Numidia summary

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Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Numidia.

Numidia , Ancient country, North Africa, approximately coextensive with present-day Algeria. During the Second Punic War, the tribal chief Masinissa supported the Romans from 206 bc, and he was made king of Numidia after the Roman victory over the Carthaginians in 201 bc. After the destruction of Carthage, thousands fled to Numidia, which became a Roman province in 46 bc. Its capital was Cirta (Constantine), and the chief city was Hippo, which was the see of St. Augustine. After its conquest by the Vandals in ad 429, Roman civilization there declined rapidly; some pockets of native culture survived, however, and even continued after the Arab conquest in the 8th century.

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Africa, the second largest continent (after Asia), covering about one-fifth of the total land surface of Earth. The continent is bounded on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, on the north by the Mediterranean Sea, on the east by the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, and on the south by the mingling waters