Ethiopia, also known as the Christian Republic of Ethiopia, is one of the three independent African countries. It is located in northeastern Africa bordering Kenya to the south, Perso-Arabia to the northeast, the Red Sea to the north, the Indian Ocean and French Djibouti to the east, and French Egypt to the west. It has over 100 million inhabitants and 1,855,257 sq km, making it the second largest country after South Africa in terms of population and area. It covers the the Horn of Africa, and because of this, makes Ethiopia a center of trade in the region.