Ganvie
Encyclopedia
Ganvie is a lake village in Benin
, lying in Lake Nokoué
, near Cotonou
. With a population of around 20,000 people, it is probably the largest lake village in Africa and as such is very popular with tourists.
The village was established in the sixteenth or seventeenth centuries by the Tofinu people, established on the lake because the Dahomey
's (a slave trading tribe) religion forbade the Fon
warriors from entering water, therefore the lagoon was a safe territory for other tribes.
Originally based on farming, the village's main industries other than tourism are now fishing and fish farming
.
World Heritage Tentative List on October 31, 1996 in the Cultural category.
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
, lying in Lake Nokoué
Lake Nokoué
Lake Nokoué is a lake in southern Benin. It is 20 km wide and 11 km long and is located at , north of Cotonou. On the northern edge is the famous water town of Ganvié. Lake Nokoué is an important site for the birds.- External links :*...
, near Cotonou
Cotonou
-Demographics:*1979: 320,348 *1992: 536,827 *2002: 665,100 *2005: 690,584 The main languages spoken in Cotonou include the Fon language, Aja language, Yoruba language and French.-Transport:...
. With a population of around 20,000 people, it is probably the largest lake village in Africa and as such is very popular with tourists.
The village was established in the sixteenth or seventeenth centuries by the Tofinu people, established on the lake because the Dahomey
Dahomey
Dahomey was a country in west Africa in what is now the Republic of Benin. The Kingdom of Dahomey was a powerful west African state that was founded in the seventeenth century and survived until 1894. From 1894 until 1960 Dahomey was a part of French West Africa. The independent Republic of Dahomey...
's (a slave trading tribe) religion forbade the Fon
Fon people
The Fon people, or Fon nu, are a major West African ethnic and linguistic group in the country of Benin, and southwest Nigeria, made up of more than 3,500,000 people. The Fon language is the main language spoken in Southern Benin, and is a member of the Gbe language group...
warriors from entering water, therefore the lagoon was a safe territory for other tribes.
Originally based on farming, the village's main industries other than tourism are now fishing and fish farming
Fish farming
Fish farming is the principal form of aquaculture, while other methods may fall under mariculture. Fish farming involves raising fish commercially in tanks or enclosures, usually for food. A facility that releases young fish into the wild for recreational fishing or to supplement a species'...
.
World Heritage Status
The village was added to the UNESCOUNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage Tentative List on October 31, 1996 in the Cultural category.