Pointe-à-Pitre (; , , or simply , ) is the second most populous commune of

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...

(after Les Abymes). Guadeloupe is an

overseas region The overseas departments and regions of France (, ; DROM) are the five departments and regions of the French Republic which are located outside European France (also known as " metropolitan France"). These overseas entities have exactly the s ...

and department of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

located in the

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea, forming part of the West Indies in Caribbean, Caribbean region of the Americas. They are distinguished from the larger islands of the Greater Antilles to the west. They form an arc w ...

, of which it is a ''

sous-préfecture A subprefecture is an administrative division of a country that is below prefecture or province. Albania There are twelve Albanian counties or prefectures, each of which is divided into several districts, sometimes translated as subprefectures ...

'', being the seat of the arrondissement of Pointe-à-Pitre. Although Pointe-à-Pitre is not Guadeloupe's administrative capital (that distinction goes to

Basse-Terre Basse-Terre (, ; ; ) is a communes of the Guadeloupe department, commune in the France, French overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department of Guadeloupe, in the Lesser Antilles. It is also the ''prefectures in France, pref ...

), it is nonetheless the region's economic capital. The inhabitants are called "Pointois". In 2018, it had a population of 15,410 in the city ( commune) of Pointe-à-Pitre proper and 250,952 inhabitants in the urban unit Pointe-à-Pitre–Les Abymes.Comparateur de territoire
INSEE It is part of the

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...

of Les Abymes. Pointe-à-Pitre International Airport, Guadeloupe's main international airport, is located north of downtown Pointe-à-Pitre in the commune of Les Abymes. The current mayor of Pointe-à-Pitre is Harry Durimel.

Geography

Pointe-à-Pitre is situated on the southwest portion of the island of Grande-Terre, facing the Caribbean Sea; it lies in the centre of Guadeloupe, and is near the Rivière Salée ("Salt River"), which separates Grande-Terre from Basse-Terre Island. The town of Pointe-à-Pitre is surrounded by the communes of Les Abymes, Baie-Mahault and Le Gosier. Pointe-à-Pitre is on a

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

plateau, which was a factor for the construction of the city. The bay, Petit Cul-de-Sac Marin, offers a sheltered port.

Name

The name Pointe-à-Pitre, literally the "

headland A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, Jo ...

of Pitre", is popularly believed to derive from a Dutch sailor/fisherman called "Pieter", who may have settled in the 17th century on a promontory facing the ''Îlet à Cochon'' ("Hogs Islet"), just to the south of today's downtown Pointe-à-Pitre. The promontory came to be called "Pointe-à-Pieter" (the "headland of Peter") and later "Pointe-à-Pitre". However, this theory is now questioned by linguists, with a derivation from the Spanish word "pitera", meaning a type of rope made from agave, suggested as the true etymon of "pitre".

History

French colonial authorities had long thought about establishing a city on the current location of Pointe-à-Pitre, at the junction of Guadeloupe's two main 'island' districts ( Basse-Terre Island and Grande Terre), but several attempts around 1713-1730 failed due to the insalubrious swampy ground. During the British occupation of Guadeloupe (1759–1763) a settlement appeared on a hill overlooking the swamps. After the return of Guadeloupe to France in 1763, the city of Pointe-à-Pitre was officially founded under governor Gabriel de Clieu in 1764 by royal edict, and the swamps where downtown Pointe-à-Pitre stands today were drained in the following years, thus allowing the urban development of the city. The development of the city was relatively rapid, partly thanks to the corsairs. In 1780, however, a great fire entirely destroyed the city. Sixty-three years later, in 1843, it was again destroyed by an

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

. The history of Pointe-à-Pitre is marked by many disasters: the fires of 1850, 1871 and 1931, the earthquakes of 1851 and 1897 and the

hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...

s of 1865 and 1928. The city also experienced several epidemics of

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

. Its location and large sheltered port have nonetheless allowed Pointe-à-Pitre to become Guadeloupe's largest city and economic capital. :Further information: '' Travailleur socialiste''

Population

Religion

Eglise Saint Pierre et Saint Paul - PA00105864 04

The former cathedral of St. Peter and Paul, Ancienne cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul, testifies that Pointe-à-Pitre has been the episcopal seat of a Roman Catholic Diocese of Pointe-à-Pitre on Grande-Terre. This was united with the present diocese for all Guadeloupe, at

, in 1951, since when its full title has been Roman Catholic Diocese of Basse-Terre-Pointe-à-Pitre.

Climate

On the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, Pointe-à-Pitre is on the border between tropical monsoon climate (''Am'') and

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest 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 southeast Florida, United States ...

(''Af''). Like any other Eastern Caribbean city, it experiences rainfall quite evenly spread during the year, with a wetter season between July and November which coincides with the hurricane season. The city receives 1500–2000 mm of rainfall annually. Tropical heat is the norm, bringing steady highs of around 32 °C (89 °F) that drop to 20 °C (68 °F) at night. The

trade wind The trade winds or easterlies are permanent east-to-west prevailing winds that flow in the Earth's equatorial region. The trade winds blow mainly from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere and from the southeast in the Southern Hemisphere, ...

s blow from the northeast and often temper the climate.

Urban area and demographics

The tiny commune (municipality) of Pointe-à-Pitre is the center of a larger

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

covering 11 communes.Unité urbaine 2020 de Pointe-à-Pitre - Les Abymes (9A701)
INSEE This urban area – with 250,952 inhabitants at the 2018 census, representing 65% of the population – is the largest in Guadeloupe and one of the largest among French Overseas territories and departments.

Communes

The eleven communes making up the urban area of Pointe-à-Pitre, with their populations in 2017,Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2017
INSEE are: * Les Abymes: 53,491 (Les Abymes being the most populated commune in the urban area and indeed in Guadeloupe, the urban area of Pointe-à-Pitre is also often called the "Pointe-à-Pitre-Les Abymes" urban area) * Baie-Mahault: 30,929 (the location of the urban area's main seaport and largest industrial park in the Lesser Antilles) * Le Gosier: 26,783 *

Petit-Bourg Petit-Bourg (; , ) is the seventh-largest Communes of France, commune in the French overseas department of Guadeloupe. It is located on the east side of the island of Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, and is part of the metropolitan area of Pointe- ...

: 24,277 * Sainte-Anne: 23,675 * Le Moule: 22,150 *

Morne-à-l'Eau Morne-à-l'Eau (; ) is a French commune, commune located in the department of Guadeloupe. Events In March or April each year since 1993, the town organises a crab festival which features crab races and many stalls selling crab-based dishes. In ...

: 17,434 * Lamentin: 16,573 * Pointe-à-Pitre: 15,923 (the historic, commercial and administrative heart of the urban area; facing competition from its suburbs, the congested commune of Pointe-à-Pitre has been losing businesses and inhabitants in the past years) * Saint-François: 12,816 * Petit-Canal: 8,220

Economy

The city is the commercial capital of Guadeloupe, serving as the main port of call for cargo and passengers alike. The main seaport is the Port de Jarry located across the Bay of Cul-de-Sac Marin in the commune (municipality) of Baie-Mahault. It has one of the biggest container terminals in the Eastern Caribbean with a quay 600m long. The main exports are food crops (bananas, cocoa, coffee and sugar), animal products (beef, milk, yogurt) and manufactured goods (refined petroleum, textiles and medicines). The extensive Zone Industrielle de Jarry, directly west of Pointe-à-Pitre is a major centre of commercial and light industrial activity, notably for warehousing and distribution. Agricultural production continues in the east of the area where cattle rearing, banana and sugarcane growing continues. The nearby suburb of Le Gosier is Guadeloupe's main seaside resort. Seventy percent of residents of Pointe-à-Pitre resided in subsidized

public housing Public housing, also known as social housing, refers to Subsidized housing, subsidized or affordable housing provided in buildings that are usually owned and managed by local government, central government, nonprofit organizations or a ...

in 2009.

Notable people

* Gilles Bloch - physician-scientist, former president of Inserm * Maryse Condé - writer * Saint-John Perse * Francky Vincent * Rodrigue Beaubois - NBA

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

player * Roch-Ambroise Auguste Bébian * Charles Lanrezac, WW1 General, Commander of the 5th French Army, Grand Cross of the Légion d'Honneur * Jean-Marc Mormeck, boxer * Auguste Plée * Firmine Richard * Jacques Schwarz-Bart * Louis-Gaston de Sonis - French Army officer * Lilian Thuram - former Juventus and

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player. Won 142 caps for

and the

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 1 ...

. * Stéphane Zubar -

AFC Bournemouth AFC Bournemouth ( ) is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. ...

player * Laura Flessel-Colovic - 5-time Olympic medalist in

épée The (, ; ), also rendered as epee in English, is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. The modern derives from the 19th-century , a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword. This contains a ...

fencing * Patricia Girard - 1996 Olympic Games silver medalist in 100m hurdles * Thierry Henry * Clotilde Armand - Romanian politician * Babette de Rozières, TV chef and politician * Angela Aquereburu, screenwriter, film producer and film director * Teddy Riner - 5-time Olympic gold medalist judoka

Education

Public preschools in Pointe-à-Pitre commune include:LISTE DES ECOLES PUBLIQUES ET PRIVEES SOUS CONTRAT
" . Retrieved on 10 March 2018. * Ecole maternelle Raymonde Bambuck * Ecole maternelle Bébian * Ecole maternelle Salvator Cidemé * Ecole maternelle Dubouchage * Ecole maternelle Bonchamps Fernande * Ecole maternelle Rallion Frantz * Ecole maternelle Raphael Jolivière 2 * Ecole maternelle Lauricisque Public primary schools in Pointe-à-Pitre commune include: * Ecole primaire Raymonde Bambuck * Ecole primaire Salvator Cidemé * Ecole primaire Raphael Cipolin * Ecole primaire Léon Feix * Ecole primaire Amédée Fengarol 1 * Ecole primaire Amédée Fengarol 2 * Ecole primaire Bonchamps Fernande * Ecole primaire Lauricisque Elementary schools include: * Ecole élémentaire Raphael Jolivière 1 Public junior high schools in Pointe-à-Pitre commune include:Établissements du 2nd degré PUBLIC 2017-2018
" . Retrieved on 10 March 2018. * Collège Jules Michelet * Collège Sadi Carnot * Collège Nestor De Kermadec * Collège Front de mer Public senior high schools in Pointe-à-Pitre commune include: * LPO Carnot (including the Micro Lycée) Private preschools and primary schools in Pointe-à-Pitre commune include: * Ecole maternelle privée Notre-Dame du Sacré-Coeur * Ecole primaire privée Saint Joseph de Clun Private secondary schools under contract in Pointe-à-Pitre commune:Etablissements du 2nd degré privé sous contrat 2017-2018
". Retrieved on 10 March 2018. * LP Boc Calmet * Collège/LGT Massabielle

Monuments

* Place de la Victoire * La rue Frébault, marché aux Épices (classé MH.) * The musée Saint-John-Perse (classé MH.) * The musée Schœlcher (classé MH.) * The Pavillon L'Herminier (classé MH.) * The Mémorial ACTeLe Mémorial ACTe de Guadeloupe présenté à Paris
* The église Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul (classée MH). * The church of Massabielle. * Various elements of the civil and religious heritage of the municipality were built by the architect Ali Tur between 1930 and 1935 in a major works initiative by various institutions after the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane. He realized the palais de justice de Pointe-à-Pitre, the hospice hospital on the island, the fish hall, several schools, and the fire station.. * The statues of La Mulâtresse Solitude, Colonel Louis Delgrès, Colonel Joseph Ignace, percussionist (popularly known as "Vélo") and the painting of Marché central de Pointe-à-Pitre.JPG, Le marché aux Épices. Musée Saint-John Perse 001.JPG, Musée Saint-John-Perse. Musée Schoelcher de Pointe-à-Pitre.JPG, Musée Schœlcher. Externat Saint-Joseph-de-Cluny - Vue générale.JPG, Immeuble rue Saint-John Perse.JPG, Guadeloupe Les Abymes carrefour de Lacroix, sur le boulevard des Héros 2.jpg, La Mulâtresse Solitude, in Les Abymes. Cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Pointe-à-Pitre.JPG, Église Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul. Grotte de Massabielle Pointe-à-Pitre.JPG, La grotte de Massabielle. Office du Tourisme de Pointe-à-Pitre.JPG, Tourism office of Pointe-à-Pitre École maternelle Bébian, Pointe-à-Pitre.JPG, school of Pointe-à-Pitre

References

External links

* (in French)
GigaCatholic- the former bishopric
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pointeapitre Communes of Guadeloupe Subprefectures in France Port cities in the Caribbean