Facts about Madagascar

Madagascar is an island country in the Eastern part of the African continent. Antananarivo is the capital city as well as the largest city in the country. Malagasy and French are the country’s national languages, and the Ariary is the country’s national currency. The national name of the country is the Repoblika Demokratika Malagasy. Similarly, “Ry Tanindrazanay Malala ô!” is the country’s national anthem, and the Betsiboka is the country’s Principle River. Royal Poinciana is the national flower, and the Baobab is the national tree of Madagascar. Furthermore, the Madagascan fish eagle is the country’s national bird, and the Einfon is the national animal of Madagascar. Additionally, Rugby is the country’s national sport, and Romazava is the national dish. With these interesting facts about Madagascar, let’s learn more about the history, culture, religion, people, industries, tourism, tradition, and many more.

Quick Facts about Madagascar

The official name of the country: The Republic of Madagascar
Area: 587,041 km2
Population(2022): 28.92 million
Population density: 48 per kilometers Square
GDP (PPP)(2019): $45.96 Billion
GDP Per Capita (nominal): $471
Continent: Africa
Capital: Antananarivo
Spoken Language: French, Malagasy, English, Bantu, Swahili, Arab, German, Spanish, and Mandarin are some highly spoken languages in the country. Also, indigenous languages are spoken in the country.
Official Languages: Malagasy and French
Largest by area: 46th largest country
Religion: Christianity: 85.3 % (Protestantism:45.8%, Catholicism: 38.1%, Other Christian: 1.4%), No religion: 6.9%, Traditional faiths: 4.5%, Islam: 3%, Other: 0.3%.
Government: Unitary semi-presidential republic
Currency: Ariary (MGA)
Calling Code: +261
Time Zone: UTC +3 (EAT), Summer (DST): UTC +3 (not observed)

13 Interesting Facts about Madagascar

1. The world's second-largest island country

Madagascar is the world's second-largest island county after Indonesia. It is an African country found in the Indian ocean, and it measures 1600 Kilometers on the longest axis and 500 kilometers on its widest points.
On the country island, there's a beautiful terrain that includes volcanic mountains, rainforests, sandstone cliffs, and many more.
This is one of the best countries to visit so if you get a chance to visit then don't miss it.

2. More than 50% of the world's chameleon population is found in Madagascar

Madagascar has the highest chameleon population. More than 50% of the world's chameleon population is from Madagascar.
Both the largest chameleon Parson's chameleon, as well as the smallest chameleon Brookesia chameleon, are found in Madagascar. Around 150 species of chameleon are in the world, and half of the species are found here.
Further, out of 150 species, 59 of these species are only found on this island nation. This makes Madagascar one of the very unique countries on the African continent.

3. People believe more in Magical powers

Although Madagascar is predominantly a Christina nation, many of its citizens believe in some higher powers that are provided by their ancestors.
They believe that if they need any spiritual solutions in their country to solve many of the problems in their country, they need to search for these solutions from their ancestors that lived before them. This is one of the interesting facts about Madagascar.

4. Home to the Baobab tree

Madagascar is also home to the Baobab tree, which is one of the oldest trees in the world. The baobab tree is estimated to be around 2500 years old. It is a very unique tree that looks upside down.
The baobab tree is also known as upside-down bottles or monkey bread trees. There are several different species of Baobab tree found on the earth, but all are deciduous, flowering trees that can live for hundreds and even thousands of years.
This tree seems to have its roots up in the air, which makes it one of those very unique types of trees in the world.
The baobab tree can grow up to 70 feet tall and feature an oversized, extremely wide caudex that the plant utilizes for water storage during the dry season.
In the country, the tree is considered one of those sacred trees by its local people.

5. People are weed lovers

Around 10% of the citizens of Madagascar smoke weed. It is one of the higher numbers on the African continent, as well as Madagascar ranks with other countries like the United States, Jamaica, and France, for highly weed consumption country.
It is said that much of this weed is consumed for both medical and recreational purposes in the country.
Further, the consumption of weed (Marijuana) is illegal in the country.

6. Popular sport Bare Knuckle Fight

Bare Knuckle fighting is a form of sport in the country and it is very popular amongst the local people.
This sport is locally called Moraingy, and it's used as a form of entertainment for the visitors and also as a form of economic activity for the organizer as well as fighters themselves.

7. Human rights Protection

Madagascar is one of the few African countries that are very strong at upholding human rights on the African continent.
People's rights are strongly protected under the constitution that governs the country making Madagascar one of the best African countries to live in the African continent.
Some of the rights are ethnic rights, rights for children, rights for religion, rights of education, and many more are well protected under the Madagascar constitution.

8. Queen Ranavalona III become a ruler of the country before the French colonized

Before the french colonized Madagascar, the Kingdom of Madagascar was ruled by Queen Ranavalona III, who ruled the sovereign kingdom of Madagascar from 1883 to 1897. After warning the French, she lost with the French and the kingdom was dissolving monarchy.
French rule was maintained for only 64 years and in 1960 the country peacefully gained its independence.
Today, the country's citizen elect their president by-election.

9. The women and men wear the same types of clothes in the country

In Madagascar, both men and women wear the same types of clothes. The Lamba types of clothes which is traditional cultural wear and this cloth is worn by both men and women at different occasions and events in the country.
The Lamba is a rectangular piece of cloth that is wrapped around the body and it also comes in various designs.

10. Rich in flora and fauna

Madagascar has been an isolated island for around 88 million years. The island is breaking away first from Africa around 165 million years ago, and then from India nearly 80 million years later.
The county is home to wildlife and some of the wildlife is found nowhere else on earth. Madagascar is one of the leading countries with unique flora and fauna, with around 90 percent of its plants found only on the island of Madagascar.
Further, Madagascar is at the top of the world wildlife fund's list of endangered environments. Some of the unique animals are the tomato frogs, the panther chameleons, the fossa, the aye-aye, and the lemurs.

11. An entire forest made of stones

It's not only the wildlife that is unique to this place, the landscapes can also seem to be out of this world. The country has an entire forest made of stones.
Tsingy – Madagascar’s Stone Forest has large needle-shaped and very sharp limestone formations that stand side by side with the actual trees.

12. Madagascar has a Martian-like Landscape

The central highlands of Madagascar have a Martian-like landscape. Due to the iron oxide found in the soil, the hills, valleys, and mountains of this area have a distinctly reddish tint.
Because of that, the country earned its nickname "Red Island" adding to its otherworldly atmosphere.
This precise color is not seen in any other country or island in the world.

13. An amazing Rituals

Respecting the memory of a departed loved one is a very important aspect of life for many Malagasy. The Famadihana is a funerary tradition, in which people bring out the bodies under the land and placed them on the field. Then, the family members dance around the skeleton and engage in funny social debates, or "Kabari".
After that, the dead ancestor goes back inside the earth again, happy and wrapped in a new Lamba.
This amazing ritual happens once every 7 years.
These are some interesting facts about Madagascar facts.

Madagascar facts

• Antananarivo the capital city of Madagascar is a charming, modern city and home to about 1.6 million people.
•  Madagascar is home to the giant jumping rat. It can jump up to 40 inches into the air.
• Rice is a staple food in Madagascar. The word to eat in Malagasy is Mihinam-Bary, which means "to eat rice".
• Over 60% of Madagascar's population is under the age of 25.
• Over 85% of the country's original forests have been cut down for fuel, sales, and farming.
• Madagascar's many secluded coves, absence of European power, and freshwater made it a perfect haven for pirates. Many pirates use Madagascar as a place to sell and trade. Similarly, Madagascar is the only place in the world where you found the pirate's Graveyard.
• Madagascar is home to two-thirds of the world's Vanilla fields.
• The country has some of the best food in the entire world.
• Madagascar has 18 different ethnic groups or tribes. The local people ratio in the country is 30% Asia and 70% African. The country is really unique to have this blend of Asian and African people.
• In Madagascar, you would not find the deadly snakes and spiders thus it is a safe place for wildlife tourists.
• Contrary to the popular animated movies, Madagascar has no lions, giraffes, hippos, or zebras.

These are some Madagascar facts.

In Conclusion

In this article, we discussed some interesting facts about Madagascar. After reading this article, you might gain some knowledge about Madagascar. If you have still queries and want to learn more about the country, then please comment to us. Further, if you already visited this beautiful country, and want to add more interesting facts to this article that are not included in the article above, please comment to us. Also, share your take on this article.
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