10th February: Libya Independence Day

Libya celebrates independence from Italy on this date in 1947.

1. For a time, Libya was the only country in the world to have a national Flag consisting of just one colour (Green) and no design. Since the overthrow of the Gaddafi government, that has changed. Now the flag is mostly Black with a red stripe on top and a green stripe below. A white crescent and five-pointed star is centred on the black stripe.
2. The capital and largest city is Tripoli.
3. About 90% of the country is the Libyan desert, which forms the northern and eastern part of the Sahara Desert. In parts of Libya, it never rains at all or only very rarely, like about once every 5-10 years.
4. Libya has no natural rivers. The drinking Water comes from wells or underground aquifers. Libya is home to the world’s largest irrigation project, The Great Man-Made River, started in 1984. It carries water from the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer to the coastal cities.
5. Libya had a king, once. There was only ever one king, King Idris I of Libya, reigning from 1951 to 1969. In 1969, the king went to Turkey for medical treatment and while he was away, he was deposed in a coup d'etat led by Muammar Gaddafi.
6. Libya is the 17th largest country in the world and the 17th largest oil producer. It has the largest crude oil reserve in Africa. The discovery of oil in 1958 transformed Libya from a very poor nation to the one with the highest per capita income of the African countries.
7. There are several Greek and Roman archaeological sites in Libya, including the city of Cyrene, destroyed by an earthquake in 364 AD. The city produced silphium, a spice very popular in Greek cooking. It had a temple of Apollo dating back to seventh century BC. Its famous residents were the author Callimachus, a major influence on the Roman poets Ovid and Catullus; Eratosthenes, a mathematician who worked on prime numbers and geometry and made an accurate measurement of the circumference of the earth; and Simon of Cyrene who helped Jesus carry his Cross.
8. Another ancient city is the Roman Leptis Magna. Part of one of this city's ancient temples was brought to the UK and is today located in Windsor Great Park. Some of the columns from the Baths are believed to be in Windsor Castle.
9. The name Libya originates from a name by which the ancient Egyptians knew a particular Berber tribe, Libo.
10. At 1,770 kilometres (1,100 mi), Libya has the longest Mediterranean coastline of any African country.