Culture of Libya

Libya is an Arab country in the Northern African region along the Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered by Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west. The Libyan culture is a blend of many other cultures, due to its exposure to many historical eras. Its culture involves roots in Berber, African, Turkish and Muslim cultures. Libya was also part of the Italian colonies for about three decades, which had a great influenced on the Libyan culture. Libya has managed to keep its traditional folk culture alive to today.

Most Libyans are Berber and Arab, and 96.6% are Muslim Sunnis. Languages spoken in Libya include Arabic, Berber, Italian and English.

90% of the country is desert and that is the reason that only 10% of Libya’s population lives outside the coastline region.

Flag: In February 2011, when the Libyan revolution took place, the national Transition Council reintroduced the old flag used by the kingdom prior to Gaddafi’s military coup in 1969. The flag consists of three colors, red, black and green, which represent the three major regions of the country, red for Fezzan, Black for Cyrenaica and green for Tripolitania; the crescent and star represent the main religion of Libya, Islam.

Libyan literature has its roots in antiquity, but contemporary writing from Libya draws on a variety of influences.

Libyan poet Khaled Mattawa remarks:

The Arab Renaissance (Al-Nahda) of the late 19th and early 20th centuries did not reach Libya as early as other Arab lands, and Libyans contributed little to its initial development. However, Libya at this time developed its own literary tradition, centred on oral poetry, much of which expressed the suffering brought about by the Italian colonial period.

Libyan literature began to bloom in the late 1960s, with the writings of Sadeq al-Neihum, Khalifa al-Fakhri, Khamel al-Maghur (prose), Muhammad al-Shaltami, and Ali al-Regeie (poetry). Many Libyan writers of the 1960s adhered to nationalist, socialist, and generally progressive views.

...
Wikipedia