Indications of population around the shores of Lake Chad date back to Neolithic times. The shores were an important junction for several major trans-Saharan caravan routes for centuries. From the 11th to the 15th century, the state of Kanem was the dominant force in the region, occupying much of the area that makes up present-day Chad. In the 15th and 16th centuries, the state of Borno, which had its center on the other side of Lake Chad (in present-day Nigeria), exercised a major influence.

A gradual process of Islamization took place in the region from this time, especially during the 16th and 17th centuries during the kingdoms of the Bagirmi and Ouaddai. The slave trade was a key component of their economies and as this declined from the early 19th century onwards, so did the kingdoms. In the 1880s, riven by internecine feuding, they were conquered by the Sudanese warlord Rabih al-Zubair. The Europeans arrived a few decades later, in the latter stages of their carve-up of the African continent.

Chad was first defined as a national territory in 1910, as one of the four making up French Equatorial Africa. Chad achieved independence in 1960 with François Tombalbaye, leader of the Parti Progressiste Tchadien (PPT), as Prime Minister. Its history since then has been characterized by political instability and tensions, largely due to religious and cultural divisions between the Muslim north and Christian/animist south – a pattern that may be found in many other African countries, including Nigeria and Sudan.

However, there is still much to recommend in Chad. Its capital, N'Djamena, is a friendly and laidback city with a wonderful Central Market, where the whole experience of haggling for African produce is exceptionally good fun. Lake Chad, once one of the largest freshwater lakes in the world, is still a serene sight to behold, despite its gradual shrinkage due to climate change and increased demands. It is still of huge economic importance, providing water to millions of people in surrounding countries. Indeed, Chad itself, although one of the poorest of Africa's nations, is still geographically staggering, ranging from desert in the north to fertile farmland in the south, all under the canopy of a blue, blisteringly hot sky.

Geography
Chad is situated in central Africa, bordered by Libya to the north, Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon to the west, the Central African Republic to the south, and Sudan to the east. The topography ranges from equatorial forests to the driest of deserts. In the northeast lies Ennedi, and to the north the volcanic Tibesti range - largely sheer cliffs, ravines and canyons set among Saharan sand dunes.