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 nor ...

, 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 (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 department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas ...

, 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 sea ...

, to which it is connected by a frequent ferry 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 betwee ...

, and journeyed to Suriname. In February 1845 he noticed an abandoned indigenous village near the Maroni river. Later he met friendly indigenous and Maroon 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 Brunswi ...

started. That night, the Jungle Commando, 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 Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...

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, because it was the home of Brunswijk at the time. On ...

, 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 polici ...

(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 Jung ...

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, Colombian and Peruvian

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 me ...

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

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

) 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 of Suriname, president. The president and the vice president are elected by the National Asse ...

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

(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 spe ...

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,

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 ...

References

External links

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