992 and then again since after his reinstatement. The Republic of the Congo is a member of the African Union , the United Nations , La Francophonie , the Economic Community of Central African States , and the Non-Aligned Movement . It has become the 4th-largest oil producer in the Gulf of Guinea , providing

7830-442: The Congo began to industrialize . Some large production units with large workforces were built: the textile factory of Kinsoundi, the palm groves of Etoumbi, the match factory of Bétou , the shipyards of Yoro, etc. Health centers were created as well as school groups (colleges and elementary school). The country's school enrollment rate became the highest in Black Africa. On the night of February 14 to 15, 1965, 3 public officials of

7965-413: The Efe have adapted genetically to an iodine-deficient diet; we suggest that the signals of recent positive selection that we observe at TRIP4 in Mbuti Pygmies and IYD in Biaka Pygmies may reflect such genetic adaptations to an iodine-deficient diet. Furthermore, alterations in the thyroid hormone pathway can cause short stature. We therefore suggest that short stature in these Pygmy groups may have arisen as

8100-420: The German traveler Heinrich Barth . Kanem rose in the 8th century in the region to the north and east of Lake Chad. The Kanem empire went into decline, shrank, and in the 14th century was defeated by Bilala invaders from the Lake Fitri region. The Kanuri people of West Africa led by the Sayfuwa migrated to the west and south of the lake, where they established the Bornu Empire . By the late 16th century

8235-407: The Great Lakes Region in Central Africa. Halfway through the first millennium BCE, the Bantu had also settled as far south as what is now Angola . The West African Sao civilization flourished from ca. the 6th century BCE to as late as the 16th century CE in northern Central Africa. The Sao lived by the Chari River south of Lake Chad in territory that later became part of Cameroon and Chad. They are

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8370-438: The Lunda. The Imbangala of inland Angola claimed descent from a founder, Kinguri, brother of Queen Rweej, who could not tolerate the rule of mulopwe Tshibunda. Kinguri became the title of kings of states founded by Queen Rweej's brother. The Luena (Lwena) and Lozi (Luyani) in Zambia also claim descent from Kinguri. During the 17th century, a Lunda chief and warrior called Mwata Kazembe set up an Eastern Lunda kingdom in

8505-575: The Province of Central Africa covers dioceses in Botswana , Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, while the Church of Central Africa, Presbyterian has synods in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. These states are now typically considered part of East or Southern Africa . The Congo River basin has historically been ecologically significant to the populations of Central Africa, serving as an important supra-regional organization in Central Africa. Archeological finds in Central Africa have been made which date back over 100,000 years. According to Zagato and Holl, there

8640-402: The Pygmies face is the loss of their traditional homeland, the tropical forests of Central Africa. In countries such as Cameroon, Gabon, Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo this is due to deforestation and the desire of several governments in Central Africa to evict the Pygmies from their forest habitat in order to profit from the sale of hardwood and the resettlement of farmers onto

8775-517: The Pygmy. Along with Raja Sheshadri, the fPcN-Global.org website conducted research on the Pygmies. The human rights organization states that, as the forest has receded under logging activities, its original inhabitants have been pushed into populated areas to join the formal economy, working as casual laborers or on commercial farms and being exposed to new diseases. This shift has brought them into closer contact with neighboring ethnic communities whose HIV levels are generally higher. This has led to

8910-467: The Republic is a semi-presidential system with an elected president who appoints the Council of Ministers, or Cabinet . The council, including the Prime Minister, is selected from the elected representatives in Parliament. Since the 1990s, the country has had a multi-party political system which is dominated by President Denis Sassou Nguesso . Sassou Nguesso is backed by his own Congolese Labour Party ( French : Parti Congolais du Travail ) as well as

9045-435: The Republic of the Congo grew by 6% in 2014 and is expected to have grown by 7.5% in 2015. In 2018, the Republic of the Congo joined the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries . Congo–Ocean Railway was built by forced laborers during the 1930s. Some colonial architectural heritage is preserved. Restoration of architectural works is underway in Brazzaville, for example, at the Basilica of Sainte-Anne du Congo, which

9180-418: The Republic of the Congo is ranked 89th among 140 nations. It is named after the Congo River whose name is derived from Kongo , a Bantu kingdom which occupied its mouth around the time the Portuguese first arrived in 1483 or 1484. The kingdom's name derived from its people, the Bakongo , an endonym said to mean "hunters" ( Kongo : mukongo , nkongo ). During the period when France colonised it, it

9315-429: The Republic of the Congo were kidnapped: Lazare Matsocota  [ fr ] (prosecutor of the Republic), Joseph Pouabou  [ fr ] (President of the Supreme Court), and Anselme Massouémé  [ fr ] (director of the Congolese Information Agency). The bodies of 2 of these men were later found, mutilated, by the Congo River . Massamba-Débat's regime invited some hundred Cuban army troops into

9450-421: The UN of enslaving Mbutis to prospect for minerals and forage for forest food, with those returning empty handed being killed and eaten . In 2003, Sinafasi Makelo, a representative of Mbuti pygmies, told the UN's Indigenous People's Forum that during the Congo Civil War , his people were hunted down and eaten as though they were game animals. In neighboring North Kivu province there has been cannibalism by

9585-408: The ancient Shum Laka foragers. Modern Cameroonian hunter-gatherers, while partly descended, are not largely descended from the Shum Laka foragers, due to the apparent absence of descent from Basal West Africans. The Bantu expansion is hypothesized to have originated in a homeland of Bantu-speaking peoples located around western Cameroon, a part of which Shum Laka is viewed as being of importance in

9720-712: The army in April 2016, leading 80,000 people to flee their homes. A ceasefire deal was signed in December 2017. In 2023, the Forest Massif of Odzala-Kokoua , for its savanna ecosystems and post-glacial recolonisation of forests, was listed as a natural UNESCO World Heritage Site . Natural landscapes range from the savanna plains in the North Niari flooded forests, to the Congo River, to the rugged mountains and forests of Mayombe , and 170 km of beaches along

9855-622: The cleared land. In some cases, as in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, this conflict is violent. Certain groups, such as the Hutus of the Interahamwe, wish to eliminate the Pygmy and take the resources of the forest as a military conquest, using the resources of the forest for military as well as economic advancement. Since the Pygmies rely on the forest for their physical as well as cultural survival, as these forests disappear, so do

9990-604: The coast as trade dealers, not venturing on conquest of the interior. Slavery wreaked havoc in the interior, with states initiating wars of conquest for captives. The Imbangala formed the slave-raiding state of Kasanje , a major source of slaves during the 17th and 18th centuries. During the Conference of Berlin in 1884–85 Africa was divided up between the European colonial powers, defining boundaries that are largely intact with today's post-colonial states. On 5 August 1890

10125-407: The colonial administrative boundaries. Chad , Gabon , the Republic of the Congo , and the Central African Republic became autonomous states with the dissolution of French Equatorial Africa in 1958, gaining full independence in 1960. The Democratic Republic of the Congo also gained independence from Belgium in 1960, but quickly devolved into a period of political upheaval and conflict known as

10260-503: The conflict-ridden eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Despite these risks, Pygmy populations generally have poor access to health services and information about HIV. One British medical journal, The Lancet , published a review showing that Pygmy populations often had less access to health care than neighboring communities. According to the report, even where health care facilities exist, many Pygmies do not use them because they cannot pay for consultations and medicines, they do not have

10395-557: The countries of Central Africa before the Bantu Migration into much of southern Central Africa, the cultures of the region evidence many similarities and interrelationships. Similar cultural practices stemming from common origins as largely Nilo-Saharan or Bantu peoples are also evident in Central Africa including in music, dance, art, body adornment, initiation, and marriage rituals. Some major Native African ethnic groups in Central Africa are as follows: Further information in

10530-521: The country is located on the Equator, the climate is more consistent year-round, with the average day temperature a humid 24 °C (75 °F) and nights generally between 16 °C (61 °F) and 21 °C (70 °F). The average yearly rainfall ranges from 1,100 millimetres (43 in) in the Niari Valley in the south to over 2,000 millimetres (79 in) in central parts. The dry season

10665-550: The country to train his party's militia units. These troops helped his government survive a coup d'état in 1966 led by paratroopers loyal to future President Marien Ngouabi . Massamba-Débat's regime ended with a bloodless coup in September 1968 . Marien Ngouabi, who had participated in the coup, assumed the presidency on 31 December 1968. One year later, Ngouabi proclaimed the Congo Africa's first "people's republic",

10800-473: The country with a degree of prosperity, with political and economic instability in some areas, and unequal distribution of oil revenue nationwide. Its economy is dependent on the oil sector and economic growth has slowed since the post-2015 drop in oil prices . Christianity is the most widely professed faith in the country. According to the 2024 rendition of the World Happiness Report ,

10935-646: The country. The Kongo are the largest ethnic group and form roughly half of the population. The most significant subgroups of the Kongo are Laari , in Brazzaville and Pool regions, and the Vili , around Pointe-Noire and along the Atlantic coast. The second largest group is the Teke , who live to the north of Brazzaville, with 16.9% of the population. Mbochi live in the north, east and in Brazzaville and form 13.1% of

11070-508: The course of the 2010s, the internationally unrecognized secessionist state called Ambazonia gained increasing momentum in its home regions, resulting in the ongoing Anglophone Crisis in Cameroon. The main economic activities of Central Africa are farming, herding and fishing. At least 40% of the rural population of northern and eastern Central Africa lives in poverty and routinely face chronic food shortages. Crop production based on rain

11205-423: The deep separation of Congo Pygmies from the lineage of West Africans and East Africans , as well as admixture from archaic humans, was found in the 2010s. The lineage of African Pygmies is strongly associated with mitochondrial (maternal line) haplogroup L1 , with a divergence time between 170,000 and 100,000 years ago. They were partially absorbed or displaced by later immigration of agricultural peoples of

11340-666: The documents and identity cards needed to travel or obtain hospital treatment, and they are subjected to humiliating and discriminatory treatment. Studies in Cameroon and the DRC in the 1980s and 1990s showed a lower prevalence of HIV in Pygmy populations than among neighboring groups, but recent increases have been recorded. One study found that the HIV prevalence among the Baka Pygmies in eastern Cameroon rose from 0.7 percent in 1993 to 4 percent in 2003. A consortium of researchers conducted

11475-449: The earliest divergent modern human group, having diverged from other groups around 250,000 BP – 200,000 BP, as a result of the sampling of the ancient Shum Laka foragers, Central African hunter-gatherers are shown to have likely diverged at a similar time, if not even earlier. Various hypotheses have been proposed to explain the short stature of African pygmies. Becker, et al., suggest African pygmyism may have evolved as an adaptation to

11610-739: The earliest people to have left clear traces of their presence in the territory of modern Cameroon . Today, several ethnic groups of northern Cameroon and southern Chad but particularly the Sara people claim descent from the civilization of the Sao. Sao artifacts show that they were skilled workers in bronze , copper, and iron. Finds include bronze sculptures and terra cotta statues of human and animal figures, coins, funerary urns, household utensils, jewelry, highly decorated pottery, and spears. The largest Sao archaeological finds have been made south of Lake Chad. The West-Central African kingdom of Kanem–Bornu Empire

11745-557: The early period of this expansion. By 3000 BP, the Bantu expansion is hypothesized to have already begun. Yet, the sampled ancient Shum Laka foragers – two from 8000 BP and two from 3000 BP – show that most modern Niger–Congo speakers are greatly distinct from the ancient Shum Laka foragers, thus, showing that the ancient Shum Laka people were not the ancestral source population of the modern Bantu-speaking peoples . While Southern African hunter-gatherers are generally recognized as being

11880-460: The elections and then withdrew from the race. A constitution , agreed upon by referendum in January 2002 , granted the president new powers, extended his term to 7 years and introduced a new bicameral assembly. International observers took issue with the organization of the presidential election and the constitutional referendum, both of which were reminiscent in their organization of Congo's era of

12015-551: The end of 1996 Congo had made progress in various areas targeted for reform. It made great strides toward macroeconomic stabilization through improving public finances and restructuring external debt. This change was accompanied by improvements in the structure of expenditures, with a reduction in personnel expenditures. Before June 1997, Congo and the United States ratified a bilateral investment treaty designed to facilitate and protect foreign investment. The country also adopted

12150-514: The first 50 years of colonial rule in Congo centered on natural resource extraction. Construction of the Congo–Ocean Railway following World War I has been estimated to have cost at least 14,000 lives. During the Nazi occupation of France during World War II , Brazzaville functioned as the symbolic capital of Free France between 1940 and 1943. The Brazzaville Conference of 1944 heralded

12285-658: The first black mayor elected in French Equatorial Africa) resulted in a series of riots in Brazzaville in February 1959, which the French Army subdued. Elections took place in April 1959. By the time the Congo became independent in August 1960, Opangault, the former opponent of Youlou, agreed to serve under him. Youlou, an avid anti-communist, became the first President of the Republic of the Congo. Since

12420-495: The forest and is shared between the two western Pygmy groups. This substrate has been suggested as representing a remnant of an ancient "western Pygmy" linguistic phylum, dubbed "Mbenga" or "Baaka". However, as substrate vocabulary has been widely borrowed between Pygmies and neighboring peoples, no reconstruction of such a "Baaka" language is possible for times more remote than a few centuries ago. An ancestral Pygmy language has been postulated for at least some Pygmy groups, based on

12555-741: The forest without access to agricultural products. A total number of about 900,000 Pygmies were estimated to be living in the central African forests in 2016, about 60% of this number in the Democratic Republic of Congo . The number does not include Southern Twa populations, who live outside of the Central Africa forest environment, partly in open swamp or desert environments. Additionally, West African hunter-gatherers may have dwelled in western Central Africa earlier than 32,000 BP and dwelled in West Africa between 16,000 BP and 12,000 BP until as late as 1000 BP or some period of time after 1500 CE. West African hunter-gatherers, many of whom dwelt in

12690-626: The genes encoding for human growth hormone and its receptor associated with low serum levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 and short stature. A study by Price, et al., provides insight into the role genetics plays in the reduced stature of African pygmies: [W]e found strong signals for selection in both African Pygmy groups at two genes involved in the iodide-dependent thyroid hormone pathway: TRIP4 in Mbuti Pygmies; and IYD in Biaka Pygmies. [...] These observations suggest that

12825-594: The geoscheme. These eleven countries are members of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS). Six of those countries (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Republic of the Congo) are also members of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC) and share a common currency, the Central African CFA franc . The African Development Bank , on

12960-432: The government for support and subsistence. Before the 1997 war, about 9,000 Europeans and other non-Africans lived in Congo, most of whom were French ; a fraction of this number remains. Around 300 American immigrants reside in the Congo. According to a 2011–12 survey, the total fertility rate was 5.1 children born per woman, with 4.5 in urban areas and 6.5 in rural areas. Ethnologue recognizes 62 spoken languages in

13095-477: The historical record in the 19th century limited to a comparatively small area within Central Africa, greatly decimated by the prehistoric Bantu expansion , and to the present time widely affected by enslavement at the hands of neighboring Bantu , Ubangian and Central Sudanic groups. Most contemporary Pygmy groups are only partially foragers and partially trade with neighboring farmers to acquire cultivated foods and other material items; no group lives deep in

13230-615: The hypothesis of an ancestral "Pygmy language", arguing that even if there is evidence for a common ancestral language rather than just borrowing, it will not be sufficient to establish a specifically "Pygmy" origin rather than any of the several potential language isolates of (former) hunter-gatherer populations that ring the rainforest. He argued that the Pygmies do not form the residue of a single ancient stock of Central African hunter-gatherers, but that they are rather descended from several neighboring ethno-linguistic groups, independently adapting to forest subsistence strategies. Blench adduced

13365-527: The interior of Africa, until the exploration of the Congo basin . In the 1860s, two Western explorers, Paul Du Chaillu and Georg Schweinfurth , claimed to have found the mythical "Pygmies". A commentator wrote in 1892 that, thirty years ago (viz., in the 1860s), "nobody believed in the existence of African dwarf tribes" and that "it needed an authority like Dr. Schweinfurth to prove that pygmies actually exist in Africa" (referencing Georg August Schweinfurth's The Heart of Africa , published 1873). "African Pygmy"

13500-421: The kingdom. His son Naweej expanded the empire further and is known as the first Lunda emperor, with the title Mwata Yamvo ( mwaant yaav , mwant yav ), the "Lord of Vipers". The Luba political system was retained, and conquered peoples were integrated into the system. The mwata yamvo assigned a cilool or kilolo (royal adviser) and tax collector to each state conquered. Numerous states claimed descent from

13635-550: The lack of clear linguistic and archaeological evidence for the antiquity of the African Pygmies, that the genetic evidence, at the time of his writing, was inconclusive, and that there is no evidence of the Pygmies having a hunting technology distinctive from that of their neighbors. He argued that the short stature of Pygmy populations can arise relatively quickly (in less than a few millennia) under strong selection pressures. West African hunter-gatherers may have spoken

13770-480: The lakes and floodplains, or to the savannas further to the south. In the 2000–01 period, fisheries in the Lake Chad basin provided food and income to more than 10 million people, with a harvest of about 70,000 tons. Fisheries have traditionally been managed by a system where each village has recognized rights over a defined part of the river, wetland or lake, and fishers from elsewhere must seek permission and pay

13905-485: The level of polyphonic complexity of Pygmy music was reached in Europe in the 14th century, yet Pygmy culture is unwritten and ancient, some Pygmy groups being the first known cultures in some areas of Africa. Music permeates daily life, with songs for entertainment, special events, and communal activities. The Pygmie people are known to use an instrument called the n'dehou which is a bamboo flute. The n'dehou only produces

14040-700: The lowest periphery of the spectrum among anatomically modern humans. Other proposed explanations include the potentially lesser availability of protein-rich food sources in rainforest environments, the often reduced soil-calcium levels in rainforest environments, the caloric expenditure required to traverse rainforest terrain, insular dwarfism as an adaptation to equatorial and tropical heat and humidity, and pygmyism as an adaptation associated with rapid reproductive maturation under conditions of early mortality. Additional evidence suggests that, when compared to other Sub-Saharan African populations, African pygmy populations display unusually low levels of expression of

14175-594: The north, as well as their allies. Starting in 2013, the Pygmy Batwa people , whom the Luba people often exploit and allegedly enslave , rose up into militias (such as the "Perci" militia) in Northern Katanga Province and attacked Luba villages. A Luba militia known as "Elements" attacked back, notably killing at least 30 people in the "Vumilia 1" displaced people camp in April 2015. Since

14310-550: The observation of linguistic substrates . According to Merritt Ruhlen (1994), "African Pygmies speak languages belonging to either the Nilo-Saharan or the Niger–Kordofanian family. It is assumed that Pygmies once spoke their own language(s), but that, through living in symbiosis with other Africans, in prehistorical times, they adopted languages belonging to these two families." Roger Blench (1997, 1999) criticized

14445-776: The order 130,000 years . African Pygmies in the historical period have been significantly displaced by, and assimilated to, several waves of Niger–Congo and Nilo-Saharan speakers, of the Central Sudanic , Ubangian , and Bantu phyla. Genetically, African pygmies have some key differences between them and Bantu peoples . African pygmies' uniparental markers display the most ancient divergence from other human groups among anatomically modern humans, second only to those displayed among some Khoisan populations. Researchers identified an ancestral and autochthonous lineage of mtDNA shared by Pygmies and Bantus, suggesting that both populations were originally one, and that they started to diverge from common ancestors around 70,000 years ago. After

14580-527: The other hand, defines Central Africa as seven countries: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon. The Central African Federation (1953–1963), also called the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland , was made up of what are now the nations of Malawi , Zambia , and Zimbabwe . Similarly, the Anglican Church of

14715-517: The political tension was so high in Pointe-Noire , Youlou moved the capital to Brazzaville. The Republic of the Congo became fully independent from France on 15 August 1960. Youlou ruled as the country's first president until labor elements and rival political parties instigated a 3-day uprising that ousted him. The Congolese military took over the country and installed a civilian provisional government headed by Alphonse Massamba-Débat . Under

14850-498: The population. Pygmies make up 2% of Congo's population. Religion in the Republic of the Congo by the Association of Religion Data Archives (2015) According to CIA World Factbook, the people of the Republic of the Congo are largely a mix of Catholics (33.1%), Awakening Lutherans (22.3%), and other Protestants (19.9%) as of 2007. Followers of Islam make up 1.6%; this is primarily due to an influx of foreign workers into

14985-419: The regime, and it abdicated power. Pascal Lissouba who became Congo's first elected president (1992–1997) during the period of multi-party democracy attempted to implement economic reforms with IMF backing to liberalize the economy. In the years 1993 and 1994 the first Congo Civil War in Congo occurred. In June 1996, IMF approved a 3-year SDR 69.5m (US$ 100m) enhanced structural adjustment facility (ESAF) and

15120-408: The region and incorporated it into French Equatorial Africa . The Republic of the Congo was established on 28 November 1958 and gained independence from France in 1960. It was a Marxist–Leninist state from 1969 to 1992, under the name People's Republic of the Congo (PRC). The country has had multi-party elections since 1992, but a democratically elected government was ousted in the 1997 Republic of

15255-467: The region via trade with the Portuguese at their ports at Luanda and Benguela . The maize and cassava would result in population growth in the region and other parts of Africa, replacing millet as the main staple. By the 16th century, the manikongo held authority from the Atlantic in the west to the Kwango River in the east. Each territory was assigned a mani-mpembe (provincial governor) by

15390-507: The sections of Architecture of Africa : Further information in the sections of History of science and technology in Africa : African Pygmies They are notable for, and named for, their short stature (described as " pygmyism " in anthropological literature). They are assumed to be descended from the original Middle Stone Age expansion of anatomically modern humans to Central Africa, albeit substantially affected by later migrations from West Africa, from their first appearance in

15525-709: The shore of the lake. Over the next twenty years a large part of the Chad Basin was incorporated by treaty or by force into French West Africa . On 2 June 1909, the Wadai capital of Abéché was occupied by the French. The remainder of the basin was divided by the British in Nigeria, who took Kano in 1903, and the Germans in Cameroon. The countries of the basin regained their independence between 1956 and 1962, retaining

15660-447: The significantly lower average levels of ultraviolet light available beneath the canopy of rainforest environments. In similar hypothetical scenarios, because of reduced access to sunlight, a comparatively smaller amount of anatomically formulated vitamin D is produced, resulting in restricted dietary calcium uptake, and subsequently restricted bone growth and maintenance, resulting in an overall population average skeletal mass near

15795-427: The spread of HIV into the pygmy group. Since poverty has become very prevalent in Pygmy communities, sexual exploitation of indigenous women has become a common practice. Commercial sex has been bolstered by logging, which often places large groups of male laborers in camps which are set up in close contact with the Pygmy communities. Human rights groups have also reported widespread sexual abuse of indigenous women in

15930-434: The start of the conflict, hundreds have been killed, and tens of thousands have been displaced from their homes. The weapons used in the conflict are often arrows and axes, rather than guns. Ota Benga was a teenage pygmy boy from the Congo. Ota was purchased from slave traders and was brought to the United States to be exhibited for his unique looks. Ota had sharpened teeth as a result of the traditions of his tribe, and he

16065-478: The terms of the treaty and became an ally to the colonizers. This Congo Colony became known first as French Congo , then as Middle Congo in 1903. In 1908, France organized French Equatorial Africa (AEF), comprising the Middle Congo, Gabon , Chad , and Oubangui-Chari (which later became the Central African Republic ). The French designated Brazzaville as the federal capital. Economic development during

16200-644: The town of Fashoda . The kingdom was founded during the mid-15th century CE by its first ruler, Nyikang . During the 19th century, the Shilluk Kingdom faced decline following military assaults from the Ottoman Empire and later British and Sudanese colonization in Anglo-Egyptian Sudan . The Kingdom of Baguirmi existed as an independent state during the 16th and 17th centuries southeast of West-Central Africa Lake Chad region in what

16335-488: The urban centers. Public expenditure of the GDP was less in 2002–05 than in 1991. Public education is theoretically free and mandatory for under-16-year-olds, and in practice, expenses exist. In 2005 net primary enrollment rate was 44%, a drop from 79% in 1991. Central Africa Central Africa is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries according to different definitions. Middle Africa

16470-621: The valley of the Luapula River . The Lunda's western expansion also saw claims of descent by the Yaka and the Pende . The Lunda linked Central Africa with the western coast trade. The kingdom of Lunda came to an end in the 19th century when it was invaded by the Chokwe , who were armed with guns. By the 15th century CE, the farming Bakongo people ( ba being the plural prefix) were unified as

16605-521: The village dwelling Bantu tribes and colonial authorities. This has translated into systematic discrimination. One early example was the capture of Pygmy children under the auspices of the Belgian colonial authorities, who exported Pygmy children to zoos throughout Europe, including the World's Fair in the United States in 1907. Pygmies are often evicted from their land and given the lowest paying jobs. At

16740-418: The vote was a fake one. The election raised questions and was accompanied by civil unrest and police shootings of protesters; at least 18 people were killed by security forces during opposition rallies leading up to the referendum held in October. It is divided into 12 départements (departments). Departments are divided into communes and districts. These are: Some Pygmies belong from birth to Bantus in

16875-556: Was a revolt of the Maba people who established a Muslim dynasty. At first, Wadai paid tribute to Bornu and Durfur, but by the 18th century, Wadai was fully independent and had become an aggressor against its neighbors. Following the Bantu Migration from Western Africa, Bantu kingdoms and empires began to develop in southern Central Africa. In the 1450s, a Luba from the royal family Ilunga Tshibinda married Lunda queen Rweej and united all Lunda peoples. Their son Mulopwe Luseeng expanded

17010-537: Was also short in stature. In 1906, Ota was brought to the Bronx Zoo and exhibited in the monkey house. Ota was given a bow and arrow for protection from the animals. After the exhibit was closed, Ota was not able to return home to the Congo. He lived out the rest of his life in Virginia, until he became depressed and died by suicide at the age of 33. Historically, the Pygmy have always been viewed as inferior by both

17145-696: Was centered in the Lake Chad Basin . It was known as the Kanem Empire from the 9th century CE onward and lasted as the independent kingdom of Bornu until 1900. At its height it encompassed an area covering not only much of Chad , but also parts of modern eastern Niger , northeastern Nigeria , northern Cameroon and parts of South Sudan . The history of the Empire is mainly known from the Royal Chronicle or Girgam discovered in 1851 by

17280-537: Was completed in 2011. Its population is concentrated in the southwestern portion, leaving the areas of tropical jungle in the north virtually uninhabited. 70% of its total population lives in urban areas, namely in Brazzaville , Pointe-Noire , or one of the cities or villages lining the 534-kilometre (332 mi), railway which connects the two cities. In rural areas, industrial and commercial activity has declined in some years, leaving rural economies dependent on

17415-764: Was excluded from the Kimberley Process in 2004 amid allegations that most of its diamond exports were, in fact, being smuggled out of the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo ; it was re-admitted to the group in 2007. The Republic of the Congo has untapped base metal, gold, iron, and phosphate deposits. It is a member of the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHADA). The Congolese government signed an agreement in 2009 to lease 200,000 hectares of land to South African farmers to reduce its dependence on imports. The GDP of

17550-526: Was forced from power, and Denis Sassou Nguesso became the new president. Sassou Nguesso aligned the country with the Eastern Bloc and signed a 20-year friendship pact with the Soviet Union. Over the years, Sassou had to rely more on political repression and less on patronage to maintain his dictatorship. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 resulted in the ending of Soviet aid to prop up

17685-622: Was known as the French Congo or Middle Congo . The Republic of the Congo , or simply Congo , is a distinct country from the Democratic Republic of the Congo , also known as DR Congo . Brazzaville 's name derives from the colony's founder, Pierre Savorgnan de Brazzà , an Italian nobleman whose title referred to the town of Brazzacco, in the Italian comune of Moruzzo in Friuli Venezia Giulia , whose name derived from

17820-513: Was not as welcoming as Kongo; it viewed the Portuguese with great suspicion and as an enemy. The Portuguese in the latter part of the 16th century tried to gain control of Ndongo but were defeated by the Mbundu . Ndongo experienced depopulation from slave raiding. The leaders established another state at Matamba , affiliated with Queen Nzinga , who put up a strong resistance to the Portuguese until coming to terms with them. The Portuguese settled along

17955-400: Was of haplogroup B and one later Shum Laka forager haplogroup B2b, which, together, as macrohaplogroup B , is distributed among modern Central African hunter-gatherers (e.g., Baka , Bakola , Biaka , Bedzan ). The autosomal admixture of the four ancient Shum Laka forager children was ~35% Western Central African hunter-gatherer and ~65% Basal West African – or, an admixture composed of

18090-528: Was on the verge of announcing a renewed annual agreement when civil war broke out in Congo in 1997. Congo's democratic progress was derailed in 1997 when Lissouba and Sassou started to fight for power in the civil war . As presidential elections scheduled for July 1997 approached, tensions between the Lissouba and Sassou camps mounted. On 5 June, President Lissouba's government forces surrounded Sassou's compound in Brazzaville, and Sassou ordered members of his private militia (known as "Cobras") to resist. Thus began

18225-875: Was variously reported as: 100% in Ba-Kola , 97% in Aka (Ba-Benzélé) , and 77% in Biaka , 100% of the Bedzan (Tikar) , 97% and 100% in the Baka people of Gabon and Cameroon , respectively, 97% in Bakoya (97%), and 82% in Ba-Bongo . Mitochondrial haplogroups L2a and L0a are prevalent among the Bambuti . Patin, et al. (2009) suggest two unique, late Pleistocene (before 60,000 years ago) divergences from other human populations, and

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