Algeria (AFI: /ald͡ʒeˈria/[6]; Arabic الجزائر‎?, al-Jazāʾir; Standard Algerian Berber: ⴷⵣⴰⵢⴻⵔ, Dzayer), officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria (Arabic الْجُمْهُورِيَّة ٱلْجَزَائِرِيَّة ألدِّيمُقْرَاطِيَّة ٱلشَّعْبِيَّة‎?, al-Jumhūriyya al-Jazāʾiriyya ad-Dīmuqrāṭiyya aš‑Šaʿbiyya; in standard Algerian Berber: ⵜⴰⴳⴷⵓⴷⴰ ⵜⴰⵎⴳⴷⴰⵢⵜ ⵜⴰⵖⵔⴼⴰⵏⵜ ⵜⴰⴷⵣⴰⵢⵔⵉⵜ, Tagduda tamgdayt taɣrfant tadzayrit), is a state in North Africa, belonging to the Maghreb and largely occupied by the Sahara Desert.

The capital, Algiers, is eccentric with respect to the rest of the territory, being located in the far north; Its name also identifies the entire country. The population is divided between Arabs and Berbers, who have maintained their identity following the Arab colonization of North Africa.[7][8][9][10]

In terms of area, it has been the largest state on the African continent since July 9, 2011, when South Sudan gained independence from Sudan; it is also the largest state in the Arab world, as well as the tenth largest state on Earth. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north and shares land borders with Tunisia to the northeast, Libya to the east, Niger to the southeast, Mauritania, Mali, Morocco, and Western Sahara to the west. Algeria has been a member of the African Union and the Arab League since its independence from France in 1962, has been a member of OPEC since 1969, and actively contributed to the creation of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) in 1988. Constitutionally.