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Abidjan
Abidjan , city (1995 pop. 2,793,000), former capital of Côte d'Ivoire, a port on the Ébrié Lagoon (an arm of the Gulf of Guinea). Abidjan is Côte d'Ivoire's administrative center, commercial capital, and largest city. Its modern port is centered on Little Bassam Island, whi...
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Yamoussoukro
Yamoussoukro , city (1990 est. pop. 100,000), designated capital of Côte d'Ivoire, S central Côte d'Ivoire. A small town of less than 20,000 people until the late 1970s, Yamoussoukro was designated in 1983 to become the new national capital and an adminstrative and transportation center....
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Guinea
Guinea , an archaic term for the west coast of Africa. In its widest sense it has been applied to the region from Angola to Senegal. Parts of the region bore names originating in early colonial trade, notably Grain Coast , Ivory Coast (see Côte d'Ivoire ), Gold Coast (see Ghana , country), ...
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Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu
Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu , 1933-, Nigerian general and secessionist. Of Igbo background, he joined (1957) the Nigerian army and rose to become (1966-67) military governor of E Nigeria. That region seceded (1967) from Nigeria as the Republic of Biafra , with Ojukwu as head of state. He held offic...
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Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou or Wagadugu , city (1991 est. pop. 634,500), capital of Burkina Faso. It is the nation's largest city and its administrative, communications, and economic center. Ouagadougou is also the trade and distribution center for an agricultural region whose main crop is peanuts. The city's i...
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Conakry
Conakry , city (1996 pop. 1,091,483), capital of Guinea and its Conakry region, SW Guinea, a port on the Atlantic Ocean. The name is also spelled Konakry. Located on Tombo island and connected with the mainland by a causeway, Conakry is Guinea's largest city and its administrative, communications, a...
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French West Africa
French West Africa former federation of eight French overseas territories. The constituent territories were Dahomey (now Benin), French Guinea (now Guinea), French Sudan (now Mali), Côte d'Ivoire, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso). The federation was created in 18...
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tektite
tektite , naturally occurring, silica-rich (65%-80% SiO 2 ) glass resembling obsidian and sometimes shale, and is normally jet black to olive green. They appear as small rounded or elongated objects that often have aerodynamic shapes and range from a fraction of an ounce to several pounds in weight....
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Jean-Bédel Bokassa
Jean-Bédel Bokassa , 1921-96, president of Central African Republic (1966-79). He served (1939-61) in the French army, then organized his country's army, becoming commander in chief in 1963. In 1966 he led an army coup against President David Dacko , becoming president and prime minister of ...
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Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso , republic (2005 est. pop. 13,925,000), 105,869 sq mi (274,200 sq km), W Africa. It borders on Mali in the west and north, on Niger in the northeast, on Benin in the southeast, and on Togo, Ghana, and Côte d'Ivoire in the south. Ouagadougou is the capital and largest city. In ad...
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