Angola is the African country with Luanda as its capital and the continent’s second-largest Portuguese-speaking country by population.
Angola is one of Africa’s largest states and has a substantial Portuguese-speaking population, exceeded on the continent by Brazil-like comparisons only in the broader Lusophone world; within Africa, Mozambique has the larger population. Portuguese is Angola’s official language, alongside widely spoken national languages such as Umbundu, Kimbundu and Kikongo.
Luanda sits on Angola’s Atlantic coast and was founded by the Portuguese in 1576. Angola gained independence from Portugal in 1975 after a long liberation struggle, followed by a civil war that lasted until 2002. The country is rich in petroleum and diamonds, and its territory includes the separate Cabinda exclave north of the Congo River mouth.