Official name: Socialist Peoples' Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Independent since: 1951 Former colonial ruler: Italy
Location: North Africa, between Tunisia and Egypt Area: 679,358 square miles Capital: Tripoli
Population: 5.4 million (2002 est.)
Official language: Arabic
Major religion: Sunni Islam
Gross domestic product: US$40 billion (2001 est.)
Major export: crude petroleum Military expenditures: US$1.3 billion (2000)
At Leptis Magna, Sabratha, Cyrene, and Tomaltha. Throughout most of its history, Tripolitania has been a focal point for change in Libya.
The Fezzan, or interior, region of Libya, was settled in prehistoric times. Rock paintings in the oasis of Ghadames predate the earliest civilization in Egypt. The region was inhabited by Berbers, who controlled the trans-Saharan trade routes. During the fifth century b. c.e., much of the area became part of the Garamantian Empire, which blocked Roman expansion into the Fezzan. Throughout history, the Fezzan region has remained most resistant to change.
With the fall of the Roman Empire in the fifth century, the Vandals conquered parts of Libya in 455. Their territory was taken over a century later by the Eastern Roman, or Byzantine, Empire. The armies of Omar Ibn al-As brought Islamic Arab expansion to Libya in 642. While accepting Islam, the Berbers of the Fezzan proved most resistant to Arab dominance. Caught up in Western Europe's medieval Crusades, part of the Libyan coast fell under Norman control in 1146. Hence, during its early history, Libya came under the influence of many major world events.
World History
