什么是马达加斯加

正式名称为马达加斯加共和国（Republic of Madagascar）

位於非洲东南海岸外的马达加斯加岛国。该岛为世界第四大岛，长约1,570公里，宽约571公里。马达加斯加岛和非洲海岸之间为莫桑比克海峡。面积587,041平方公里。人口15,983,000（2001）。首都︰安塔那那利佛。马达加斯加人口几乎完全由约二十个马来亚－印尼部族群组成。语言︰梅里纳语、法语（均为官方语）。宗教︰信奉万物有灵的传统宗教，基督教徒（天主教徒、新教徒各占一半），伊斯兰教。货币︰马拉加西法郎（FMG）。马达加斯加的中央高原海拔2,876公尺，位察拉塔纳纳火山断块。该岛原先森林茂密，森林仍占土地面积的1/4。经济以农业为主，包括水稻、木薯等粮食作物，经济作物包括咖啡、丁香和香草。政府形式为共和国，一院制。国家元首为总统，政府首脑为总理。

印尼人约西元700年迁入马达加斯加的。最先抵达该岛的欧洲人是葡萄牙航海家迪亚斯（D. Dias，1500年）。17世纪始贩卖武器和奴隶的活动使马达加斯加王国得以发展。18世纪梅里纳王国成为一强大的王国。19世纪初，获得了英国人的援助，得以控制马达加斯假定大部分地区。1864年梅里纳王国与法国人签订一项条约，将西北部沿海地区交由法国人控制。1946年马达加斯加成为法国的一个海外领地，1958年法国同意让该领地决定自己的命运，作为自治共和国，1960年马达加斯加共和国获得独立。1970年代，马达加斯加政府断绝路与法国的关系。1975年采现今的国名。1992年通过新宪法，该国从此在政治上和经济上都不稳定。

Madagascar

Nation, occupying the island of Madagascar, off the southeastern coast of Africa. The island of Madagascar, the world's fourth-largest island, is about 976 mi (1,570 km) long and 355 mi (571 km) wide. It is separated from the African coast by the Mozambique Channel. Area: 226,658 sq mi (587,041 sq km). Population (1997 est.): 14,062,000. Capital: Antananarivo. Almost all the population belongs to about 20 Malayo-Indonesian groups. Languages: Malagasy, French (both official). Religions: Traditional animism; Christianity (Roman Catholicism, Protestantism), Islam. Currency: Malagasy franc. Madagascar's high central plateau rises to 9,436 ft (2,876 m) at the volcanic Tsaratanana massif; the island was once heavily forested, and forests still cover one-fourth of the land area. Agriculture dominates the economy, with staple crops, including rice and cassava, and cash crops, including coffee, cloves, and vanilla. It is a republic with one legislative house; its chief of state is the president, and the head of government is the prime minister. Indonesians migrated to Madagascar c. AD 700. The first European to visit the island was Portuguese navigator Diogo Dias in 1500. Trade in arms and slaves allowed the development of Malagasy kingdoms at the beginning of the 17th century. In the 18th century the Merina kingdom became dominant; with British assistance, it gained control of a large part of Madagascar in the early 19th century. In 1868 Merina signed a treaty granting France control over the northwestern coast, and in 1895 French troops took the island. Madagascar became a French overseas territory in 1946. In 1958 France agreed to let the territory decide its own fate; as the Malagasy Republic, it gained independence in 1960. It severed ties with France in the 1970s, taking its present name in 1975. A new constitution was adopted in 1992. The country has since been both politically and economically unstable.