Angola is a country in south-central Africa bordering Namibia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Zambia, and with a west coast along the Atlantic Ocean. The exclave province Cabinda has a border with Republic of the Congo. A former Portuguese colony, it has considerable natural resources, among which oil and diamonds are the most significant. The country is nominally a democracy and is formally named the Republic of Angola

The capital of Angola is Luanda. Angola , more than three times the size of California , extends for more than 1,000 mi (1,609 km) along the South Atlantic in southwest Africa . The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of Congo are to the north and east, Zambia is to the east, and Namibia is to the south. A plateau averaging 6,000 ft (1,829 m) above sea level rises abruptly from the coastal lowlands. Nearly all the land is desert or savanna, with hardwood forests in the northeast.

Angola has a tropical climate with regional variations from a moderate tropical climate to a desert climate depending on the location. The prevailing winds are predominantly from the west, southwest and south southwest. Average temperature ranges in Luanda are from 18 to 23 degrees Celsius in August to 24 to 30 degrees in March.

Religion of Angola : Mostly Christians with around 70% of the population Roman Catholic while 20% are Protestant. Although, a large number still adhere to traditional tribal beliefs.

Language of Angola : The official language is Portuguese, although the national language is Bantu with the number of dialects spoken as varied as the Bantu sub-tribes.

Currency of Angola : The official currency is the New Kwanza (NKz) divided into 100 Iwei.

Angola is rich in natural resources including petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium. Angola is reportedly home to 96% of Southern Africa 's oil reserves and the highest quality of gem diamonds on the continent.

For 14 centuries, the lands now known as Angola were home to various Bantu tribes. When the Portuguese explorer, Diogo Cao, landed at the mouth of the Congo River in 1483, the area was ruled by an African monarch, the King of the Kongo. But in 1490, a Portuguese fleet arrived with priests and tools and the king accepted the Christian religion and new ways of working. Thus began the trade of forced labor and slavery. Over the next three centuries, Portugal shipped three million Angolan slaves to work its sugar plantations on the northern coast of Brazil .