Chad, also known as the Republic of Chad is located in northern Africa. Chad is a landlocked country that lies between Libya, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Central African Republic and Sudan. Chad's total land area equals about 495,000 square miles. Chad was formerly a province of French Equatorial Africa. The People of Chad gained their independence from France in 1960 (Encarta).
             Chad has two main climate zones throughout the country. Theses two areas are
             ; tropical in the south and desert in the north. The northern part of Chad is hot and arid. The central part has three different seasons: hot from March to July; rainy from July to October, with most rainfall averaging from about 10 to 30 inches and cool during the remaining four months. The southern part has a similar season outlook but receives more rain, about 45 inches of rain in the same four months. The Lake Chad Basin has a great range of tropical climates from north to south, although most of the climates are dry. Except for the far north, most of the regions are characterized by a cycle of alternating rainy and dry seasons. In any given year, the length of the season can be determined by the position of two huge air masses. "During the rainy season, winds from the southwest push the moister maritime system north over the African continent where it meets and slips under the continental mass along a front called the "intertropical convergence zone (A Country Study).!
             " As the height of the monsoon season approaches, the front mentioned above can reach as far as the Kanem Prefecture. By the time the middle of the dry season has gone by, the zone moves south of Chad, moving the rain along with it. "This weather system contributes to the formation of the three major regions of climate and vegetation (A Country Study)."
             There are three religious traditions that coexist in Chad today. They are classical African religions, Islam an...