尼日(Niger)
正式名称尼日共和国（Republic of Niger）
非洲西部国家，位於撒哈拉沙漠南缘。面积1,186,408平方公里。人口约10,355,000（2001）。首都︰尼阿美。豪萨人占全国半数的人口；其次是桑海-泽尔马人和卡努里人。语言︰法语（官方语）、豪萨语和阿拉伯语。宗教︰伊斯兰教、基督教、传统宗教。货币︰非洲金融共同体法郎（CFAF）。尼日为一内陆国家，其特徵是南部为稀树草原，中部及北部为沙漠；大部分人口居住在南部。尼日河支配着西南部和中北部的阿伊尔山地区。尼日发展中的经济以农业和采矿为主。政府形式是共和国，一院制。总统是国家元首，总理为政府首脑。
在该地区存在着新石器时代文化的证明，有几个前殖民时期的王国。18世纪晚期首先由欧洲人开发，1904年成为法属西非的一部分。1946年时是法国的海外领土，1960年获得独立。1993年举行第一次多党选举。1996年军事政变的领袖在同年颁布了一部新宪法。
English version：
Niger
Nation, western Africa, on the southern edge of the Sahara. Area: 459,073 sq mi (1,188,999 sq km). Population (1997 est.): 9,389,000. Capital: Niamey. More than half the people are Hausa; there are also Songhai-Zerma and Kanuri. Languages: French (official), Hausa, Arabic. Religions: Islam, Christianity, traditional beliefs. Currency: CFA franc. A landlocked country, it is characterized by savanna in the south and desert in the center and north; most of the population lives in the south. The Niger River dominates in the southwest, and the A?r Massif, a mountainous region, in the northern central part of the country. Niger has a developing economy based largely on agriculture and mining. It is a republic with one legislative body; its head of state and government is the president, assisted by the prime minister. There is evidence of Neolithic culture in the region, and there were several precolonial kingdoms. First explored by Europeans in the late 18th century, it became part of French West Africa in 1904. It became an overseas territory of France in 1946 and gained independence in 1960. The first multiparty elections were held in 1993. The leader of a military coup of 1996 promulgated a new constitution that year.