HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Saint Louis or Saint-Louis ( wo, Ndar), is the capital of
Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
's
Saint-Louis Region The Saint-Louis Region () of Senegal is on the border with Mauritania. Its capital is Saint-Louis. Famous for the cast iron bridge in its capital, built by French colonialists in the 19th century, the region includes the Djoudj National Bird ...
. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the
Senegal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...
, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city
Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...
, it has a population officially estimated at 258,592 in 2021. Saint-Louis was the capital of the French colony of Senegal from 1673 until 1902 and
French West Africa French West Africa (french: Afrique-Occidentale française, ) was a federation of eight French colonial territories in West Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guinea (now Guinea), Ivory Coast, Upper Volta (now Burki ...
from 1895 until 1902, when the capital was moved to Dakar. From 1920 to 1957, it also served as the capital of the neighboring colony of
Mauritania Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...
. The town was an important economic center during
French West Africa French West Africa (french: Afrique-Occidentale française, ) was a federation of eight French colonial territories in West Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guinea (now Guinea), Ivory Coast, Upper Volta (now Burki ...
, but it is less important now. However it still has important industries, including tourism, a commercial center, a center of sugar production, and fishing. The Tourism industry is in part due to the city being listed as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
in 2000. However, the city is also vulnerable to climate change—where
sea level rise Globally, sea levels are rising due to human-caused climate change. Between 1901 and 2018, the globally averaged sea level rose by , or 1–2 mm per year on average.IPCC, 2019Summary for Policymakers InIPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cry ...
is expected to threaten the city center and potential damage historical parts of the city. Moreover, other issues such as
overfishing Overfishing is the removal of a species of fish (i.e. fishing) from a body of water at a rate greater than that the species can replenish its population naturally (i.e. the overexploitation of the fishery's existing fish stock), resulting in th ...
is causing ripple effects in the local economy.


Names

Saint Louis (french: Saint-Louis) is named after LouisIX, a
canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christianity, Christian communion declaring a person worthy of Cult (religious practice), public veneration and enterin ...
13th-century
king King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
of
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 ...
. Obliquely, the name also honored LouisXIV, the reigning king of France at the time of the island's settlement in 1659. It was originally known as Saint Louis of the Fort (') after its stronghold and to distinguish it from other places of the same name. The
Langue de Barbarie The Langue de Barbarie (French language, French for "Barbary spit of land", named after the Barbary Coast) is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis, Se ...
takes its name from the French for "Barbary Tongue", after an old name for the land of the
Berbers , image = File:Berber_flag.svg , caption = The Berber ethnic flag , population = 36 million , region1 = Morocco , pop1 = 14 million to 18 million , region2 = Algeria , pop2 ...
. The local name Ndar or N'dar is
Wolof Wolof or Wollof may refer to: * Wolof people, an ethnic group found in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * Wolof language, a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * The Wolof or Jolof Empire, a medieval West African successor of the Mal ...
for a kind of
island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
and has been borne by the island since before the French settlement. Ndar Tout or Toute is a
Gallicized Francization (in American English, Canadian English, and Oxford English) or Francisation (in other British English), Frenchification, or Gallicization is the expansion of French language use—either through willful adoption or coercion—by mo ...
form of a Wolof name meaning "Little" or "Lesser Saint Louis". The neighborhood of Guet Ndar takes its name from a
Wolof Wolof or Wollof may refer to: * Wolof people, an ethnic group found in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * Wolof language, a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * The Wolof or Jolof Empire, a medieval West African successor of the Mal ...
word for "pasture"..


Geography

Saint-Louis is situated in northern
Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
, on the
border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...
with
Mauritania Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...
, although the nearest border crossing is at
Rosso Rosso is the major city of south-western Mauritania and capital of Trarza region. It is situated on the Senegal River at the head of the river zone allowing year-round navigation. The town is 204 km south of the capital Nouakchott. The ...
, up the Senegal River. The heart of the old colonial city is located on a narrow island a little more than long but only about wide. The island lies in the
Senegal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...
. It is north of its mouth, but is only separated from the
Atlantic Ocean 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 ...
to its west by the
Langue de Barbarie The Langue de Barbarie (French language, French for "Barbary spit of land", named after the Barbary Coast) is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis, Se ...
, a wide
sand spit A spit or sandspit is a deposition bar or beach landform off coasts or lake shores. It develops in places where re-entrance occurs, such as at a cove's headlands, by the process of longshore drift by longshore currents. The drift occurs due t ...
. The Langue de Barbarie is the location of the seaside neighborhoods Ndar Toute and Guet Ndar. On the mainland, the east bank of the river is the site of Sor, an older settlement now considered a suburb of Saint-Louis. It is nearly surrounded by tidal marshes. Three characteristics give Saint-Louis its distinctive geographic appearance: the
Sahel The Sahel (; ar, ساحل ' , "coast, shore") is a region in North Africa. It is defined as the ecoclimatic and biogeographic realm of transition between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian savanna to the south. Having a hot semi-arid c ...
, the marshes and the Langue de Barbarie. Part of the Sahel, a transitional desertic band that separates " ..the dunes of the Sahara from the baobabs of the savanna",http://www.sunugal.com/en/st-louis.html Saint-Louis' landscape is characterized by occasional
acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...
s and is disturbed by sand storms during the dry season. The marshes are flood basins that form during the rainy season when the river overflows into the countryside, creating ponds and stretches of mangroves that attract birds like
flamingos Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbean) ...
and
pelicans Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...
. The
Langue de Barbarie The Langue de Barbarie (French language, French for "Barbary spit of land", named after the Barbary Coast) is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis, Se ...
, a long stretch of sand from
Nouadhibou Nouadhibou (; ar, نواذيبو, Nwādībū, Berber: Nwadibu, formerly in French: ) is the second largest city in Mauritania and serves as a major commercial centre. The city itself has about 118,000 inhabitants expanding to over 140,000 in the ...
in Mauritania to Saint-Louis, over a stretch of separates the lower
Senegal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...
from the Atlantic Ocean. Its vegetation mainly consists of Filao trees, propagated to prevent soil erosion in sandy and salty soils.


Climate

Saint-Louis has a
hot desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''BWh''). It only has two seasons, the rainy season from June to October, characterized by heat, humidity and storms, and the dry season from November to May, characterized by cool ocean breeze and dust from the
Harmattan The Harmattan is a season in West Africa that occurs between the end of November and the middle of March. It is characterized by the dry and dusty northeasterly trade wind, of the same name, which blows from the Sahara over West Africa into the ...
winds. A 2011 documentary described Saint-Louis as the African city most threatened by
rising sea levels Rising may refer to: * Rising, a stage in baking - see Proofing (baking technique) *Elevation * Short for Uprising, a rebellion Film and TV * "Rising" (''Stargate Atlantis''), the series premiere of the science fiction television program ''Starga ...
.


Environmental issues

In 2017 Saint-Louis, Senegal have seen a large decline in harvest, causing ripple effects on nutrition and food supply in the country, where 75% of animal protein comes from fish. Fisherman from the community spend twice as much time for catching smaller hauls, and are now competing with foreign fishing vessels. Rising sea levels, as well as water levels flowing out of the
Senegal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...
now threaten the low-lying islands which make up the city. In June 2008, Alioune Badiane of the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
'
UN-Habitat The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is the United Nations programme for human settlements and sustainable urban development. It was established in 1977 as an outcome of the first United Nations Conference on Human Settlem ...
agency designated Saint-Louis as "the city most threatened by rising sea levels in the whole of Africa", citing
climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
and a failed 2004 river and tidal canal project as the cause. Since the coast of the community has eroded by 1–2 meters a year.


History

A Wolof settlement at what is now known as Guet Ndar dates from around 1450 and was a meeting and departure point for
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
pilgrims traveling to
Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
in
Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
.
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 ...
,
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
, and
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
traders visited the area over the next two centuries but the first nearby colonial fortification was erected by the
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
in 1638 on Bocos Island, about away.. Repeated
flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...
ing prompted the removal of the fort to the island known to locals as Ndar in 1659. The island was uninhabited at the time, supposedly because the local people believed it to be haunted by spirits. The Diagne of Sor, the local leader, permitted French settlement on the island for annual payments of "three pieces of blue cloth, a measure of scarlet cloth, seven long
iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...
bars, and 10
pint The pint (, ; symbol pt, sometimes abbreviated as ''p'') is a unit of volume or capacity in both the imperial unit, imperial and United States customary units, United States customary measurement systems. In both of those systems it is tradition ...
s of
eau de vie An ''eau de vie'' ( French for spirit, §16, §17 literally " water of life") is a clear, colourless fruit brandy that is produced by means of fermentation and double distillation. The fruit flavor is typically very light. In English-speakin ...
." The fortification permitted its factory to command foreign trade along the
Senegal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...
. Slaves, hides, beeswax, ambergris and, later, gum arabic were exported. During the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...
, British forces captured Senegal in 1758. In February 1779, French forces recaptured Saint-Louis. In the late 18th century, Saint-Louis had about 5,000 inhabitants, not counting an indeterminate number of slaves in transit. Between 1659 and 1779, nine chartered companies succeeded one another in administering Saint-Louis. As in
Gorée (; "Gorée Island"; Wolof: Beer Dun) is one of the 19 (i.e. districts) of the city of Dakar, Senegal. It is an island located at sea from the main harbour of Dakar (), famous as a destination for people interested in the Atlantic slave trade ...
, a Franco-African Creole, or
Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...
, merchant community characterized by the famous "
signare Signares were the Mulatto French-African women of the island of Gorée and the city of Saint-Louis in French Senegal during the 18th and 19th centuries. These women of color managed to gain some individual assets, status, and power in the hi ...
s", or bourgeois women entrepreneurs, grew up in Saint-Louis during the 17th and 18th centuries. The
Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...
were important to the economic, social, cultural and political life of the city. They created a distinctive urban culture characterized by public displays of elegance, refined entertainment and popular festivities. They controlled most of the up-country river trade and they financed the principal Catholic institutions. A
Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...
mayor was first designated by the Governor in 1778. Civic franchise was further consolidated in 1872, when Saint-Louis became a French "commune". Wreckage of the
Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...
: La Méduse was a French naval frigate that boasted 40 guns and fought in the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century. Remarkably, the ship survived these maritime battles only to crash on a sandbank in 1816 during the reestablishment of the French colony after the British handover. A shortage of lifeboats sent sailors scrambling to build a raft. Only 10 of approximately 150 people who boarded the raft lived through this catastrophe. Shortly thereafter, Géricault drew his inspiration from the accounts of two survivors. In the 1855
Battle of Leybar Bridge The Battle of Leybar Bridge was fought on 21 April 1855 between the Trarza army of Mohammed al-Habib and the French garrison of the tower on Leybar Bridge, outside of Saint-Louis in the French colony of Senegal, during the Second Franco-Trarza W ...
a small force of French Marines defended the town from a large enemy force.
Louis Faidherbe Louis Léon César Faidherbe (; 3 June 1818 – 29 September 1889) was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal. Early life Faidherbe was born into a lower-middle-clas ...
, who became the Governor of the Colony of Senegal in 1854, contributed greatly to the development and modernization of Saint Louis. His large-scale projects included the building of bridges, provisioning of fresh drinking water, and the construction of an overland telegraph line to
Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...
. Saint-Louis became capital of the federation of French West African colonies in 1895, but relinquished this role to Dakar in 1902. Saint-Louis's fortunes began to wane as those of Dakar waxed. Access to its port became increasingly awkward in the age of the steamship and the completion of the Dakar-Saint Louis railroad in 1885 meant that up-country trade effectively circumvented its port. Large French firms, many from the city of
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
, took over the new commercial networks of the interior, marginalizing the
Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...
traders in the process. Saint-Louis nonetheless maintained its status as capital of the Colony of Senegal even after Dakar assumed the role of capital of the French West Africa federation. The colonial institutions set up in the city in the 19th century, such as the Muslim Tribunal and the School for Chiefs' Sons, were to play important roles in the history of French Africa. Though relatively small in size (population of 10,000 in 1826; 23,000 in 1914, and 39,000 in 1955) Saint-Louis dominated Senegalese politics throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, not least because of its numerous political parties and associations and its independent newspapers. Following independence, when Dakar became sole capital of the country, Saint-Louis slipped into a state of lethargy. As its French population and military departed, many of the town's shops, offices and businesses closed. This generated a loss of jobs and human potential, and less investment in the economic activities of Saint-Louis, thus causing its economic decline. For some people, however, Saint-Louis' decline was not just limited to its economy, but spread to all aspects of its life as the loss of its past status meant less recognition and lack of interest from the colony's officials and, after Senegal's independence, from the Senegalese government. When its most famous political son, the French-educated lawyer Lamine Guèye, died in 1968, the city lost its strongest proponent. Today, rich in three centuries of history, in cultural background, geography, architecture, and other characteristics, Saint-Louis is a bridge between the savanna and the desert, the ocean and the river, tradition and modernity, Islam and Christianity, Europe and Africa. Home to a society with a distinctive lifestyle, Saint-Louis has retained its unique identity. "No one comes without falling in love with the city," proudly say its people who consider Saint-Louis as the birthplace of Senegalese Teranga, the Wolof word for hospitability.


Economy

Saint-Louis' economy is a third important, yet critical, facet of its identity. As is supported in the article, Saint Louis has economically declined since the transfer of the Capital of French Western Africa to Dakar. This has caused the dispossession of Saint Louis of all its past economic attributes and is said to have " ..reached its paroxysm in 1960 when the capital of the independent Senegal was transferred to Dakar". Saint-Louis, however, has remained an important tourist and trading center and the city's economy, though not entirely recovered, is gradually reviving. The city was listed as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
in 2000 and cultural tourism has become an engine of growth. As a result, a process of gentrification has set in, with many historic buildings on the island being turned into restaurants and hotels. Beyond tourism, Saint-Louis is also a commercial and an industrial centre for sugar production. Its other economic activities are fishing, irrigated alluvial agriculture, pastoral farming, trading and exportation of peanut skins. It is important to note that each of these economic activities is assured by a particular ethnic group. The Wolofs and Lebous who are the main inhabitants of Saint-Louis are mostly fishermen that live in fishing communities like Guet-Ndar on the Langue de Barbarie. The
Fulas The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region ...
live in the inland and practice pastoral farming. The Maures who are migrants from Mauritania (Saint-Louis is less than south of the border with Mauritania) are mostly merchants, traders and shopkeepers found everywhere in Saint Louis.


Culture

Culture constitutes an important part of Saint-Louis' economy. The city preserves much of its 19th-century morphology, reminiscent of other cities of the "Creole Atlantic":
Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (sta ...
, Cartagena,
Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
and
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
. Thanks to its distinctive appearance, numerous sites of attraction and its international music festivals and cultural exhibitions, Saint-Louis attracts many tourists each year. Saint-Louis remains the most characteristically French colonial destination in West Africa along with
Gorée (; "Gorée Island"; Wolof: Beer Dun) is one of the 19 (i.e. districts) of the city of Dakar, Senegal. It is an island located at sea from the main harbour of Dakar (), famous as a destination for people interested in the Atlantic slave trade ...
Island.


Museums

Saint-Louis' Research Center and Documentation Museum of Senegal offers interesting panoramas of Senegal's history and ethnic movements over the years, expositions of traditional clothes and musical instruments, etc.


Events and festivals

Saint Louis is famous for its urban culture. The heritage of the signares lives on in the city's many festivals and its cultivated sense of public display, and it is helping Saint-Louis emerge from decades of neglect. "Fanals", which are night-time processions of giant paper lanterns, take place at Christmas time. The Saint-Louis Jazz Festival is the most important jazz festival in Africa. Jazz first became popular in the 1930s when records produced in
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 ...
were aired on the radio. After
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 ...
, visiting U.S. GIs popularized jazz bands and by the 1950s local groups had adopted a "Cuban" sound. Another music festival, 1, 2, 3 musiques, exhibits various genres of music. The Festival Métissons, held for the first time in 2010, is a grassroots music festival organized by local communities and small businesses. Every edition sports international, national and local musical talent. The annual reggata, or pirogue race organized by teams of fishermen from Guet-Ndar, takes place on the "little branch" of the river, between Ndar Island and the Langue de Barbarie. The Magal of the Niari Rakas, a yearly commemoration of Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba Mbacké's (the founder of Mouridism) two prayers in the Governor's Palace in 1895, is the city's largest religious gathering.


UNESCO World Heritage Site

Saint-Louis' characteristic colonial architecture along with its regular town plan, its location on an island at the mouth of the Senegal River and the system of quays, gives Saint-Louis the distinctive appearance and identity that have raised the Island to the rank of world heritage since 2000. The Island of Saint-Louis is inscribed on the World Heritage list on the basis of criteria ii and iv: Criterion ii The historic town of Saint-Louis exhibits an important exchange of values and influences on the development of education and culture, architecture, craftsmanship, and services in a large part of West Africa. Criterion iv The Island of Saint-Louis, a former capital of West Africa, is an outstanding example of a colonial city, characterized by its particular natural setting, and it illustrates the development of colonial government in this region.


Architecture

Among interesting and attractive monuments and edifices are the Governor's Palace, the ''Gouvernance'' where are located the town's administrative offices, the Parc Faidherbe named for the French governor at the centre of town
Louis Faidherbe Louis Léon César Faidherbe (; 3 June 1818 – 29 September 1889) was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal. Early life Faidherbe was born into a lower-middle-clas ...
, colonial-era hotels, the historic airport at Dakar-Bango on the mainland, the
Faidherbe Bridge Faidherbe Bridge (french: Pont Faidherbe) is a road bridge over the Senegal River which links the island of the city of Saint-Louis in Senegal to the African mainland. The metal bridge is long and wide, weighing . It has eight spans, of whi ...
that connects the island to the Langue de Barbarie and the Gaol and Servatius bridges that connect the island to the continent.


Places of worship

The
places of worship A place of worship is a specially designed structure or space where individuals or a group of people such as a congregation come to perform acts of devotion, veneration, or religious study. A building constructed or used for this purpose is somet ...
are predominantly
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
mosques. There are also
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
churches and temples:
Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint-Louis du Sénégal The Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint-Louis du Sénégal ( la, Sancti Ludovici Senegalen(sis)) is a diocese located in the city of Saint-Louis in the Ecclesiastical province of Dakar in Senegal. History * 1763: Established as Apostolic Prefecture ...
(
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
),
Assemblies of God The Assemblies of God (AG), officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 144 autonomous self-governing national groupings of churches that together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination."Assemblies of God". ...
,
Universal Church of the Kingdom of God The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG; pt, Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus, IURD) is an evangelical charismatic Christian denomination with its headquarters at the Temple of Solomon in São Paulo, Brazil. The church was founded in ...
.


Natural sites

Among Saint-Louis' numerous natural sites are the National Park of the Langue de Barbarie, the National Park of the Birds of Djoudj, the Fauna Reserve of Gueumbeul, beaches like that of the
Langue de Barbarie The Langue de Barbarie (French language, French for "Barbary spit of land", named after the Barbary Coast) is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis, Se ...
, the colonial waterworks at Makhana, the palace of at
Richard-Toll Richard Toll is a town in northern Senegal, lying on the south bank of the River Senegal, just east of Rosso. Originally a colonial town, it was named for the park of the Château de Baron Roger, laid out by botanist Jean Michel Claude Richard. ...
, the
Diama Dam The Diama Dam, sometimes referred to as the Maka–Diama Dam, is a gravity dam on the Senegal River, spanning the border of Senegal and Mauritania. It is located next to the town of Diama, Senegal and about north of Saint-Louis, Senegal. The purp ...
, and various hunting lodges on the south side of the Senegal River. This park, which is 20 square kilometres large, occupies the southern point of the Langue de Barbarie, the estuary of the Senegal river and part of the continent. It hosts thousands of water birds like cormorants, brushes, pink flamingos, pelicans, herons and ducks each year. The world's third largest ornithological park, it is located 60 kilometers north of Saint-Louis. This park occupies over 120 km² and includes part of the river, and many lakes, basins, and marshes. About 3 million migrating birds of 400 species visit it each year. Located at a dozen kilometers south of the city of Saint-Louis, this reserve has an area of 7 square kilometres and shelters birds and endangered species such as the
Dama Gazelle The dama gazelle (''Nanger dama''), also known as the addra gazelle or mhorr gazelle, is a species of gazelle. It lives in Africa, in the Sahara desert and the Sahel. A critically endangered species, it has disappeared from most of its former r ...
, the
Patas monkey The common patas monkey (''Erythrocebus patas''), also known as the wadi monkey or hussar monkey, is a ground-dwelling monkey distributed over semi-arid areas of West Africa, and into East Africa. Taxonomy There is some confusion surrounding ...
and the
African spurred tortoise The African spurred tortoise (''Centrochelys sulcata''), also called the sulcata tortoise, is a species of tortoise inhabiting the southern edge of the Sahara desert in Africa. It is the largest mainland species of tortoise in the world, and the ...
.


Education

Education is another important facet of Saint-Louis. With a large influence over education in colonial times, Saint Louis is now a centre of educational excellence. It is home to the University Gaston Berger and The Military Academy Charles Ntchorere. Senegal's second university, the University Gaston Berger, which was created in 1990, offers studies organized in a number of general education and research faculties. The Military Academy Charles Ntchorere, commonly known as the Prytanee Militaire of Saint Louis, was created in 1922. The École française Antoine-de-Saint-Exupéry, a French international school serving preschool through ''collège'' (junior high school), is located in Saint-Louis.Présentation de l'école

Archive
. École française Antoine-de-Saint-Exupéry. Retrieved on 3 May 2015.


Notable inhabitants

Saint Louis has been the birthplace or home of: * El Hadj Malick Sy * Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba Mbacké *
Alfred-Amédée Dodds Alfred Amédée Dodds (6 February 1842 – 17 July 1922) was the commander of French forces in Senegal from 1890, commander of French forces in the second expeditionary force to suppress the Boxer Rebellion, and commander of French forces d ...
*
Jean-Baptiste Labat Jean-Baptiste Labat (sometimes called, simply, Père Labat) (1663 – 6 January 1738) was a French clergyman, botanist, writer, explorer, ethnographer, soldier, engineer, and landowner. Life Labat was born and died in Paris. He entered the ...
, Abbé David Boilat, Daniel Brattier, the fathers *
Michel Adanson Michel Adanson (7 April 17273 August 1806) was an 18th-century French botanist and naturalist who traveled to Senegal to study flora and fauna. He proposed a "natural system" of taxonomy distinct from the binomial system forwarded by Linnaeus. ...
, naturalist *
Louis Faidherbe Louis Léon César Faidherbe (; 3 June 1818 – 29 September 1889) was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal. Early life Faidherbe was born into a lower-middle-clas ...
*
Blaise Diagne Blaise Diagne (13 October 1872 – 11 May 1934) was a Senegalese and French political leader and mayor of Dakar. He was the first person of West African origin elected to the French Chamber of Deputies, and the first to hold a position in the Fr ...
, Lamine Guèye, politicians * Mbarick Fall aka
Battling Siki Louis Mbarick Fall (16 September 1897 – 15 December 1925), known as Battling Siki, was a French light heavyweight boxer born in Senegal who fought from 1912 to 1925, and briefly reigned as the World light heavyweight champion after knocking ...
boxer *
El Hadji Diouf El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf (; born 15 January 1981) is a Senegalese former professional footballer. Throughout his career, Diouf played as a winger or a forward. Having started his professional football career in France with Sochaux, Rennes an ...
football player *
BK VEF Rīga VEF Rīga is a Latvian professional basketball team that is based in Riga, Latvia. VEF Rīga is a nine-time Latvian Basketball League champion. History Early years The club name VEF came from the radio manufacturing company VEF which created th ...
center Bamba Fall * the French photographer François-Edmond Fortier *
Badara Ndiaye Badara Ndiaye (born 31 March 1986 in Kaolack) is a Senegalese-born American and French visual artist, journalist, fashion designer, photographer, filmmaker, model, and former NCAA Division I basketball player. Personal life Ndiaye was born 31 Ma ...
(born 1986), Senegalese visual concept developer and fashion designer *
Ismaïla Sarr Ismaïla Sarr (born 25 February 1998) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a winger for EFL Championship club Watford and the Senegal national team. Club career Early career Born in Saint-Louis, Senegal, Sarr started his foo ...
football player *
Abdoulaye Seye Abdoulaye Seye (30 July 1934 – 13 October 2011) was a Senegalese sprinter. He competed for France at the 1960 Olympics in the 100 m, 200 m and 4 × 100 m relay events and won a bronze medal in the 200 m. Although Senegal had received its indepe ...
Senegalese Sprinter & Footballer


Twin towns – sister cities

Saint-Louis is twinned with: *
Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
, France (1978) *
Fez Fez most often refers to: * Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire * Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco Fez or FEZ may also refer to: Media * ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...
, Morocco (1979) *
Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from b ...
, Belgium (1980) *
Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...
, Italy (1991) *
St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, United States (1994)


References

*Aïdara, Abdoul Hadir (2005), Saint-Louis du Sénégal: d'hier à aujourd'hui, Grandvaux, Brinon-sur-Sauldre.


Bibliography


External links


Senegal's decaying city of charm
Tidiane Sy,
BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...
, 13 May 2005.
saintlouisdusenegal.com
"''Le portail touristique et culturel de Saint-Louis du Senegal''". Saint-Louis news and culture portal.
Saint-Louis du Sénégal, Ville de l'élégance et du raffinement
Radio France International Radio France Internationale, usually referred to as RFI, is the state-owned international radio broadcaster of France. With 37.2 million listeners in 2014, it is one of the most-listened-to international radio stations in the world, along with D ...
, 2004. Events in Saint-Louis, Senegal
saintlouisjazz.comfestivalmetissons.com
{{Authority control Communes of Senegal Populated places in Saint-Louis Region Populated coastal places in Senegal Regional capitals in Senegal Senegal River French West Africa Populated places established in 1659 1659 establishments in Africa 1659 establishments in the French colonial empire Saint-Louis Region World Heritage Sites in Senegal