French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=

French Guianese Creole French Guianese Creole (Kriyòl; also called variously Guianan Creole, Guianese Creole in English and Créole guyanais or Guyanais in French) is a French-based creole language spoken in French Guiana, and to a lesser degree, in Suriname and Gu ...

, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and

single territorial collectivity A single territorial collectivity (french: collectivité territoriale unique) is a chartered subdivision of France that exercises the powers of both a region and a department. This subdivision was introduced in Mayotte in 2011, in French Guia ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

on the northern

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

coast of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...

the Guianas The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France ...

. It borders

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 ...

to the east and south and

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 ...

to the west. With a land area of , French Guiana is the second-largest

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

of France (more than one-seventh the size of

Metropolitan France Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole''), also known as European France (french: Territoire européen de la France) is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European ...

) and the largest

outermost region The special territories of members of the European Economic Area (EEA) are the 32 special territories of EU member states and EFTA member states which, for historical, geographical, or political reasons, enjoy special status within or outside ...

within the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. It has a very low population density, with only . (Its population is less than that of Metropolitan France.) Half of its 294,436 inhabitants in 2022 lived in the metropolitan area of

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; gcr, Kayenn) is the capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Cayenne River on the Atlantic Oc ...

, its

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 ...

. 98.9% of the land territory of French Guiana is covered by forests, a large part of which is

primeval Primeval may refer to: * Primeval forest, an area of forest that has attained great age * Primeval number, a positive integer satisfying certain conditions * Primeval history, name given by biblical scholars to the first eleven chapters of the Bo ...

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

. The

Guiana Amazonian Park Guiana Amazonian Park (french: Parc amazonien de Guyane) is the largest List of national parks of France, national park of France, aiming at protecting part of the Amazonian forest located in French Guiana which covers 41% of the region of Fran ...

, which is the largest

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

in the European Union, covers 41% of French Guiana's territory. Since December 2015, both the region and department have been ruled by a single assembly within the framework of a new

territorial collectivity A territorial collectivity (french: collectivité territoriale, previously '), or territorial authority, is a chartered subdivision of France with recognized governing authority. It is the generic name for any subdivision (subnational entity) wit ...

, the French Guiana Territorial Collectivity (french: collectivité territoriale de Guyane, links=no). This assembly, the French Guiana Assembly (french: assemblée de Guyane, links=no), replaced the former regional council and departmental council, which were disbanded. The French Guiana Assembly is in charge of regional and departmental government. Its president is

Gabriel Serville Gabriel Serville (born 27 September 1959) is a French-Guianese politician who was elected to the French National Assembly on 16 June 2012 representing French Guiana's 1st constituency. Fully integrated in the

French Republic France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

since 1946, French Guiana is a part of the European Union, and its official currency is the

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

. A large part of French Guiana's economy depends on jobs and businesses associated with the presence of the

Guiana Space Centre The Guiana Space Centre (french: links=no, Centre spatial guyanais; CSG), also called Europe's Spaceport, is a European spaceport to the northwest of Kourou in French Guiana, a region of France in South America. Kourou is located approximatel ...

, now the

European Space Agency , owners = , headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France , coordinates = , spaceport = Guiana Space Centre , seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png , seal_size = 130px , image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...

's primary launch site near the equator. As elsewhere in France, the official language is standard French, but each ethnic community has its own language, of which

, a French-based

creole language A creole language, or simply creole, is a stable natural language that develops from the simplifying and mixing of different languages into a new one within a fairly brief period of time: often, a pidgin evolved into a full-fledged language. ...

, is the most widely spoken. French Guiana is the only territory on the continental mainland of either

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

that is under the sovereignty of a

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

state, much less fully integrated in a European state. The border between French Guiana and Brazil is the longest land border that France shares with another country, as well as one of only two

borders A border is a geographical boundary. Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Border'' (1997 film), an Indian Hindi-language war film * ''Border'' (2018 Swedish film), ...

which France shares with non-European states, the other being the border with Suriname in the west.

Name

The addition of the adjective "French" in most languages other than French is rooted in colonial times, when five such colonies (

The Guianas The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

) had been named along the coast, subject to differing powers: namely (from west to east) Spanish Guiana (now

Guayana Region The Guayana Region is an administrative region of eastern Venezuela. History In the 1970s, after the process of forming the Political-Administrative Regions through CORDIPLAN in the government of Rafael Caldera, the Region of Guyana was f ...

in Venezuela),

British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first European to encounter Guiana was S ...

(now

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

), Dutch Guiana (now

), French Guiana, and

Portuguese Guiana Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

(now

Amapá Amapá () is one of the 26 states of Brazil. It is in the northern region of Brazil. It is the second least populous state and the eighteenth largest by area. Located in the far northern part of the country, Amapá is bordered clockwise by Fr ...

in Brazil). French Guiana and the two larger countries to the north and west, Guyana and Suriname, are still often collectively referred to as "the Guianas" and constitute one large landmass known as the

Guiana Shield The Guiana Shield (french: Plateau des Guyanes, Bouclier guyanais; nl, Hoogland van Guyana, Guianaschild; pt, Planalto das Guianas, Escudo das Guianas; es, Escudo guayanés) is one of the three cratons of the South American Plate. It is a ...

History

French Guiana was originally inhabited by

indigenous people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

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, ...

Arawak The Arawak are a group of indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. Specifically, the term "Arawak" has been applied at various times to the Lokono of South America and the Taíno, who historically lived in the Greater ...

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, ...

Palikur The Palikur are an indigenous people located in the riverine areas of the Brazilian state of Amapá and in French Guiana, particularly in the south-eastern border region, on the north bank of the Oyapock River. The Palikur Nation, or ''naoné'', ...

, Teko,

Wayampi The Wayampi or Wayãpi are an indigenous people located in the south-eastern border area of French Guiana at the confluence of the rivers Camopi and Oyapock, and the basins of the Amapari and Carapanatuba Rivers in the central part of the state ...

and

Wayana The Wayana (alternate names: Ajana, Uaiana, Alucuyana, Guaque, Ojana, Oyana, Orcocoyana, Pirixi, Urukuena, Waiano etc.) are a Carib-speaking people located in the southeastern part of the Guiana highlands, a region divided between Brazil, Surina ...

. The French attempted to create a colony there in the 16th century in conjunction with its settlement of some Caribbean islands, such as Guadeloupe and

Saint-Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colony in the western portion of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in the area of modern-day Haiti, from 1659 to 1804. The name derives from the Spanish main city in the island, Santo Domingo, which came to refer ...

. Prior to

European colonization The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, the Greeks, the Turks, and the Arabs. Colonialism in the modern sense began ...

, the territory was originally inhabited by Native Americans, most speaking the

Arawak language Arawak (, ), also known as Lokono (Lokono Dian, literally "people's talk" by its speakers), is an Arawakan language spoken by the Lokono (Arawak) people of South America in eastern Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. It is the eponymou ...

, of the Arawakan language family. The people identified as

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 ...

. The first French establishment is recorded in 1503, but France did not establish a durable presence until colonists founded

in 1643. Guiana was developed as a

slave society Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, where planters imported Africans as enslaved labourers on large sugar and other plantations in such number as to increase the population. The system of slavery in French Guiana continued until the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

, when the

National Convention The National Convention (french: link=no, Convention nationale) was the parliament of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for the rest of its existence during the French Revolution, following the two-year National ...

voted to abolish the French slave trade and slavery in France's overseas colonies in February 1794, months after enslaved Haitians had started a

slave rebellion A slave rebellion is an armed uprising by enslaved people, as a way of fighting for their freedom. Rebellions of enslaved people have occurred in nearly all societies that practice slavery or have practiced slavery in the past. A desire for freedo ...

in the colony of

. However, the 1794 decree was only implemented in Saint-Domingue,

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...

and French Guiana, while the colonies of

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

, Réunion and

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...

and

French India French India, formally the ( en, French Settlements in India), was a French colony comprising five geographically separated enclaves on the Indian Subcontinent that had initially been factories of the French East India Company. They were ''de ...

resisted the imposition of these laws. Bill Marshall, Professor of Comparative Cultural Studies at the

University of Stirling The University of Stirling (, gd, Oilthigh Shruighlea (abbreviated as Stir or Shruiglea, in post-nominals) is a public university in Stirling, Scotland, founded by royal charter in 1967. It is located in the Central Belt of Scotland, built w ...

wrote of French Guiana's origins: '' Île du Diable'' (Devil's Island) was the site of a small prison facility, part of a larger penal system by the same name, which consisted of prisons on three islands and three larger prisons on the mainland. This was operated from 1852 to 1953. In addition, in the late nineteenth century, France began requiring forced residencies by prisoners who survived their hard labour. A Portuguese-British naval squadron took French Guiana for the

Portuguese Empire The Portuguese Empire ( pt, Império Português), also known as the Portuguese Overseas (''Ultramar Português'') or the Portuguese Colonial Empire (''Império Colonial Português''), was composed of the overseas colonies, factories, and the l ...

in 1809. It was returned to France with the signing of the

Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France: Treaties 1200s and 1300s * Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade * Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France * Trea ...

in 1814. Though Portugal returned the region to France, it kept a military presence until 1817. After French Guiana was established as a penal colony, officials sometimes used convicts to catch butterflies. The sentences of the convicts were often long, and the prospect of employment very weak, so the convicts caught butterflies to sell in the international market, both for scientific purposes as well as general collecting. A border dispute with Brazil arose in the late 19th century over a vast area of jungle, resulting in the short-lived, pro-French, independent state of

Counani The Republic of Independent Guiana (french: République de la Guyane indépendante) commonly referred to by the name of the capital Counani (rendered "Cunani" in Portuguese by the Brazilians), was a short-lived unrecognized state in South America ...

in the disputed territory. There was some fighting among settlers. The dispute was resolved largely in favour of Brazil by the

arbitration Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) that resolves disputes outside the judiciary courts. The dispute will be decided by one or more persons (the 'arbitrators', 'arbiters' or 'arbitral tribunal'), which renders the ' ...

of the Swiss government. The territory of

Inini Inini was an inland territory of French Guiana, administered separately between 6 June 1930 and 19 March 1946, after which all of French Guiana became a department of France. The territory remained governed as a special entity, until 17 March 19 ...

consisted of most of the interior of French Guiana when it was created in 1930. It was abolished in 1946, the year that French Guiana as a whole was formally established as an

overseas department The overseas departments and regions of France (french: départements et régions d'outre-mer, ; ''DROM'') are departments of France that are outside metropolitan France, the European part of France. They have exactly the same status as mainlan ...

of France. In 1936,

Félix Éboué Adolphe Sylvestre Félix Éboué (; 26 December 1884 – 17 May 1944) was a French Guiana, French French colonial empires, colonial administrator and Free French Forces, Free French leader. He was the first black French man appointed to a hig ...

from Cayenne became the first black man to serve as governor in a French colony. Straatbeeld in Frans Guyana, NG-2008-37-38

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and the fall of France to Nazi German forces, French Guiana became part of

Vichy France Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...

. Guiana officially rallied to

Free France Free France (french: France Libre) was a political entity that claimed to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third Republic. Led by French general , Free France was established as a government-in-exile ...

on 16 March 1943. It abandoned its colony status and once again became a French

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

on 19 March 1946. Following the French withdrawal from Vietnam in the 1950s and subsequent warfare conducted in the region by the United States, France helped resettle several hundred Hmong refugees from Laos to French Guiana during the 1970s and 80s, who were fleeing displacement after the communist takeover of Laos by

Pathet Lao The Pathet Lao ( lo, ປະເທດລາວ, translit=Pa thēt Lāo, translation=Lao Nation), officially the Lao People's Liberation Army, was a communist political movement and organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The gro ...

in 1975. In the late 1980s, more than 10,000

se refugees, mostly

Maroons Maroons are descendants of African diaspora in the Americas, Africans in the Americas who escaped from slavery and formed their own settlements. They often mixed with indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous peoples, eventually ethnogenesi ...

, arrived in French Guiana, fleeing the Surinamese Civil War. More recently, French Guiana has received large numbers of Brazilian and Haitian

economic migrant An economic migrant is someone who emigrates from one region to another, including crossing international borders, seeking an improved standard of living, because the conditions or job opportunities in the migrant's own region are insufficient. Th ...

s. Illegal and ecologically destructive

gold mining Gold mining is the extraction of gold resources by mining. Historically, mining gold from alluvial deposits used manual separation processes, such as gold panning. However, with the expansion of gold mining to ores that are not on the surface ...

by Brazilian is a chronic issue in the remote interior rain forest of French Guiana. The region still faces such problems as illegal immigration, poorer infrastructure than mainland France, higher costs of living, higher levels of crime and more common social unrest. In 1964, French president

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

decided to construct a space-travel base in French Guiana. It was intended to replace the Sahara base in

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

and stimulate economic growth in French Guiana. The department was considered suitable for the purpose because it is near the

equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...

and has extensive access to the ocean as a buffer zone. The

, located a short distance along the coast from

Kourou Kourou () is a commune in French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France in South America. Kourou is famous for being the location of the Guiana Space Centre, the main spaceport of France and the European Space Agency (ESA). It i ...

, has grown considerably since the initial launches of the Véronique rockets. It is now part of the European space industry and has had commercial success with such launches as the

Ariane 4 The Ariane 4 was a European expendable space launch system, developed by the ''Centre national d'études spatiales'' (CNES), the French space agency, for the European Space Agency (ESA). It was manufactured by ArianeGroup and marketed by Arian ...

Ariane 5 Ariane 5 is a European heavy-lift space launch vehicle developed and operated by Arianespace for the European Space Agency (ESA). It is launched from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in French Guiana. It has been used to deliver payloads int ...

and

Ariane flight VA256 Ariane flight VA256 was an Ariane 5 rocket flight that launched the James Webb Space Telescope into space on 25 December 2021. It was 2021's final Ariane flight, its most valuable payload to date, and the Ariane mission. The launch was describ ...

which launched the

James Webb Space Telescope The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space telescope which conducts infrared astronomy. As the largest optical telescope in space, its high resolution and sensitivity allow it to view objects too old, distant, or faint for the Hubble Spa ...

into space. The Guianese General Council officially adopted a

departmental ''Departmental'' is a 1980 Australian TV movie based on a play by Mervyn Rutherford. It was part of the ABC's Australian Theatre Festival.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p43 Reviews were poor ...

flag in 2010. In a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

that same year, French Guiana voted against autonomy. On 20 March 2017, French Guianese workers began going on strike and demonstrating for more resources and infrastructure. 28 March 2017 was the day of the largest demonstration ever held in French Guiana. French Guiana has been severely affected by the

COVID-19 outbreak The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

, with more than 1% of French Guianese testing positive by the end of June 2020.

Geography

French Guiana lies between latitudes 2° and 6° N, and longitudes 51° and 55° W. It consists of two main geographical regions: a coastal strip where the majority of the people live, and dense, near-inaccessible

which gradually rises to the modest peaks of the

Tumuc-Humac mountains The Tumuk Humak Mountains ( nl, Toemoek-Hoemakgebergte, pt, Serra do Tumucumaque, french: Monts Tumuc Humac) are a mountain range in South America, stretching about east–west in the border area between Brazil in the south and Suriname and F ...

along the Brazilian frontier. French Guiana's highest peak is Bellevue de l'Inini in

Maripasoula Maripasoula, previously named Upper Maroni, is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. With a land area of , Maripasoula is the largest commune of France. Geography The Lawa and Maroni ...

(). Other mountains include

Mont Itoupé Mont Itoupé (also Sommet Tabulaire) is a 826 metres high mountain on the border of the Camopi and Maripasoula communes in French Guiana, France. It is the second highest mountain in French Guiana after Bellevue de l'Inini. The mountain is locat ...

(),

Cottica Mountain Cottica Mountain (also Kotika Mountain. French: ''Montagne Cottica''. Aluku: ''Lebi Dotsi'') is a 744 metres high mountain near the Lawa River in the commune of Papaichton in French Guiana, France. Overview Cottica Mountain is close to the Su ...

(), Pic Coudreau (), and Kaw Mountain (). Several small islands are found off the coast: the three

Salvation's Islands The Salvation Islands (french: Îles du Salut, so called because the missionaries went there to escape plague on the mainland; sometimes mistakenly called Safety Islands) are a group of small islands of volcanic origin about off the coast of Fre ...

which include

Devil's Island The penal colony of Cayenne ( French: ''Bagne de Cayenne''), commonly known as Devil's Island (''Île du Diable''), was a French penal colony that operated for 100 years, from 1852 to 1952, and officially closed in 1953 in the Salvation Islands ...

, and the isolated

Îles du Connétable The Îles du Connétable (Constable Islands) are two islands (Grand Connétable and Petit Connétable) in French Guiana, France. The islands are located 18 kilometres from the estuary of the Approuague River, and are part of the commune of Régina ...

bird sanctuary further along the coast towards Brazil. The

Petit-Saut Dam The Petit-Saut Dam is a gravity dam on the Sinnamary River about south of Sinnamary in French Guiana. The primary purpose of the dam is to produce hydroelectric power and it supports a 116 MW power station. Construction on the dam and power sta ...

, a

hydroelectric dam Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

in the north of French Guiana forms an

artificial lake A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

and provides

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other Renewabl ...

. There are many rivers in French Guiana, including the Waki River. , the Amazonian forest, located in the most remote part of the department, is protected as the

, one of the ten

national parks of France The national parks of France are a system of eleven national parks throughout metropolitan France and its overseas departments, coordinated by National Parks of France ( French: ''Parcs nationaux de France'') within the French Office for Biodivers ...

. The territory of the park covers some upon the

communes An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, religious, ...

Camopi Camopi is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. Camopi is mainly inhabited by Amerindians of the Wayampi and Teko tribes. History In 1738, a Jesuit mission opened on the river ...

Papaïchton Papaichton (unofficial spelling Papaïchton with a trema) is a commune in the overseas region and department of French Guiana. The village lies on the shores of the Lawa River. Papaichton is served by the Maripasoula Airport. The village whi ...

Saint-Élie Saint-Élie is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France in South America. In 1930, Saint-Élie became capital of the Inini territory. From 1953 onward, the commune was called Centre. In 1969, it was renamed to Sai ...

and Saül.

Climate

French Guiana has an

equatorial climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeas ...

predominant. Located within six degrees of the

Equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...

and rising only to modest elevations, French Guiana is hot and oppressively humid all year round. During most of the year, rainfall across the country is heavy due to the presence of the

Intertropical Convergence Zone The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ ), known by sailors as the doldrums or the calms because of its monotonous windless weather, is the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge. It encircles Earth near the thermal e ...

and its powerful thunderstorm cells. In most parts of French Guiana, rainfall is always heavy especially from December to July – typically over can be expected each month during this period throughout the department. Between August and November, the eastern half experiences a warm

dry season The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...

with rainfall below and average high temperatures above occurring in September and October, causing eastern French Guiana to be classified as a

tropical monsoon climate An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

''Am''); Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni in the west has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southea ...

(''Af'').

Environment

Parc amazonien de Guyane, une balade à Saül

French Guiana is home to many different

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...

tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equatori ...

s, coastal

mangroves A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in several ...

, savannahs,

inselberg An inselberg or monadnock () is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. In Southern Africa a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie, a ...

s and many types of

wetlands A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

. It lies within three ecoregions:

Guayanan Highlands moist forests The Guayanan Highlands moist forests (NT0124) is an ecoregion in the south of Venezuela and the north of Brazil and in Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana. It is in the Amazon biome. It encompasses an upland region with diverse fauna and flora, which ...

Guianan moist forests The Guianan moist forests (NT0125) is an ecoregion in the east of Venezuela, north of Brazil and the Guyanas (Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana). It is in the Amazon biome. The climate is hot and humid, with two rainy seasons each year. As of 1996 ...

, and

Guianan mangroves The Guianan mangroves (NT1411) is a coastal ecoregion of southeastern Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and Brazil. The mangroves provide an important habitat for migrating birds that winter in the area. Large areas are intact, although t ...

. French Guiana has a high level of

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

of both

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...

. This is due to the presence of

old-growth forests An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

(i.e., ancient/primary forests), which are

biodiversity hotspot A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region with significant levels of biodiversity that is threatened by human habitation. Norman Myers wrote about the concept in two articles in ''The Environmentalist'' in 1988 and 1990, after which the co ...

s. The

s of French Guiana provide shelter for many species during dry periods and terrestrial glaciation. These forests are protected by a national park (the

), seven additional

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

s, and 17

protected Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

sites. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

(IUCN) and the

(EU) have recommended special efforts to protect these areas. Following the Grenelle Environment Round Table of 2007, the Grenelle Law II was proposed in 2009, under law number 2010–788. Article 49 of the law proposed the creation of a single organization responsible for environmental conservation in French Guiana. Article 64 proposes a "departmental plan of mining orientation" for French Guiana, which would promote mining (specifically of gold) that is compatible with requirements for environmental protection. The coastal environment along the RN1 has historically experienced the most changes, but development is occurring locally along the RN2, and also in western French Guiana due to gold mining. Psophia crepitansPCCA20051227-1968B

5,500 plant species have been recorded, including more than a thousand trees, along with 700 species of birds, 177 species of mammals, over 500 species of fish including 45% of which are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

and 109 species of

amphibian Amphibians are tetrapod, four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the Class (biology), class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terres ...

s. French Guiana's high biodiversity is similar to that of other regions with tropical rainforests, such as the Brazilian Amazon,

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...

and

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

. Environmental threats include

habitat fragmentation Habitat fragmentation describes the emergence of discontinuities (fragmentation) in an organism's preferred environment (habitat), causing population fragmentation and ecosystem decay. Causes of habitat fragmentation include geological processes ...

from roads, which remains very limited compared to other forests of South America; immediate and deferred impacts of

EDF EDF may refer to: Organisations * Eclaireurs de France, a French Scouting association * Education for Development Foundation, a Thai charity * Électricité de France, a French energy company ** EDF Energy, their British subsidiary ** EDF Luminus, ...

;

; poor control of hunting and

poaching Poaching has been defined as the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights. Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set a ...

, facilitated by the creation of many tracks; and the introduction of

all-terrain vehicle An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike, or simply a quad, as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI); is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, with a seat that is stra ...

s. Logging remains moderate due to the lack of roads, difficult climate, and difficult terrain. The Forest Code of French Guiana was modified by ordinance on 28 July 2005. Logging concessions or free transfers are sometimes granted by local authorities to persons traditionally deriving their livelihood from the forest. The beaches of the

Amana Nature Reserve The Amana Nature Reserve ( French: ''Réserve naturelle nationale de l'Amana'') is a nature reserve in French Guiana, France. It has been protected, because it is one of the world's largest leatherback turtle nesting site. It is part of the commun ...

are an exceptional marine turtle nesting site. This is one of the largest worldwide for the

leatherback turtle The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to and weights ...

Agriculture

French Guiana has some of the poorest soils in the world. The soil is low in nutrients (e.g.,

nitrogen Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at se ...

potassium Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosphe ...

) and

organic matter Organic matter, organic material, or natural organic matter refers to the large source of carbon-based compounds found within natural and engineered, terrestrial, and aquatic environments. It is matter composed of organic compounds that have c ...

Soil acidity Soil pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity (alkalinity) of a soil. Soil pH is a key characteristic that can be used to make informative analysis both qualitative and quantitatively regarding soil characteristics. pH is defined as the neg ...

is another cause of the poor soils, and it requires farmers to add lime to their fields. The soil characteristics have led to the use of

slash and burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed vegeta ...

agriculture. The resulting ashes elevate soil pH (i.e., lower soil acidity), and contribute

minerals In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2 ...

and other nutrients to the soil. Sites of

Terra preta ''Terra preta'' (, locally , literally "black soil" in Portuguese) is a type of very dark, fertile anthropogenic soil ( anthrosol) found in the Amazon Basin. It is also known as "Amazonian dark earth" or "Indian black earth". In Portuguese its ful ...

(

anthropogenic Anthropogenic ("human" + "generating") is an adjective that may refer to: * Anthropogeny, the study of the origins of humanity Counterintuitively, anthropogenic may also refer to things that have been generated by humans, as follows: * Human im ...

soils) have been discovered in French Guiana, particularly near the border with Brazil. Research is being actively pursued in multiple fields to determine how these enriched soils were historically created, and how this can be done in modern times.

Economy

As a part of France, French Guiana is part of the

and the

Eurozone The euro area, commonly called eurozone (EZ), is a currency union of 19 member states of the European Union (EU) that have adopted the euro (€) as their primary currency and sole legal tender, and have thus fully implemented EMU policies ...

; its currency is the

. The country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for French Guiana is

.gf .gf is the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for 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 ...

, but

.fr .fr is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) in the Domain Name System of the Internet for France. It is administered by AFNIC. The domain includes all individuals and organizations registered at the Association française pour le ...

is generally used instead. In 2019, the GDP of French Guiana at market exchange rates was US$4.93 billion (€4.41 billion), ranking as the 2nd largest economy in the

Guianas The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

after

(which discovered large oil fields in 2015 and 2018), and the 12th largest in South America. From the 1960s to the 2000s, French Guiana experienced strong economic growth, fueled by the development of France's

(established in French Guiana in 1964 as the independence of

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

in 1962 led to the closure of France's space center in the Algerian Sahara) and by high population growth which stimulated domestic consumption. French Guiana's economy did not suffer from the

Global Financial Crisis of 2008 Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

: the GDP grew by an average of +3.4% per year in

real terms In economics, nominal value is measured in terms of money, whereas real value is measured against goods or services. A real value is one which has been adjusted for inflation, enabling comparison of quantities as if the prices of goods had not c ...

from 2002 to 2012, slightly faster than the rapidly growing population, which allowed French Guiana to catch up somewhat with the rest of France in terms of standards of living. The GDP per capita rose from 48.0% of

metropolitan France Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole''), also known as European France (french: Territoire européen de la France) is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European ...

's level in 2000 to 48.5% of metropolitan France in 2012. Since 2013, however, French Guiana's economic growth has been uneven, and more subdued. From 2013 to 2019, the economy grew by an average of only +1.2% in real terms. French Guiana experienced a

recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...

of -0.8% in 2014, and social unrest in 2017 led to almost no economic growth that year. Economic growth recovered at +3.0% in 2018, but was again almost null (+0.2%) in 2019. As a result, the GDP per capita has remained stagnant in nominal terms since 2013, and has declined relative to metropolitan France's. In 2019, the

GDP per capita Lists of countries by GDP per capita list the countries in the world by their gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. The lists may be based on nominal or purchasing power parity GDP. Gross national income (GNI) per capita accounts for inflows ...

of French Guiana at market exchange rates, not at PPP, was US$17,375 (€15,521), only 42.3% of

's average GDP per capita that year, and 50.3% of the metropolitan French regions outside the

Paris Region Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. French Guiana was affected by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

in 2020, leading to a recession of -2.7% that year according to provisional estimates, moderate compared to the

COVID-19 recession The COVID-19 recession, also referred to as the Great Lockdown, is a global recession, global economic recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The recession began in most countries in February 2020. After a year of global economic slowdown ...

in metropolitan France (-7.9% in 2020). French Guiana is heavily dependent on mainland France for subsidies, trade, and goods. The main traditional industries are fishing (accounting for 5% of exports in 2012), gold mining (accounting for 32% of exports in 2012) and timber (accounting for 1% of exports in 2012). In addition, the

has played a significant role in the local economy since it was established in

in 1964: it accounted directly and indirectly for 16% of French Guiana's GDP in 2002 (down from 26% in 1994, as the French Guianese economy is becoming increasingly diversified). The Guiana Space Centre employed 1,659 people in 2012. There is very little manufacturing. Agriculture is largely undeveloped and is mainly confined to the area near the coast and along the

Maroni 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 ...

. Sugar and bananas were traditionally two of the main

cash crop A cash crop or profit crop is an Agriculture, agricultural crop which is grown to sell for profit. It is typically purchased by parties separate from a farm. The term is used to differentiate marketed crops from staple crop (or "subsistence crop") ...

s grown for export but have almost completely disappeared. Today they have been replaced by livestock raising (essentially beef cattle and pigs) in the coastal savannas between

and the second-largest town,

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 ...

, and

market gardening A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumers and restaurants. The diversity of crops grown on a small area of land, typically from under to ...

(fruits and vegetables) developed by the

Hmong Hmong may refer to: * Hmong people, an ethnic group living mainly in Southwest China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand * Hmong cuisine * Hmong customs and culture ** Hmong music ** Hmong textile art * Hmong language, a continuum of closely related to ...

communities settled in French Guiana in the 1970s, both destined to the local market. A thriving rice production, developed on

polder A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a lake or the seabed # Flood plains s ...

s near

Mana According to Melanesian and Polynesian mythology, ''mana'' is a supernatural force that permeates the universe. Anyone or anything can have ''mana''. They believed it to be a cultivation or possession of energy and power, rather than being a ...

from the early 1980s to the late 2000s, has almost completely disappeared since 2011 due to marine erosion and new EU plant health rules which forbid the use of many pesticides and fertilizers. Tourism, especially

eco-tourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds ...

, is growing. Unemployment has been persistently high in the last few decades, standing between 17% and 24%. In recent years, the unemployment rate has declined from a peak of 23.0% in 2016 to 19.3% in 2019.

Demographics

Historical population

French Guiana experienced a long period of demographic stagnation during the days of the

and

penal colonies (19th century and first half of the 20th century), when, with the exception of a brief

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...

in the 1900s and 1910s, it suffered from a bad reputation due to its association with penal colonies and bad sanitary conditions (

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

and

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

in particular). Population started to grow tremendously from the 1950s onwards with the improvement of sanitary conditions (yellow fever and malaria eradication campaigns started in 1949) and the establishment of the

in 1964. Population growth has been fueled both by high birth rates and large arrivals of immigrants (from

, to man the public administrations and the space center, as well as from neighboring countries, in particular

and

). Arrivals of Surinamese refugees reached record levels in the 1980s during 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 ...

, resulting in the highest population growth rate in French Guiana's history, recorded between the 1982 and 1990 censuses (+5.8% per year). In the 21st century, the birth rate has remained high, and new arrivals of migrants seeking asylum (in particular from

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

) have kept population growth above 2% per year in the 2010s. French Guiana's population reached 294,436 in 2022 (Jan. estimate), more than 10 times the population it had in 1954.

Major urban areas

The most populous

urban unit In France, an urban unit (''fr: "unité urbaine"'') is a statistical area defined by INSEE, the French national statistics office, for the measurement of contiguously built-up areas. According to the INSEE definition , an "unité urbaine" is a ...

(agglomeration) is

, which covers 3 communes (Cayenne,

Matoury Matoury is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. Matoury is a southern suburb of Cayenne, the ''préfecture'' and largest city of French Guiana. Cayenne – Félix Eboué Airport, th ...

and

Remire-Montjoly Remire-Montjoly (often unofficially spelled Rémire-Montjoly) is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located on the northeast coast of South America. Remire-Montjoly is a suburb of Cayenne, the capital ''préf ...

). The three largest urban units are:

Ethnic groups

French Guiana's population, most of whom live along the coast, is substantially ethnically diverse. At the 2018 census, 56.6% of the inhabitants of French Guiana were born in French Guiana, 8.9% were born in

, 2.8% were born in the French

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

departments and collectivities (

and

etc.), and 31.5% were born in foreign countries (primarily

, Brazil, and

). Estimates of the percentages of French Guiana ethnic composition are difficult to produce due to the presence of a large proportion of immigrants. People of African descent are the largest ethnic group, though estimates vary as to the exact percentage, depending upon whether the large Haitian community is included as well. Generally, the Creole population is judged to be about 60–70% of the total population if Haitians (comprising roughly one-third of Creoles) are included, and 30–50% otherwise. There are also smaller groups from various

islands, mainly Martinique, Guadeloupe, and

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindian ...

. Approximately 41,000 people or 14% of the population is of European ancestry. The vast majority of these are of French ancestry, though there are also people of Spanish and

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

ancestry. The main Asian communities are the

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 ...

(about 3–4%, primarily from

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

and

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...

) and

from

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

(1–2%). Other groups from Asia include

East Indians The East Indians, also called East Indian Catholics or Bombay East Indians, are an ethno-religious Indian Christian community native to the Seven Islands of Bombay and the neighbouring Mumbai Metropolitan Area of the Konkan Division. Histo ...

, Lebanese and

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

. The main groups living in the interior are the

who are of African descent, and

Amerindians The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Ame ...

. The Maroons, descendants of escaped African slaves, live primarily along the

. The main Maroon groups are the Saramaca, Aucan (both of whom also live in

), and Boni (

Aluku The Aluku are a Bushinengue ethnic group living mainly on the riverbank in Maripasoula in southwest French Guiana. The group are sometimes called Boni, referring to the 18th-century leader, Bokilifu Boni. History The Aluku are an ethnic gro ...

). The main Amerindian groups (forming about 3–4% of the population) are the

, Carib, Emerillon (now called the Teko),

(now called the

Kaliña 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, ...

and

. As of the late 1990s, there was evidence of an uncontacted group of Wayampi.

Immigration

In recent years, French Guiana has seen an increase in Syrian refugees trying to escape the Syrian Civil War. For them and other groups of migrants, the majority arriving from Latin American and Middle Eastern countries (especially

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

, and

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

), its status as French territory makes it a "gateway" to Europe. Many live in crowded

refugee camps A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced peo ...

with poor conditions and little protection from the elements. Neither local authorities nor the French government have made significant efforts to help the situation.

Religion

The dominant religion of French Guiana is

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

; the Maroons and some Amerindian peoples maintain their own religions. The Hmong people are also largely Catholic owing to the influence of missionaries who helped bring them to French Guiana. Guianan Catholics are part of the

Diocese of Cayenne The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cayenne (Latin: ''Dioecesis Caiennensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Cayenne'') (erected 1651, as the Prefecture Apostolic of French Guiana-Cayenne) is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Fort-de-France. It was e ...

Fertility

The

total fertility rate The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if: # she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs) through her lifetime # she were t ...

in French Guiana has remained high and is today considerably higher than that of

, as well as most of the other

French overseas departments The overseas departments and regions of France (french: départements et régions d'outre-mer, ; ''DROM'') are departments of France that are outside metropolitan France, the European part of France. They have exactly the same status as mainlan ...

. It is largely responsible for the rapid population growth of French Guiana.

Languages

The official language of French Guiana is French, and it is the predominant language of the department, spoken by most residents as a first or second language. In addition, a number of other local languages exist. Regional languages include

(not to be confused with

Guyanese Creole Guyanese English Creole (''Creolese'' by its speakers or simply Guyanese) is an English-based creole language spoken by the Guyanese people. Linguistically, it is similar to other English dialects of the Caribbean region, based on 19th-century ...

), six

Amerindian languages Over a thousand indigenous languages are spoken by the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. These languages cannot all be demonstrated to be related to each other and are classified into a hundred or so language families (including a large numbe ...

(

, Palijur, Kali'na,

, Emerillon), four

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 ...

creole languages (

Saramaka The Saramaka, Saamaka or Saramacca are one of six Maroon peoples (formerly called "Bush Negroes") in the Republic of Suriname and one of the Maroon peoples in French Guiana. In 2007, the Saramaka won a ruling by the Inter-American Court of Hum ...

Paramaccan The Paramaccan or Paramaka ( French: Pamak) are a Maroon tribe living in the forested interior of Suriname, mainly in the Paramacca resort, and the western border area of French Guiana. The Paramaccan signed a peace treaty in 1872 granting the ...

, Ndyuka), as well as Hmong Njua. Other languages spoken include

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

Haitian Creole Haitian Creole (; ht, kreyòl ayisyen, links=no, ; french: créole haïtien, links=no, ), commonly referred to as simply ''Creole'', or ''Kreyòl'' in the Creole language, is a French-based creole language spoken by 10–12million people wor ...

and Spanish.

Politics

French Guiana, as part of France, forms part of the

– the largest landmass for an area outside of Europe (since

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

left the European Community in 1985), with one of the longest EU external boundaries. It is one of only three European Union territories outside Europe that is not an island (the others being the Spanish Autonomous Cities in Africa,

Ceuta Ceuta (, , ; ar, سَبْتَة, Sabtah) is a Spanish autonomous city on the north coast of Africa. Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of several Spanish territorie ...

and

Melilla Melilla ( , ; ; rif, Mřič ; ar, مليلية ) is an autonomous city of Spain located in north Africa. It lies on the eastern side of the Cape Three Forks, bordering Morocco and facing the Mediterranean Sea. It has an area of . It was par ...

). As an integral part of France, its

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

is the

president of the French Republic The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is ...

, and its head of government is the

prime minister of France The prime minister of France (french: link=no, Premier ministre français), officially the prime minister of the French Republic, is the head of government of the French Republic and the leader of the Council of Ministers. The prime minister ...

. The French government and its agencies have responsibility for a wide range of issues that are reserved to the national executive power, such as defense and external relations. Cayenne hôtel de ville 2013

The president of France appoints a

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

(resident at the prefecture building in Cayenne) as his representative to head the local government of French Guiana. There is one elected, local executive body, the Assemblée de Guyane. French Guiana sends two

deputies A legislator (also known as a deputy or lawmaker) is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people of the state. Legislatures may be supra-national (for ex ...

to the

French National Assembly The National Assembly (french: link=no, italics=set, Assemblée nationale; ) is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known a ...

, one representing the

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 ...

(municipality) of

and the commune of

Macouria Macouria is a commune of French Guiana located midway between Cayenne and Kourou, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. The seat of the commune is the settlement of Tonate, and so the commune is also known unoff ...

, and the other representing the rest of French Guiana. This latter constituency is the largest in the French Republic by land area. French Guiana also sends two senators to the

French Senate The Senate (french: Sénat, ) is the upper house of the French Parliament, with the lower house being the National Assembly (France), National Assembly, the two houses constituting the legislature of France. The French Senate is made up of 34 ...

. The first woman to be elected to the Senate was

Marie-Laure Phinéra-Horth Marie-Laure Phinera-Horth (born 28 June 1957) is a French politician, who was the first woman from French Guiana to be appointed to the French Senate in 2020. Prior to her role as a senator, she was mayor of Cayenne from 2010. Biography Phinér ...

in 2020. The

Guianese Socialist Party The Guianese Socialist Party (french: Parti socialiste guyanais, PSG) is a political party in the French '' overseas région'' of French Guiana, in South America. History It was founded in 1956 by Justin Catayée, beforehand the founder of the ...

dominated politics in French Guiana until 2010. A chronic issue affecting French Guiana is the influx of illegal immigrants and clandestine

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 ...

from Brazil and

. The border between the department and Suriname, the

, flows through rain forest and is difficult for the

Gendarmerie Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (literally, ...

and the

French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...

to patrol. There have been several phases launched by the French government to combat illegal gold mining in French Guiana, beginning with Operation Anaconda beginning in 2003, followed by Operation Harpie in 2008 and 2009 and Operation Harpie Reinforce in 2010. Colonel François Müller, the commander of French Guiana's gendarmes, believes these operations have been successful. However, after each operation ends, Brazilian miners, , return. Soon after Operation Harpie Reinforce began, an altercation took place between French authorities and Brazilian miners. On 12 March 2010 a team of French soldiers and border police were attacked while returning from a successful operation, during which "the soldiers had arrested 15 miners, confiscated three boats, and seized 617 grams of gold... currently worth about $22,317". Garimpeiros returned to retrieve their lost loot and colleagues. The soldiers fired warning shots and rubber "flash balls", but the miners managed to retake one of their boats and about 500 grams of gold. "The violent reaction by the garimpeiros can be explained by the exceptional take of 617 grams of gold, about 20 percent of the quantity seized in 2009 during the battle against

illegal mining Illegal mining is mining activity that is undertaken without state permission, in particular in absence of land rights, mining licenses, and exploration or mineral transportation permits. Illegal mining can be a subsistence activity, as is the cas ...

", said Phillipe Duporge, the director of French Guiana's border police, at a press conference the next day.

Administrative divisions

French Guiana is divided into 3

arrondissements An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands. Europe France The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissements'', ...

and 22

Transport

The transportation system in French Guiana is deficient compared to

, being concentrated in the coastal zone of the territory, while the inland municipalities are poorly connected and often difficult to access.

Road system

French Guiana has about 2,200 km of

roads A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

, which are divided into: * National roads (440 km), divided into RN1, RN2, RN3 and RN4 (the last two downgraded to departmental roads during Raffarin's tenure), which connect the main coastal towns, forming a corridor that crosses the coastal strip from the border with Suriname to that of Brazil: RN1, completed in the 1990s, links

, crossing the municipalities of Macouria,

, Sinnamary (the stretch of road between Kourou and Sinnamary is locally called Route de l'espace, "space road") and Iracoubo, while RN2 runs from Cayenne to Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock, where it continues on BR-156 across the bridge over the Oyapock. Today, all rivers are crossed by road

bridges A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whic ...

, some of them quite long (e.g. the bridge over the Cayenne River is 1225 m long), whereas until 2004 (the year of completion and inauguration of the Approuague bridge) some rivers were still crossed by barges. Transport on national roads is restricted during the rainy season (from 48 to a maximum of 32 tons), while the maximum speed (monitored by the National Gendarmerie posts at Régina and Iracoubo, which are also in charge of controlling the possible flow of illegal traffic and irregular immigrants) is 90 km/h; * Departmental roads (408 km), subdivided into urban and rural departmental roads (rural roads), which serve the coastal Villages, 90% of which have no street lighting; * Communal roads or forest tracks (1. 311 km), most of which are closed to ordinary traffic and reserved for authorized personnel (employees of authorized mining or logging companies, forest rangers): the longest tracks are the Bélizon track in the commune of Saül (Guiana) (150 km), the Saint-Élie-diga track in Petit-Saut (26 km), the Coralie track (the oldest in the department, created to reach the Boulanger mine) and the Maripasoula-Papaïchton track. The communal roads are not usually paved and often go into the forest from the departmental roads; Despite the existence of numerous projects to upgrade and asphalt roads (such as the Bélizon road or the Apatou-Maripasoula-Saül axis), which are often opposed by environmental movements because of environmental fragmentation and problems for Amerindian and Maroon communities, several French Guiana municipalities (Ouanary, Camopi, Saül, Saint-Élie, Grand-Santi, Papaïchton, Maripasoula, Apatou) still do not have road access. Following a treaty between France and Brazil signed in July 2005, the

Oyapock River Bridge The Franco-Brazilian Binational Bridge spans the Oyapock River, linking the cities of Oiapoque in Amapá, Brazil and Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock in French Guiana, France. The bridge is cable-stayed, with two towers rising to a height of and a l ...

over the

Oyapock River The Oyapock or Oiapoque (; ; ) is a long river in South America that forms most of the border between the France, French Overseas departments of France, overseas department of French Guiana and the Brazilian States of Brazil, state of Amapá. ...

was built and completed in 2011, becoming the first land crossing ever between French Guiana and the rest of the world (there exists no other bridge crossing the Oyapock River, and no bridge crossing the

marking the border with Suriname, although there is a ferry crossing to

Albina, Suriname Albina is a town in eastern Suriname, and is capital of the Marowijne District. The town lies on the west bank of the Marowijne river (Maroni river), which forms the border with French Guiana, directly opposite the French Guianan town of Saint-La ...

). The bridge was officially opened on 18 March 2017, however the border post construction on the Brazilian side caused additional delays. As of 2020, it possible to drive uninterrupted from Cayenne to

Macapá Macapá () is a city in Brazil with a population of 512,902 (2020 estimation). It is the capital of Amapá state in the country's North Region. It is located on the northern channel of the Amazon River near its mouth on the Atlantic Ocean. The c ...

(on the

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

), the capital of the state of

in Brazil.

Railway system

At present, French Guiana does not have a railway system, with the exception of a small section in the Centre Spatial Guyanais used for the transport of components: when the territory was a

penal colony A penal colony or exile colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general population by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory. Although the term can be used to refer to ...

, there were some railroad lines built by the

prisoner A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

s themselves to connect the various baths with each other, the remains of which (now disused and mostly engulfed by the

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...

) are still visible in some areas. These lines include the section from Montsinéry-Tonnegrande to the so-called bagne des Annamites, the section from Saint-Élie to the Saut du Tigre

labor camp A labor camp (or labour camp, see spelling differences) or work camp is a detention facility where inmates are forced to engage in penal labor as a form of punishment. Labor camps have many common aspects with slavery and with prisons (especi ...

(now submerged by the artificial lake created by the Petit-Saut dam) and the section from Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni-Mana-Saint-Jean-du-Maroni.

Ports

Transportation by boat is quite widespread in French Guiana: among the most important Ports are the port of Dégrad-Des-Cannes, located at the mouth of the Mahury River, in the commune of Rémire-Montjoly, through which most of the imported or exported goods of the territory pass and where the local detachment of the ''

Marine nationale The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in th ...

'' is housed, and the port of Larivot, located in Matoury, where the Guyanese

fishing fleet A fishing fleet is an aggregate of commercial fishing vessels. The term may be used of all vessels operating out of a particular port, all vessels engaged in a particular type of fishing (as in the "tuna fishing fleet"), or all fishing vessels of ...

is concentrated. The port of Dégrad-Des-Cannes, built in 1969 to cope with the impossibility of the former port of Cayenne to decongest the growing maritime traffic, has a rather limited draft, and larger ships often prefer to dock at Ile du Salut to unload people and goods (which are then transported to the

mainland Mainland is defined as "relating to or forming the main part of a country or continent, not including the islands around it egardless of status under territorial jurisdiction by an entity" The term is often politically, economically and/or dem ...

by smaller ships) to avoid running aground. The port of Pariacabo in Kourou is home to the Colibri and Toucan ships, which carry components for Ariane missiles. The inland rivers are heavily traversed by canoes and other small boats, linking the villages on the Marowijne, Oyapock and Approuague Rivers, which often cannot be reached in any other way; the lake created by the Petit-Saut dam is also frequently crossed, although it is officially forbidden to cross the body of water. In the department, 460 km of aquatic environment are considered navigable.

Airports

French Guiana is served by

Cayenne – Félix Eboué Airport Cayenne – Félix Eboué Airport (french: link=no, Aéroport de Cayenne – Félix Eboué, ) is French Guiana's main international airport. It is located near the commune of Matoury, southwest of French Guiana's capital city of Cayenne. It is ...

, located in Matoury. There are also several

airstrips An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publi ...

in the department, located in Camopi, Maripasoula, Ouanary, Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock, Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni and Saül, for a total of eleven hubs (four paved and seven unpaved). From the main airport, there are two daily direct flights to Paris (Paris Orly airport, with an average flight time of about 8 hours and 25 minutes from French Guiana to the capital and 9 hours and 10 minutes vice-versa), offered by

Air France Air France (; formally ''Société Air France, S.A.''), stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. It is a subsidiary of the Air France–KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global air ...

and

Air Caraïbes Air Caraïbes () is a French airline based in the French West Indies, with its headquarters in Les Abymes in Guadeloupe. The airline's main base of operations is at Pointe-à-Pitre International Airport in Guadeloupe, with a focus city at Mar ...

, as well as other flights to

Fort-de-France Fort-de-France (, , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Fodfwans) is a Communes of France, commune and the capital city of Martinique, an overseas department and region of France located in the Caribbean. It is also one of the major cities in the ...

Pointe-à-Pitre Pointe-à-Pitre (; gcf, label=Guadeloupean Creole, Pwentapit, , or simply , ) is the second largest (most populous) city of Guadeloupe after Les Abymes. Guadeloupe is an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in the ...

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( , ; ht, Pòtoprens ) is the capital and most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 987,311 in 2015 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The metropolitan area is define ...

, Miami and Belém. The regional carrier Air Guyane Express also offers daily flights to Maripasoula and Saül, as well as more sporadic flights (mainly related to postal deliveries) to Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock and Camopi.

Public transportation

There is a public bus service that currently only covers the municipality of

and is run by the SMTC (Syndicat Mixte de Transport en Commun, now changed to Régie Communautaire des Transports – RCT) and consists of seven lines. For connections between the coastal towns (except Montsinéry-Tonnegrande), the "collective cab" (Taxis Co) method is quite widespread, which are minibuses with a capacity of about ten people that leave as soon as there is a certain number of users on board. In 2010, the general council reached an agreement with some of the operators of this service to make it at least partially public under the name of TIG (Transporte Interurbano de la Guiana), with fixed departure times and predefined stops. On the main rivers (Marowijne and Oyapock), there are pirogue services (called pirogues cabs), which go both to inland centers and across the border (such as Albina in Suriname or Oiapoque in Brazil).

Military, police and security forces

French Armed Forces

French military forces in Guiana number around 2,000 personnelJournal of Guyana RFO TV 18 August 2009 and include the following: Caserne Loubère (15477021260)

* The

9th Marine Infantry Regiment The 9th Marine Infantry Regiment (9e RIMa) is a infantry regiment of the Troupes de marine in the French Army, currently stationed at French Guiana. The troops are situated in the Cayenne district on the River Maroni, in the town of Saint-Jean ...

(9^e RIMa) in

, the Madeleine. * The

3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment The 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (french: 3e Régiment étranger d'infanterie, 3e REI) is an infantry regiment of the Foreign Legion in the French Army. The regiment is stationed in French Guiana. Its mission includes the protection of the C ...

(3^e REI) in

. * The RSMAG Regiment (Adapted Military Service) of French Guiana, located in

Saint-Jean-du-Maroni Saint-Jean-du-Maroni is a village in French Guiana, in the commune of Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni on the river Maroni. The village is mainly inhabited by Ndyuka Maroons. History Saint-Jean-du-Maroni was established in 1857 as a sub camp of the penal ...

, with a detachment in Cayenne. * Various detachments: ** 68 Air Transport Squadron which includes: five Puma helicopters, four Fennec helicopters and three Casa CN235 aircraft ** A platoon of the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

, based at the naval base of

Dégrad des Cannes Dégrad des Cannes is the main seaport for the French Overseas department of French Guiana, situated in the northern edge of South America and opening into the Caribbean. The seaport is located on the estuary of the Mahury River. Nearly all of ...

and operating two s: ''La Confiance'' and ''La Résolue''. One ''Engins de Débarquement Amphibie – Standards'' (EDA-S) landing craft is also to be delivered to naval forces based in French Guiana by 2025. The landing craft is to better support coastal and riverine operations in the territory. ** A detachment of the

Paris Fire Brigade The Paris Fire Brigade (french: Brigade des sapeurs-pompiers de Paris, BSPP) is a French Army unit which serves as the primary fire and rescue service for Paris, the city's inner suburbs and certain sites of national strategic importance. The ...

in Kourou, ensuring the protection of the

Gendarmerie and National Police

* Elements of the

National Gendarmerie The National Gendarmerie (french: Gendarmerie nationale, ) is one of two national law enforcement forces of France, along with the National Police. The Gendarmerie is a branch of the French Armed Forces placed under the jurisdiction of the Minis ...

(some 840 personnel) and the national police are deployed in French Guiana and are divided into 16 "brigades". These serve

, Cacao,

Régina Régina is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. With a land area of , it is the second-largest commune of France. The town is named after the first merchant who settled in the area. ...

Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock Saint-Georges (sometimes unofficially called Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock) is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. It lies on the Oyapock River (which forms the border with Brazil), opp ...

Sinnamary Sinnamary is a town and commune on the coast of French Guiana, between Kourou and Iracoubo. Sinnamary was the second France, French settlement founded in French Guiana: the town was founded in 1664. Sinnamary lies on the Sinnamary River and is ...

Iracoubo Iracoubo is a commune on the coast of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America]. Geography The settlement of Iracoubo, seat of the commune, is located between the settlement of Sinnamary and the ham ...

Apatou Apatou is a commune in French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France in South America. Apatou is home to Maroons of the Aluku, Paramacca, Ndyuka, and Saramaka tribes. History The town of Apatou was founded in 1882 as Moutendé. ...

Grand-Santi Grand-Santi is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. Most of the inhabitants are Ndyuka Maroons and Surinamese immigrants. History The commune was originally called Grand-Santi-Pa ...

and

. The National Gendarmerie include five mobile gendarmerie squadrons. ** The Maritime Gendarmerie operates the patrol boats ''Charente'' and ''Organabo'' in the territory, ''Charente'' having been deployed to the territory in 2022 to replace the previous boat ''Mahury'' which was no longer deemed serviceable.

Culture

Architecture

The local architecture is characterized by its Creole,

Amerindian The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Am ...

and Bushinenge influences. The main towns contain predominantly Creole-style architecture, with some Western-style buildings and forts. In the communes with the black maroon populations one can see houses of bushinengue styles. And the Amerindian communes are recognized for their pre-colonial type carbets. Most of these buildings were designed with local materials, such as wood from the Amazonian forests and bricks made on site. These local architectures blend with contemporary style buildings.

Festivities

Cayenne place de l'Esplanade durant le carnaval

The

Carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

is one of the major events in French Guiana. Considered the longest in the world, it takes place on afternoon of Sunday, between

Epiphany Epiphany may refer to: * Epiphany (feeling), an experience of sudden and striking insight Religion * Epiphany (holiday), a Christian holiday celebrating the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ ** Epiphany season, or Epiph ...

at the beginning of January and

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and falls on the first day of Lent (the six weeks of penitence before Easter). It is observed by Catholics in the Rom ...

in February or (month). Groups disguised according to the theme of the year parade around decorated floats to the rhythm of percussion and brass. The preparation of the groups starts months before the carnival. The groups parade in front of thousands of spectators who gather on the

sidewalks A sidewalk (North American English), pavement (British English), footpath in Australia, India, New Zealand and Ireland, or footway, is a path along the side of a street, highway, terminals. Usually constructed of concrete, pavers, brick, stone ...

and

bleachers Bleachers (North American English), or stands, are raised, tiered rows of benches found at sports fields and other spectator events. Stairways provide access to the horizontal rows of seats, often with every other step gaining access to a row ...

arranged for the occasion. Brazilian groups identical to those in the

Rio carnival ) , image = File:Desfile Portela 2014 (906185).jpg , caption = A float at Rio Carnival, 2014 , celebrations = Parades, parties, open-air performances , longtype = cultural, religious , type = christian , signi ...

are also appreciated for their rhythms and their alluring costumes. The Chinese community of Cayenne also participates in the

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, float (parade), floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually ce ...

s, bringing its characteristic touch,

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

s. At the start of the evening, the Touloulous, typical characters of the Guianan carnival, go to the dancings to participate in the famous paré-masked balls.

Cuisine

Plat typique de Guyane française, l'Atipa

Guianan cuisine French Guianan cuisine or Guianan cuisine is a mixture of Creole, Bushinengue, and indigenous cuisines, supplemented by influences from the cuisines of more recent immigrant groups. Common ingredients include cassava, smoked fish, and smoked chic ...

is rich in the different cultures that mix in French Guiana. Creole restaurants rub shoulders with Chinese restaurants in large cities such as

and

. The local culinary art originally brought together

Guianan Creole French Guianese Creole (Kriyòl; also called variously Guianan Creole, Guianese Creole in English and Créole guyanais or Guyanais in French) is a French-based creole language spoken in French Guiana, and to a lesser degree, in Suriname and ...

Bushinengue Surinamese Maroons (Marrons or Businenge, meaning ''black people of the forest'') are the descendants of enslaved Africans that escaped from the plantations and settled in the inland of Suriname (Dutch Guiana) and French Guiana. The Surinamese ...

and Native American cuisines. All of these cuisines have several ingredients in common: *

Manioc ''Manihot esculenta'', commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively cultivated a ...

; * Smoked meats and fish This southern Caribbean territory has many typical dishes, such as Awara broth, Creole galette, Dizé milé,

Countess Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility.L. G. Pine, Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty'' ...

, Cramanioc pudding, Kalawanng,

Couac Couac, also called 'kwak' in Guianese Creole, is flour made from cassava root, peeled, soaked in water, grated and drained to remove the poisonous cyanide it contains. Cassava roots are sold in markets as the kramangnok (cramanioc) for sweet v ...

gratin and salad, Fricasse of iguana or its famous Pimentade (fish or chicken

court-bouillon Court-bouillon or court bouillon (in Louisiana, pronounced ''coo-bee-yon'') is a quickly-cooked broth used for poaching other foods, most commonly fish or seafood. It is also sometimes used for poaching vegetables, eggs, sweetbreads, cockscombs ...

). Atipas are local fishes beloved by the French Guianese often prepared with coconut milk. At Easter, Guianan people eat a traditional dish called Awara broth. For weddings, locals traditionally eat Colombo, which is a type of curry that has become a staple of the French Guianese cuisine.

Literature

French Guiana literature includes all works written by local authors or persons related to French Guiana. It is expressed both in French and in

. Local literature is a literature closely related to that of the

French West Indies The French West Indies or French Antilles (french: Antilles françaises, ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy fwansez) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean: * The two overseas departments of: ** Guadeloupe, ...

: especially the

Caribbean islands Almost all of the Caribbean islands are in the Caribbean Sea, with only a few in inland lakes. The largest island is Cuba. Other sizable islands include Hispaniola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Trinidad and Tobago. Some of the smaller islands are re ...

and

. For some, it is an

Antillean The Antilles (; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy; es, Antillas; french: Antilles; nl, Antillen; ht, Antiy; pap, Antias; Jamaican Patois: ''Antiliiz'') is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mex ...

- Guyanese literature in relation to the themes addressed, which are mainly related to slavery and other social problems. Thus, this literature takes several forms. First, orality, because it is a characteristic element of Guianan literature, as in many countries of Black America. In this connection, we can consider tales,

Legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...

s, fables and, in another form, Novels. Nineteenth century French Guiana is marked by a weak presence of writers. At that time, writers only published a few scattered poems in local newspapers. Today, however, it is difficult to trace the writings of some French Guianan poets: Ho-A-Sim-Elosem, Munian, R. Octaville, etc. Two Guianan poets are the exception. According to Ndagano (1996), Ismaÿl Urbain and Fabien Flavien would be considered the first French Guianan poets. However, Alfred Parépou is a writer who marked his era with his work Atipa (1885). The period from 1900 to 1950 constitutes an important stage in local literature insofar as it gave birth to numerous writers who had a considerable impact, such as those of Negritude (Négritude). The Guianan of the 1950s and 1960s is notable for writing about the black cause. Serge Patient and Elie Stephenson did address this issue in their writings. Since 1970 different generations of writers have become aware of the black cause or

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

. Whether through their writings or their political activities, they take into account this painful period that had serious consequences on the local society and on the black world in general. For this

generation A generation refers to all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. It can also be described as, "the average period, generally considered to be about 20–⁠30 years, during which children are born and gr ...

Christiane Taubira Christiane Marie Taubira (; born 2 February 1952) is a French politician who served as Minister of Justice of France in the governments of Prime Ministers Jean-Marc Ayrault and Manuel Valls under President François Hollande from 2012 until 201 ...

remains the figurehead. Other writers are interested in other types of themes, such as regional nature, etc.

Sport

Sport in French Guiana dates back to long before the colonial period. Popularized since the 19th century, the first sports competition organized to commemorate 14 July was held in 1890. At that time, there were already physical activities favorable to the inhabitants of this Amazonian territory, but also sports coming from Europe, which favored the colonizers. There were foot races, donkey races, canoe races, bicycle races, tricycle races, nautical regattas in the ports, and traditional popular games. The most popular sport in French Guiana today is football, followed by basketball, cycling, swimming and handball, although there are some canoeing, judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, aikido, karate, fencing, horseback riding, rowing and volleyball clubs in the department. As a French Overseas department, Guiana is not a member of the

Pan American Sports Organization The Panam Sports (Formerly Pan American Sports Organization; es, link=no, Organización Deportiva Panamericana; pt, link=no, Organizacão Depórtiva Panamericana; french: Organisation Sportive PanAméricaine) is an international organization whi ...

; rather, athletes compete within the

French National Olympic and Sports Committee The French National Olympic and Sports Committee (french: Comité national olympique et sportif français, CNOSF) is the National Olympic Committee of France. It is responsible for France's participation in the Olympic Games, as well as for all ...

and are governed by the

Ligue d'Athlétisme de la Guyane The Ligue d'Athlétisme de la Guyane (LAG) is the governing body for the sport of athletics in French Guiana. Last president was Daniel Lapompe-Paironne. He was replaced by Gaëtan Tariaffe. As LAG is part of the Fédération française d ...

, a sub-unit of the

Fédération française d'athlétisme The French Athletics Federation (french: Fédération française d'athlétisme - ''FFA''), is the governing body for the sport of athletics in France. History FFA is the heir to the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques (USFSA), ...

. Starting in 1960, the

Tour of Guiana The Tour of Guiana (French: Tour de Guyane), formerly known as "Le Tour du Littoral", is an annual multiple stage bicycle race primarily held in Guiana every year, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. It takes place in ...

, an annual multiple-stage

bicycle race "Bicycle Race" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was released on their 1978 album ''Jazz'' and written by Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury. It was released as a double A-side single together with the song "Fat Bottomed Girls", rea ...

, is held.

Football

The territory has its own local team, the French Guiana football team. A regional football league, the French Guiana Football League, was established in October 1962. It is currently not affiliated to

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

, but has been affiliated to the FFF since 27 April 1963 and has been an associate member of CONCACAF (North, Central American and Caribbean League) since 1978. In April 2013, the LFG became a full member of CONCACAF. The French Guiana Football Team, also known as Yana Dòkò, is a selection of the best local players under the auspices of the Guiana Football League. It is not recognized by FIFA, but participates in CONCACAF competitions. It played its first match against Dutch Guiana (now

) in 1936, losing 1 to 3. It had its biggest victory on 26 September 2012 against

St. Pierre and Miquelon Saint Pierre and Miquelon (), officially the Territorial Collectivity of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (french: link=no, Collectivité territoriale de Saint-Pierre et Miquelon ), is a self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France in t ...

(11 to 1) and its biggest defeat was also against Dutch Guiana, losing 9 to 0 on 2 March 1947. The team has participated in events such as the CONCACAF Nations Cup / Gold Cup,

Caribbean Nations Cup The Caribbean Cup was the championship tournament for national association football teams that are members of the Caribbean Football Union. The first competition, established by Shell and run by former England Cricket fast bowler Fred Rumsey, wa ...

(between 1978 and 2017), CONCACAF Nations League, Overseas Cup (Coupe de l'Outre-Mer, 2008–2012) and the Tournament of 4 (Tournoi des 4). Baduel Stadium (15476357808)

Tour

The

(locally: Tour de Guyane), formerly known as "Le Tour du Littoral" (the Littoral Tour) or more rarely as "La Grande Boucle Guayanaise", is a

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

stage race that takes place mainly in French Guiana each year, although it occasionally crosses neighbouring countries. It takes place in nine stages, with a route linking the main towns of the department: Cayenne,

, and Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni. It was created in 1950 and is organised by the Comité Régional de Cyclisme de la Guyane (French Guiana Cycling Committee). The tour has been international since 1978. Over the years it has gained in importance and popularity and its duration has increased. The participation has grown from a mostly French Guianan group in the first editions to editions with more than 10 different nationalities. The 2020 edition of the Tour could not take place due to the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

pandemic. This is also the case for the Tour in 2021. Kevin Seraphin Wizards

In popular culture

The novel '' Papillon'', by the French convict

Henri Charrière Henri Charrière (; 16 November 1906 – 29 July 1973) was a French writer, convicted in 1931 as a murderer by the French courts and pardoned in 1970. He wrote the novel '' Papillon'', a memoir of his incarceration in and escape from a pena ...

, is set in French Guiana. It was first published in France in 1969, describing his escape from a penal colony there. Becoming an instant bestseller, it was translated into English from the original French by June P. Wilson and Walter B. Michaels for a 1970 edition, and by author

Patrick O'Brian Patrick O'Brian, Order of the British Empire, CBE (12 December 1914 – 2 January 2000), born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of sea novels set in the Royal Navy during t ...

. Soon afterward the book was adapted for a Hollywood film of the same name. Charrière stated that all events in the book are truthful and accurate, allowing for minor lapses in memory. Since its publication there has been controversy over its accuracy.Randall, Colin (27 June 2005
Ex-convict aged 104 claims to be Papillon
Telegraph.co.uk

References

External links

*
Prefecture website

Collectivité territoriale de Guyane website

Tourism committee of French Guiana
{{Authority control The Guianas Overseas departments of France Former colonies in South America Former French colonies French colonization of the Americas Departments of France Regions of France Outermost regions of the European Union

Guiana The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

French-speaking countries and territories States and territories established in 1946 1946 establishments in the French Union 1946 establishments in South America Dependent territories in South America Enclaves and exclaves

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In popular culture

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