Fogo, Cape Verde
Encyclopedia
Fogo is an island in the Sotavento group of Cape Verde
. It is the most prominent of the group, rising to nearly 3,000 m (10,000 ft) above sea level at Pico do Fogo.
and Brava
. Practically the whole island is an active volcano that has been periodically active, last erupting in 1995, forming a new crater called Pico Pequeno. Its largest feature is a 9 km wide caldera
, which has walls 1 km high. The caldera has a breach in its eastern rim, and a large peak rises in the centre. The central cone forms the highest point of the island and its summit is about 100 m higher than the surrounding wall of the caldera. Lava from the volcano has reached the eastern coast of the island within historical times.
A small village, called Chã das Caldeiras
, exists within the caldera of the volcano, and the residents are periodically evacuated during eruptions.
The island's main city is São Filipe
, near which is an airport
. First settled in the 1480s, it is largely an agricultural island. The islands also houses schools, a gymnasium, banks, a post office, some hotels and squares (praças).
Fogo has fertile land in the southwest with a slope of about 10 to 15 degrees. The north and the east are steep. The island rises abruptly from the ocean, which can be as deep as 5,300 m at a distance of 5km from the shoreline. The exception is to the west, where the island is connected to another seamount; further west in Brava.
The slopes in the northeastern part are green and grassy all-year round. The rest of the mountain is dry and barren. One of the southernmost islands in Cape Verde, Fogo receives the most precipitation. The creeks and streams are dry all-year round.
São Filipe's buildings use classic Portuguese colonial architecture. Mosteiros in the northeast is the island's second most important town.
A violent eruption took place in 1680. The mountain of the island was visible over hundreds of kilometres and lasted for a few years. It was during this eruption that the island earned its name.
captain António Noli
and was first called São Filipe meaning Saint Philip
in Portuguese
.
The Portuguese settled the island in 1500. The island used to have slavery. Emigration started in 1850, mainly to North America
. The 1910 civil revolution in Portugal
drew aristocracy and large landowners back to Portugal and left civilians behind. A small museum on Fogo explains many of these connections.
and wine
among the main products. Many private households live off remittances from emigrants in the US and other countries as the island has a substantial diaspora. Many emigrants send some money to their relatives in the island even if the senders and receivers no longer know each other. Tourism is steadily becoming popular. The volcano is the island's major attraction but many visitors also come to see relatives. The historic city of São Filipe and Chã das Caldeiras
in the volcanic crater receive the bulk of visitors. It used to have slaves.
is the official language but in daily life people speak the Fogo dialect
of Cape Verdean Creole.
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
. It is the most prominent of the group, rising to nearly 3,000 m (10,000 ft) above sea level at Pico do Fogo.
Geography
The island is located between the islands of SantiagoSantiago, Cape Verde
Santiago , or Santiagu in Cape Verdean Creole, is the largest island of Cape Verde, its most important agricultural centre and home to half the nation’s population. At the time of Darwin's voyage it was called St. Jago....
and Brava
Brava, Cape Verde
Brava is an island in Cape Verde. It is the smallest inhabited island, but at the same time the greenest, of Cape Verde, in the Sotavento group. First settled in the 1540s, its population grew after Mount Fogo on neighbouring Fogo erupted in 1675...
. Practically the whole island is an active volcano that has been periodically active, last erupting in 1995, forming a new crater called Pico Pequeno. Its largest feature is a 9 km wide caldera
Caldera
A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption, such as the one at Yellowstone National Park in the US. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters...
, which has walls 1 km high. The caldera has a breach in its eastern rim, and a large peak rises in the centre. The central cone forms the highest point of the island and its summit is about 100 m higher than the surrounding wall of the caldera. Lava from the volcano has reached the eastern coast of the island within historical times.
A small village, called Chã das Caldeiras
Chã das Caldeiras
Chã das Caldeiras is a small community of approximately 1,000 inhabitants, situated within the crater of the volcanic Pico do Fogo on the island of Fogo, one of nine inhabited islands comprising the West African nation of Cape Verde...
, exists within the caldera of the volcano, and the residents are periodically evacuated during eruptions.
The island's main city is São Filipe
São Filipe, Cape Verde
São Filipe , or San Filipi in Cape Verdean Creole, is the city that constitutes the seat of the São Filipe Municipality, in Cape Verde.It is located SW of the island and in the southwestern part of the island...
, near which is an airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
. First settled in the 1480s, it is largely an agricultural island. The islands also houses schools, a gymnasium, banks, a post office, some hotels and squares (praças).
Fogo has fertile land in the southwest with a slope of about 10 to 15 degrees. The north and the east are steep. The island rises abruptly from the ocean, which can be as deep as 5,300 m at a distance of 5km from the shoreline. The exception is to the west, where the island is connected to another seamount; further west in Brava.
The slopes in the northeastern part are green and grassy all-year round. The rest of the mountain is dry and barren. One of the southernmost islands in Cape Verde, Fogo receives the most precipitation. The creeks and streams are dry all-year round.
São Filipe's buildings use classic Portuguese colonial architecture. Mosteiros in the northeast is the island's second most important town.
A violent eruption took place in 1680. The mountain of the island was visible over hundreds of kilometres and lasted for a few years. It was during this eruption that the island earned its name.
Flora
There are various endemic plants on Fogo:- Cravo-brabo (Erysimum caboverdiana)
- Língua-de-vaca (Echium vulcanorum)
- Losna (Artemisia gorgonum), a medical plant with a bitter taste.
- Tortolho (Euphorbia tuckeyana).
History
Fogo was discovered in 1460 by a GenoveseGenoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
captain António Noli
António Noli
Antonio de Noli was a 15th century Genoese nobleman and navigator, and the first governor of the earliest European overseas colony in Subsaharan Africa. He discovered some of the Cape Verde islands on behalf of Henry the Navigator and he was made first Governor of Cape Verde by King Afonso V...
and was first called São Filipe meaning Saint Philip
Saint Philip
Saint Philip, São Filipe, or San Felipe may refer to:People* Saint Philip the Apostle* Saint Philip the Evangelist also known as Philip the Deacon* Saint Philip Neri* Saint Philip Benitius , from Florence, 13th century...
in Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
.
The Portuguese settled the island in 1500. The island used to have slavery. Emigration started in 1850, mainly to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. The 1910 civil revolution in Portugal
5 October 1910 revolution
The revolution of 1910 was a republican coup d'état that occurred in Portugal on 5 October 1910, which deposed King Manuel II and established the Portuguese First Republic....
drew aristocracy and large landowners back to Portugal and left civilians behind. A small museum on Fogo explains many of these connections.
Economy
The economy of the island is based on agriculture and fishing, with coffeeCoffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
and wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
among the main products. Many private households live off remittances from emigrants in the US and other countries as the island has a substantial diaspora. Many emigrants send some money to their relatives in the island even if the senders and receivers no longer know each other. Tourism is steadily becoming popular. The volcano is the island's major attraction but many visitors also come to see relatives. The historic city of São Filipe and Chã das Caldeiras
Chã das Caldeiras
Chã das Caldeiras is a small community of approximately 1,000 inhabitants, situated within the crater of the volcanic Pico do Fogo on the island of Fogo, one of nine inhabited islands comprising the West African nation of Cape Verde...
in the volcanic crater receive the bulk of visitors. It used to have slaves.
Municipalities
- São FilipeSão Filipe, Cape VerdeSão Filipe , or San Filipi in Cape Verdean Creole, is the city that constitutes the seat of the São Filipe Municipality, in Cape Verde.It is located SW of the island and in the southwestern part of the island...
- Santa Catarina do FogoSanta Catarina, Cape VerdeSanta Catarina is a municipality located in the northwestern and the western parts of the island of Santiago in Sotavento in Cape Verde. The municipal population is around 49,829, the area is 243 km² and the density is about 205/km². The seat of the municipality is Assomada...
- MosteirosMosteiros, Cape VerdeMosteiros is a municipality located in the northeastern part of the island of Fogo in Sotavento in southern Cape Verde. The municipal population is around 9,449. The seat of the municipality is Vila dos Mosteiros....
Languages
As in the rest of Cape Verde, PortuguesePortuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
is the official language but in daily life people speak the Fogo dialect
Fogo Creole
Fogo Creole is the name given to the variant of Cape Verdean Creole spoken mainly in the Fogo of Cape Verde. It has around 50,000 speakers or nearly 5% of Cape Verdean Creole speakers including the diaspora's second language speakers. It belongs to the Sotavento Creoles branch...
of Cape Verdean Creole.
Sporting teams
- ABC de Patim
- Académica
- Achda Fluminense
- BeiraMar
- Botafogo - São Filipe
- Cutelinho FC
- Desportivo de Cova FigueiraDesportivo de Cova FigueiraDesportivo De Cova Figueira Clube Futebol is a football club that plays in the Fogo Island League in Cape Verde, and it is based in Fogo. Founded by residents of Cova Figueira, it has won 3 titles since 1996...
- Juventude
- Lapinha FC
- Luz Verde
- Nó Pintcha dos Mosteiros
- Spartak
- União de São Lourenço
- Vulcânicos - São Filipe
External links
- Informations and impressions from Fogo
- Caboverde.com
- University of Massachusetts - information and images from Fogo
- Photos of Fogo