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BORKU, or BORGU

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Originally appearing in Volume V04, Page 255 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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BORKU, or See also:BORGU , a region of Central See also:Africa between 17° and 19° N. and 18° and 210 E., forming See also:part of the transitional See also:zone between the arid wastes of the See also:Sahara and the fertile lands of the central See also:Sudan. It is bounded N. by the See also:Tibesti Mountains, and is in See also:great measure occupied by lesser elevations belonging to the same See also:system. These hills to the See also:south and See also:east See also:merge into the plains of See also:Wadai and See also:Darfur. South-See also:west, in the direction of See also:Lake See also:Chad, is the Bodele See also:basin. The drainage of the See also:country is to the lake, but the numerous khors with which its See also:surface is scored are mostly dry or contain See also:water for brief periods only. A considerable part of the See also:soil is See also:light See also:sand drifted about by the See also:wind. The irrigated and fertile portions consist mainly of a number of valleys separated from each other by See also:low and irregular See also:limestone rocks. They furnish excellent See also:dates. See also:Barley is also cultivated. The See also:northern valleys are inhabited by a settled See also:population of See also:Tibbu stock, known as the Daza, and by colonies of negroes; the others are mainly visited by nomadic See also:Berber and Arab tribes. The inhabitants own large See also:numbers of goats and asses. A See also:caravan route from See also:Barca and the Kufra See also:oasis passes through Borku to Lake Chad.

The country See also:

long remained unknown to Europeans. Gustav See also:Nachtigal spent some See also:time in it in the See also:year 1871, and gave a valuable See also:account of the region and its inhabitants in his See also:book, Sahara and Sudan (See also:Berlin, 1879–1889). In 1899 Borku, by agreement with Great See also:Britain, was assigned to the See also:French See also:sphere of See also:influence. The country, which had formerly been periodically raided by the Walad Sliman See also:Arabs, was then governed by the See also:Senussi (q.v.), who had placed garrisons in the See also:chief centres of population. From it raids were made on French territory. In 1907 a French See also:column from Kanem entered Borku, but after capturing See also:Ain Galakka, the See also:principal Senussi station, retired. Borku is also called Borgu, but must not be confounded with the Borgu (q.v.) west of the See also:Niger. A See also:summary of Nachtigal's See also:writing on Borku will be found in See also:section 28 of Gustav Nachtigal's Reisen in der Sahara and See also:im Sudan (1 vol.), arranged by See also:Albert See also:Frankel (See also:Leipzig, 1887). See also an See also:article (with See also:map) by Commdt. See also:Bordeaux in LaGeographie, Oct. 1908.

End of Article: BORKU, or BORGU

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