Botanical exploration of Angola was virtually impossible during the almost three-decade-long civil war. With more areas becoming accessible, there is, however, a revived interest in the flora of this country. A total of 27 members of the genus Aloe L. have been recorded for Angola. It is not unlikely that new taxa will be discovered, and that the distribution ranges of others will be expanded now that botanical exploration in Angola has resumed. This manuscript provides a complete taxonomic treatment of the known Aloe taxa in Angola. It includes, amongst other information, identification keys, descriptions and distribution maps.

A new species of Aloe (Asphodelaceae) is described from Somaliland. It differs from other species in forming large clumps and in having sap that is initially yellow but quickly turns bright red and then dark red or reddish-brown, paniculate red-flowered inflorescences and uniformly coloured leaves with red teeth. Its recognition raises the number of species known from the combined area of Somaliland and Somalia s.s. from 31 to 36. A map portraying species density of Aloe by country, as that genus is now interpreted, shows that Aloe has its highest density on islands in the Indian Ocean but that, within Africa, the greatest density is in countries along the eastern highlands. The data also reinforce the importance of field botanists in determining a country’s known plant diversity.