Most of Senegal’s people work in agriculture.
Peanuts are a major crop. Other
important crops include rice, sugarcane,
millet, watermelons, cotton, and vegetables.
Senegal sells a lot of fish to other
countries.
Senegal’s industries produce peanut oil,
ships, fertilizers, and petroleum products.
Senegal also mines salt and phosphates,
which are used to make
fertilizers. Tourism, communications,
and other services have become important
parts of the economy.
History
Humans have lived on the land that is
now Senegal since prehistoric times. The
Tukulor people settled in the area almost
a thousand years ago. At about the same
time Berbers from the north began
spreading Islam throughout the region.
TheWolof, the Serer, and other peoples
later developed kingdoms.
European Trade
European explorers reached the area in
the 1400s. The first to arrive were the
Portuguese. The Dutch, the English,
and the French came later. The Europeans
set up trading posts along the coast
beginning in the 1600s. They traded
African slaves, ivory, gold, and a useful
plant material called gum.
French Rule
In 1895 Senegal became a part of the
large French colony of French West
Africa. In 1958 Senegal became a
separate state within the French
Community, a group of countries with
ties to France. Senegal soon left the
community, however, and formed a
union with Mali. In 1960 Senegal
separated from Mali to become an
independent country.
Independent Senegal
Leopold Senghor became Senegal’s first
president. He was a poet who had led
the movement for independence. In
1982 Senegal and The Gambia formed a
union called Senegambia. The union
broke apart in 1989. Meanwhile rebels
in the Casamance region began fighting
Senegal for independence. The rebels
and Senegal’s government signed a peace
agreement in 2004.
..More to explore
Dakar • Gambia, The
Peanuts are piled high on a truck
near Fatick, Senegal.
Facts About
SENEGAL
Population
(2008 estimate)
12,688,000
Area
75,955 sq mi
(196,722 sq km)
Capital
Dakar
Form of
government
Republic
Major cities
Dakar, Thies,
Kaolack, Saint-
Louis, Mbour,
Ziguinchor
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Senegal 67
Senses
The senses help humans and other animals
react to changes in their surroundings
and inside their bodies. Animals
receive sensory information all the time.
They see a bug dart across a pond. They
hear the roar of a lion. They smell a rose.
They taste fresh bread. They touch a
jagged piece of ice. They get dizzy from
spinning in a circle.
After the body takes in sensory information,
sense cells send the information to
the brain. Sense cells are also called
receptors. The information travels from
receptors to the brain through nerves.
The brain thinks about the information
and then makes the body react to it.
The five basic senses are sight, hearing,
smell, taste, and touch. The eyes sense
sight. The ears sense sounds. The skin
senses touch. On the tongue, taste
receptors are found in structures called
taste buds. They identify sweet, salty,
sour, bitter, and meaty tastes. The nose
detects smells. The receptors in the nose
also help with the sense of taste.
Humans use their skin, eyes, nose, tongue,
and ears to sense information in the world
around them.
Different animals have special body parts to
sense sound, movement, heat, touch, and
other information.
68 Senses BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
In addition to the five basic senses,
nearly all animals sense motion, heat,
cold, pressure, pain, and balance. The
sense of motion—knowing where the
arms and legs are and where to move
them—is called kinesthesis. The sense of
balance, or equilibrium, is controlled by
structures in the inner ear. These structures
help keep the body in balance and
prevent falls.
..More to explore
Ear • Eye • Nervous System • Nose
• Skin • Tongue
Seoul
Population
(2008 estimate)
10,421,780
Seoul is the capital of South Korea, a
country in eastern Asia. Before 1948
South Korea and North Korea were one
country. For hundreds of years during
that period Seoul was the capital of all of
Korea. The city’s name itself has come to
mean “capital” in the Korean language.
Seoul is one of the largest cities in the
world. It is also South Korea’s center of
culture, education, business, and industry.
It lies on the Han River.
The economy of Seoul is very important
to South Korea. Many of the country’s
banks and insurance companies have
their headquarters in the city. Factories
in Seoul make clothing, machinery, electronics,
processed foods, and other products.
Printing is another leading
industry.
People have lived in the Seoul area for
thousands of years. A royal summer palace
was built at the site in 1068. After
that a large settlement was established
there.
In 1394 the Choson rulers of Korea
made Seoul the capital. The Choson
ruled Korea until 1910. Japan controlled
Korea from 1910 to 1945. Seoul
remained the capital under Japanese
rule. During that time Seoul was called
Kyongsong.
Seoul was damaged during the Korean
War (1950–53). Afterwards it was rebuilt
and expanded greatly. The modern city
Kyongbok Palace was built in Seoul in
1394. Most of the original buildings on the
