Angola

American  

[ang-goh-luh] / æŋˈgoʊ lə /

noun

1. a republic in SW Africa: formerly an overseas province of Portugal; gained independence Nov. 11, 1975. 481,226 sq. mi. (1,246,375 sq. km). Luanda.

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Angola British  

/ æŋˈɡəʊlə /

noun

1. a republic in SW Africa, on the Atlantic: includes the enclave of Cabinda, north of the River Congo; a Portuguese possession from 1575 until its independence in 1975; multiparty constitution adopted in 1991; factional violence. It consists of a narrow coastal plain with a large fertile plateau in the east. Currency: kwanza. Religion: Christian majority. Capital: Luanda. Pop: 18 565 269 (2013 est). Area: 1 246 693 sq km (481 351 sq miles)

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Angola Cultural  

1. Republic in southwestern Africa on the Atlantic, bordered to the north and northeast by Democratic Republic of Congo, to the east by Zambia, and to the south by Namibia. Its capital and largest city is Luanda.

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Discover More

After achieving independence from Portugal in 1976, Angola was the scene of a civil war between its Marxist government, supported by the Soviet Union and Cuban troops, and a rebel organization known as UNITA, which was aided by the United States and South Africa. In 1988, the United States engineered a settlement that led to the withdrawal of Cuban troops and to South African acceptance of black majority rule in neighboring Namibia.

Other Word Forms

• Angolan
  adjective

Example Sentences

There are already plans to build a massive new refinery in East Africa, and countries such as Ghana, Angola, Uganda may quickly follow suit.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 16, 2026

St. Helena, a British island in the South Atlantic about 1,200 miles west of Angola, was the final stop for a group of Hondius passengers.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

"In 2025, we ran 5,000 trains in Angola," Fournier said, adding that 90 percent were passenger trains and the rest freight for the domestic market and the DRC.

From Barron's • May 7, 2026

Currently, China's main trading partners in the region include Angola, driven primarily by oil, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Africa.

From BBC • Apr. 30, 2026

It’s taken ten years and seems like a miracle, but the Americans are losing in Angola.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver