Mauritania

Mauritania's population spans Arab-Berber Moors, Black African groups, and the Haratin (descendants of enslaved people), a stratification that remains socially fraught. Arabic is the official language, with French and African languages used.

Islam is the state religion, followed by virtually the entire population, and Mauritania is an Islamic republic.

Society

Mauritania has low literacy and development indicators and a young population, with entrenched social hierarchies and the legacy of slavery, only criminalized recently, still casting a shadow.