( also the Gambia )
a country in West Africa where the official language is English. It is a long narrow country, on each bank of the Gambia river, surrounded by Senegal. Gambia was formed when Britain and France both had empires in the region, and could not agree on who should own this land. In the 19th century Britain took the banks of the river, and France the rest of the country. Gambia became independent in 1965, and is a member of the Commonwealth . It now has an important tourist industry and many British people go there on holiday/vacation, especially in the winter. The capital city is Banjul.
► Gambian adj , n .