Bingerville is a town in south-eastern

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

. It is a suburb of

Abidjan Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N’ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the economic capital of the Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of overall population of the country, ...

and is one of four sub-prefectures of

Abidjan Autonomous District Abidjan Department (french: Département d'Abidjan, ) is a departments of Ivory Coast, department of Ivory Coast. It is the sole department in Abidjan Autonomous District: the territory of the department and the district are the same.

. Bingerville is also a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

. The town is located about 10 kilometres east of Abidjan and lies on the

Ébrié Lagoon The Ébrié Lagoon lies in Ivory Coast, separated for almost all of its length from the Atlantic Ocean by a narrow coastal strip. The long lagoon is linked to the sea by the Vridi Canal, while the Comoë River flows into it. The lagoon averages ...

. Villages in the sub-prefecture include Eloka. Bingerville is home to École militaire préparatoire technique (EMPT), a military academy.

History

Bingerville (13,000 BP) and Iwo-Eleru (11,000 BP) are the most early

microlithic A microlith is a small Rock (geology), stone tool usually made of flint or chert and typically a centimetre or so in length and half a centimetre wide. They were made by humans from around 35,000 to 3,000 years ago, across Europe, Africa, Asia an ...

industries in

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

. Originally a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

, Bingerville grew as the

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

of the French colony from 1909 until 1934. It is named after

Louis-Gustave Binger Louis-Gustave Binger (; 14 October 1856 – 10 November 1936) was a French officer and explorer who claimed the Côte d'Ivoire for France. Binger was born at Strasbourg in the Bas-Rhin . In 1887 he traveled from Senegal up to the Niger River, a ...

, a former French colonial governor. Many colonial buildings survive in the town, which is also known for its

botanical gardens A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

. Prior to the 2011 reorganisation of the

subdivisions of Ivory Coast Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire) is a relatively decentralised state. The country divided into 14 districts, of which two are cities organised as autonomous districts. The 12 non-autonomous districts are subdivided into 31 second-level regions. The auto ...

, Bingerville was part of the Lagunes Region.

Notable people

Mamadou Koné Mamadou Koné (born 25 December 1991) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Belgian First Division B club Deinze. Club career Born in Bingerville, Koné was a youth product of local ES Bingerville. He moved to Rac ...

, footballer *

Wilfried Bony Wilfried Guemiand Bony (born 10 December 1988) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a striker. Having begun his career at Issia Wazi, Bony moved to Sparta Prague in 2007, helping them to the Czech First League title in 2009–10 ...

, footballer *

Eric Bailly Eric Bertrand Bailly (; born 12 April 1994) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays for Ligue 1 club Marseille, on loan from club Manchester United, and the Ivory Coast national team. Although he mainly plays as a centre-back, he ca ...

, footballer *

Didier Drogba Didier Yves Drogba Tébily (; born 11 March 1978) is an Ivorian retired professional footballer who played as a striker. He is the all-time top scorer and former captain of the Ivory Coast national team. He is best known for his career at ...

, footballer *

Badra Ali Sangaré Badra Ali Sangaré (born 30 May 1986) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Sekhukhune and the Ivory Coast national team. Club career Born in Bingerville, Sangaré began to play for the Académie J-M Guillou bef ...

, footballer

References

Sub-prefectures of Abidjan Communes of Abidjan Suburbs in Ivory Coast {{Abidjan-geo-stub