Albina is a town in eastern

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

, and is capital of the

Marowijne District Marowijne is a district of Suriname, located on the north-east coast. Marowijne's capital city is Albina, with other towns including Moengo and Wanhatti. The district borders the Atlantic Ocean to the north, French Guiana to the east, the Suri ...

. The town lies on the west bank of the

Marowijne river The Maroni or Marowijne (french: link=no, Maroni, nl, Marowijne, Sranan Tongo: ''Marwina-Liba'') is a river in South America that forms the border between French Guiana and Suriname. Course The Maroni runs through the Guianan moist forest ...

(Maroni river), which forms the border with

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

, directly opposite the French Guianan town of

Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni (; gcr, Senloran di Maronni) is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni is one of the three sub-prefectures of French Guiana and the seat ...

, to which it is connected by a frequent

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

service. Albina can be reached by bus via the East-West Link. The distance between Paramaribo and Albina is about .

History

Albina was founded on 13 December 1845 by

August Kappler August Kappler (11 November 1815 – 20 October 1887) was a German researcher, naturalist and explorer who was a native of Mannheim. He is credited as the founder of Albina, Suriname. From January 1836, Kappler was stationed in Suriname as ...

, and was named after his wife Albina Josefine Liezenmaier (1815-1904). Kappler had left

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and journeyed to Suriname. In February 1845 he noticed an abandoned

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

village near the Maroni river. Later he met friendly indigenous and

Maroon Maroon ( US/ UK , Australia ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word ''marron'', or chestnut. "Marron" is also one of the French translations for "brown". According to multiple dictionaries, there are var ...

people nearby, and decided to settle in the village after having received permission. By 1913, there was a little town with a medical clinic, and Albina was home to 349 men and 266 women. On 22 July 1986, the

Surinamese Interior War The Surinamese Interior War ( nl, Binnenlandse Oorlog) was a civil war waged in the Sipaliwini District of Suriname between 1986 and 1992. It was fought by the Tucayana Amazonas led by Thomas Sabajo and the Jungle Commando led by Ronnie Brunswij ...

started. That night, the

Jungle Commando The Jungle Commando (formally known as the Suriname National Liberation Army) was a guerrilla commando group in Suriname. It was founded by Ronnie Brunswijk in 1986 to ensure equal rights for Suriname's minority Maroon population. The group was fo ...

, led by

Ronnie Brunswijk Ronnie Brunswijk (; born 7 March 1961) is a Surinamese politician, businessman, footballer, convicted drug trafficker, former rebel leader, and the current Vice President of Suriname. Brunswijk served in the early 1980s as the personal bodyguard ...

, opened fire on the army barracks in Albina. The fighting lasted three hours. One soldier and two civilians were wounded. The National Army responded by destroying the temple in

Moengotapoe Moengotapoe is a resort in Suriname, located in the Marowijne District. Its population at the 2012 census was 579. The village of Moengotapoe was not spared during the Surinamese Interior War The Surinamese Interior War ( nl, Binnenlandse Oor ...

, and capturing all males present. During the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

(1986–1992) which followed, great parts of the area, including much of the town of Albina, and the road, were destroyed. It also caused a refugee crisis into

. The birthplace of Ronnie Brunswijk is the village of

Moiwana Moiwana is a Maroon village in the Marowijne district in the east of Suriname. The village was the scene of the on November 29, 1986, during the Suriname Guerrilla War between the Surinamese military regime, headed by Dési Bouterse, and the Ju ...

Moiwana was the scene of the where 35 people, mostly women and children were killed by the National Army. On 24–25 December 2009, the Albina riots took place, when local Maroon inhabitants attacked

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian,

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

n and

Peruvian Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century; Peruvian p ...

gold prospectors Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

after a man was allegedly stabbed to death by a Brazilian. The riots caused one death, and at least 24 wounded.

Transportation

Plans have been made to build a bridge between Suriname and French Guiana, however as of May 2020, no action has been taken. The town has a small airport, the

Albina Airstrip Albina Airstrip is an airport serving Albina, the capital of the Marowijne District of Suriname. It is one of the oldest airports in Suriname, in use since 1953, when the Piper Cub (PZ-NAC) of Kappel-van Eyck named "Colibri" landed there from ...

, with a asphalt runway in use since 1953. Albina has a small boat (korjaal) connection to

Galibi The Kalina, also known as the Caribs or mainland Caribs and by several other names, are an indigenous people native to the northern coastal areas of South America. Today, the Kalina live largely in villages on the rivers and coasts of Venezuela, ...

. The journey across the water takes about 1.5 hrs. There is a beach and a small tourist shop. The main reason tourists visit Galibi is to see the turtles, which come from all over the world (including places as distant as

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

) to lay their eggs in Suriname.

Notable people

(1961),

Vice President of Suriname The vice president of Suriname ( nl, Vicepresident van de Republiek Suriname) is the second-highest political position in Suriname, after the president. The president and the vice president are elected by the National Assembly for five-year ter ...

, ex-rebel leader and business man. * Henk Chin A Sen (1934-1999), former President of Suriname. *

Olton van Genderen Olton Willem van Genderen (17 October 1921 – 9 November 1990) was a Surinamese civil servant and politician. He served as Deputy Prime Minister of Suriname from 24 December 1973 until the coup d'état of 25 February 1980. He was one of the main ...

(1921-1990), Deputy Prime Minister. *

Oscar Harris Oscar Harris (born 30 November 1943) is a Surinamese singer. He was among the best known Surinamese musicians in the Netherlands during the 1970s and 1980s. Harris moved to Amsterdam to study architecture in 1963, and founded Oscar Harris and T ...

(1934), musician.

Villages

* Alfonsdorp and Marijkedorp are indigenous

Lokono The Lokono or Arawak are an Arawak people native to northern coastal areas of South America. Today, approximately 10,000 Lokono live primarily along the coasts and rivers of Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, Barbados and French Guiana. They speak the ...

villages. * Bigiston is a group of Ndyuka Maroons and indigenous

Kalina Kalina may refer to: People * Kalina people, or Caribs, an indigenous people of the northern coastal areas of South America * Kalina language, or Carib, the language of the Kalina people * Kalina (given name) * Kalina (surname) * Noah Kalina, ...

villages. *

is a Ndyuka village where the took place.

Sister cities

Koksijde Koksijde (; french: Coxyde ; vls, Koksyde) is a town and a municipality in Belgium. It is located on the North Sea coast in the southwest of the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises apart from Koksijde, the villages of O ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control Resorts of Suriname French Guiana–Suriname border crossings Populated places in Marowijne District