Horn of Africa
Topic: World Physical Features and Natural Regions · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Horn of Africa is the peninsula of north-east Africa that juts out into the Arabian Sea. A peninsula is land with water on three sides. The region is made up of Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti. It sits beside the Gulf of Aden and the Bab-el-Mandeb strait, the sea route between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. This makes it very important for world shipping, including India's trade with Europe.
Example
Djibouti, a small country at the mouth of the Bab-el-Mandeb, hosts China's first overseas military base (2017). Ethiopia has no coast, and its 2024 sea-access deal with Somaliland caused tension in the region.
Don't confuse with
- Cape of Good Hope: this is at the southern tip of Africa. It is the long route ships take when the Red Sea is unsafe.
Related concepts
- Persian Gulf
- Red Sea
- Gulf of Aden
- Black Sea
- South China Sea
- Spratly and Paracel Islands
- Gulf of Guinea