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Fact library / Countries

Countries of East Africa

14 countries in East Africa, each with a picture to fix its place, shape or name in your memory.

The gatekeeper of the Red Sea

Djibouti sits on the Bab-el-Mandeb strait at the mouth of the Red Sea, and its capital city is also called Djibouti.

Picture it

A pirate guards a narrow sea gate between Africa and Arabia, sitting on a treasure chest of BOOTY ("ji-BOO-tee"). Every ship squeezing in or out of the Red Sea has to sail right past his chest.

Memory hooks

  • Djibouti: "ji-BOO-tee": a pirate on a chest of booty (sound-alike)
  • Red Sea: every ship squeezes past the pirate's gate (visual association)

Say it: Djibouti (ji·BOO·tee)

Where the two Niles meet

Sudan's capital, Khartoum, stands where the Blue Nile and the White Nile meet.

Picture it

Two rivers, one BLUE and one WHITE, race towards each other across the desert and crash together. Watching is a CAR with a TOMB on top: KHAR-TOUM.

Memory hooks

  • Sudan: two Niles racing across the desert (visual association)
  • Khartoum: a car with a tomb on top (sound-alike)

The modernist capital on the Red Sea

Eritrea runs along Africa's Red Sea coast, and its capital Asmara is famous for its Italian modernist architecture.

Picture it

A strip of land runs along the Red Sea coast, cutting Ethiopia off from the water. A rich architect named ERIC builds a capital full of curvy 1930s Italian buildings and gives it AS MARA, his wife's name: ASMARA.

Memory hooks

  • Eritrea: Eric the architect (sound-alike)
  • Asmara: named for his wife, Mara (narrative)

The number 7 on the Horn

Somalia, on the Horn of Africa, has the longest coastline of any country on mainland Africa, and its capital is Mogadishu.

Picture it

On the Horn of Africa, a giant number 7 lies along the coast: Africa's longest mainland coastline. A man with a MOGGY cat ("mo-gah-DEE-shoo") throws his shoe into the sea.

Memory hooks

  • Somalia: a giant 7 along the Horn (shape)
  • Mogadishu: a moggy and a thrown shoe (sound-alike)

The equator runs through it

Kenya lies on the equator in East Africa, and its capital is Nairobi.

Picture it

"KEN, YA standing on the equator!" A thick line splits the country in two, with snowy Mount Kenya right on top. In the capital, everyone is NIGH-ROBE-ing: putting on their robes at night (NAIROBI).

Memory hooks

  • Kenya: "Ken, ya standing on the equator!" (sound-alike)
  • Nairobi: night-robes (sound-alike)

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Where the Nile begins

Uganda is a landlocked East African country on Lake Victoria, where the Nile begins its journey north; its capital is Kampala.

Picture it

On the northern shore of Lake Victoria, a tap opens and the Nile begins to flow. A CAMPER van ("kam-PAH-la") is parked next to it, and the driver shouts "YOU GANDER at that!"

Memory hooks

  • Uganda: "You gander at that!" (sound-alike)
  • Kampala: a camper van by the source of the Nile (sound-alike)

A thousand hills

Rwanda, a small landlocked country known as the "land of a thousand hills", has its capital at Kigali.

Picture it

A tiny country in the middle of Africa is crumpled like paper into a thousand hills. A gorilla ROAMS them ("RWAN-da"), wearing a KEY GALLEY chain: KIGALI.

Memory hooks

  • Rwanda: crumpled paper with a thousand hills (visual association)
  • Kigali: a gorilla with a key chain (sound-alike)

On the shore of the deep lake

Burundi is a small landlocked country on the northeastern shore of Lake Tanganyika, the world's second-deepest lake.

Picture it

A small, heart-shaped country dips its toes into a long, deep lake. A BURRO ("bu-ROON-dee") wades in, but the water is so deep it's only beaten by Baikal. The donkey brays: "TANGAN-YEEKA!"

Memory hooks

  • Burundi: a burro wading into a deep lake (sound-alike)
  • Lake Tanganyika: the donkey braying "Tangan-yeeka!" (sound-alike)

Kilimanjaro's home, with a quiet capital

Tanzania, home to Mount Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar, has its official capital at Dodoma, though Dar es Salaam is its largest city.

Picture it

Snowy Kilimanjaro rises over the plains, with the island of Zanzibar offshore. Everyone heads to busy Dar es Salaam, but the official capital is quiet DODOMA, where a DODO sleeps.

Memory hooks

  • Tanzania: snowy Kilimanjaro over the plains (visual association)
  • Dodoma: a dodo sleeping in the quiet capital (sound-alike)

The newest country's birthday

South Sudan became independent from Sudan in 2011, making it the world's newest country, and its capital is Juba on the White Nile.

Picture it

In 2011, the southern half of Sudan blows out the candles on its very first birthday cake and becomes the world's newest country. The present is a big glass of JUICE, "JOO-ba!", poured beside the White Nile in Juba.

Memory hooks

  • South Sudan: the newest country's first birthday in 2011 (narrative)
  • Juba: a birthday glass of JUICE (sound-alike)

She sells sea shells

The Seychelles is an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, Africa's least populous country, with its capital at Victoria on Mahé.

Picture it

Out in the Indian Ocean, on a scatter of 115 islands, a girl stands on the beach chanting "SHE SELLS sea shells". Her best customer is Queen VICTORIA, who buys a shell for her capital on the island of Mahé.

Memory hooks

  • Seychelles: "SHE SELLS sea shells" (sound-alike)
  • Victoria: Queen Victoria buying a shell (narrative)

The dodo's island

Mauritius is an Indian Ocean island east of Madagascar, the only home the dodo ever had, and its capital is Port Louis.

Picture it

East of Madagascar, a plump DODO waddles across the only island it ever lived on. MAURICE, the harbour master, waves it aboard a ship at PORT LOUIS, but it's too late: it's already extinct.

Memory hooks

  • Mauritius: the dodo's only home (visual association)
  • Mauritius: MAURICE the harbour master (sound-alike)

The new flower in the highlands

Ethiopia, in the Horn of Africa, is Africa's second most populous country; its capital Addis Ababa ("new flower") hosts the African Union.

Picture it

High on the plateau of the Horn of Africa, a coffee farmer adds a fresh FLOWER to every cup he pours. That's what Addis Ababa means, "new flower", and leaders from across Africa come to the African Union to smell it.

Memory hooks

  • Addis Ababa: a new flower in every coffee cup (narrative)
  • Ethiopia: a coffee farmer on the high plateau (visual association)

Say it: Addis Ababa (AD·dis·A·ba·ba)

Moonlit perfume islands

The Comoros is a volcanic island nation between Mozambique and Madagascar, a leading producer of ylang-ylang for perfume, with its capital at Moroni.

Picture it

Between Mozambique and Madagascar, volcanic islands glow under the MOON: the Arabs called them the islands of the moon. The air smells of ylang-ylang perfume, and a sleepy sailor says "MORE ONIONS" in Moroni.

Memory hooks

  • Comoros: islands of the moon, smelling of perfume (visual association)
  • Moroni: "MORE ONIONS" (sound-alike)