Saint-Louis, Senegal
Encyclopedia
Saint-Louis, or Ndar as it is called in Wolof
, is the capital of Senegal
's Saint-Louis Region
. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River
, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar
, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis was the capital of the French colony of Senegal from 1673 until 1902. From 1902 until its independence from France the capital was Dakar
. From 1920 to 1957 it also served as the capital of the neighboring colony of Mauritania
.
(300 m wide), which has also been urbanized (the seaside neighborhoods of Ndar Tout and Guet Ndar). Yet a third part of the city, Sor, lies on the eastern mainland and is nearly surrounded by tidal marshes
. Saint-Louis is situated on the Mauritanian
border, though the border crossing is at Rosso
, 100 km upstream.
Three characteristics give Saint-Louis its distinctive geographic appearance: the Sahel
, the marshes and the Langue de Barbarie.
s and is disturbed by sand storms during the dry season.
("Tongue of Barbary"), a 600 km long stretch of sand from Nouadhibou
in Mauritania to Saint-Louis, over a stretch of 25 km separates the lower Senegal River
from the Atlantic Ocean. Its vegetation mainly consists of Filao trees, propagated to prevent soil erosion in sandy and salty soils.
winds. The city was named the most flooded city on the planet by a BBC documentary in May, 2011 due to the intense rainfall during the rainy season.
Saint-Louis was established in 1659 by French traders on an uninhabited island called Ndar. It was baptized Saint-Louis-du-Fort in homage to the French king Louis XIV. It was the first permanent French settlement in Senegal. The fortified factory commanded trade along the Senegal River. Slaves, hides, beeswax, ambergris and, later, gum arabic were exported. During the Seven Years War it was captured by British forces
in 1758, but was later returned to France. In the late 18th century, Saint Louis had about 5,000 inhabitants, not counting an indeterminate number of slaves in transit. "Saint-Louis became the leading urban centre in sub-Saharan Africa”.
Between 1659 and 1779, nine chartered companies succeeded one another in administering Saint-Louis. As in Gorée
, a Franco-African Creole, or Métis
, merchant community characterized by the famous "signares", or bourgeois women entrepreneurs, grew up in Saint-Louis during the 17th and 18th centuries. The Métis
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
mayor was first designated by the Governor in 1778. Civic franchise was further consolidated in 1872, when Saint-Louis became a French "commune".
Louis Faidherbe
, who became the Governor of the Colony of Senegal in 1854, contributed greatly to the development and modenization 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
. Saint-Louis became capital of the federation of French West African colonies in 1895, but relinquished this role to Dakar in 1902.
Saint-Louis’ 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
, took over the new commercial networks of the interior, marginalizing the Métis
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.
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 in 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 capitol 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.
, Cartagena
, Havana
and New Orleans. 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
Island.
, the Fauna Reserve of Gueumbeul, beaches like that of the Langue de Barbarie
, the colonial waterworks at Makhana, the palace of Baron Roger at Richard-Toll, the Maka-Diama dam, 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 Patas monkey
and the African Spurred Tortoise
.
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. Other 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
, colonial-era hotels, the historic airport at Dakar-Bango on the mainland, the Grande Mosquée, the Faidherbe Bridge
that connects the island to the Langue de Barbarie and the Gaol and Servatius bridges that connect the island to the continent.
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 were aired on the radio. After WWII, 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.
The city was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site 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.
live in the inland and practice pastoral farming. The Maures who are migrants from Mauritania (Saint-Louis is less than six miles south of the border with Mauritania) are mostly merchants, traders and shopkeepers found everywhere in Saint Louis.
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.
now threaten the low lying islands which make up the city. In June 2008, Alioune Badiane of the United Nations
' UN-Habitat
agency designated Saint-Louis as "the city most threatened by rising sea levels in the whole of Africa", citing climate change
and a failed 2004 river and tidal canal project as the cause.
, the fathers Jean-Baptiste Labat
, Abbé David Boilat, and Daniel Brattier, the naturalist Michel Adanson
, Louis Faidherbe
, politicians Blaise Diagne
and Lamine Guèye, the boxer Mbarick Fall aka Battling Siki, the soccer player El Hadji Diouf
, University of Virginia basketball player Assane Sene, Maine Red Claws center Bamba Fall
and the French photographer François-Edmond Fortier
. Syracuse Orange forward Baye Moussa Keita
, United States
Fes
, Morocco
, since 1979 Liège
, Belgium
Bologna
, Italy
, since 1991 Toulouse
, France
, since 2003 Fortaleza
, Brazil
, since 2006
Events in Saint-Louis, Senegal
Wolof language
Wolof is a language spoken in Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania, and is the native language of the Wolof people. Like the neighbouring languages Serer and Fula, it belongs to the Atlantic branch of the Niger–Congo language family...
, is the capital of Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
's Saint-Louis Region
Saint-Louis Region
The Saint-Louis Region of Senegal is on the border with Mauritania. Its capital is Saint-Louis.Famous for its cast iron bridge, built by French colonialists in the 19th century, it is close to the Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary, home to thousands of birds, some indigenous to the...
. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River
Sénégal River
The Sénégal River is a long river in West Africa that forms the border between Senegal and Mauritania.The Sénégal's headwaters are the Semefé and Bafing rivers which both originate in Guinea; they form a small part of the Guinean-Malian border before coming together at Bafoulabé in Mali...
, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis was the capital of the French colony of Senegal from 1673 until 1902. From 1902 until its independence from France the capital was Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
. From 1920 to 1957 it also served as the capital of the neighboring colony of Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
.
Geography
The heart of the old colonial city is located on a narrow island (just over 2 km long and about 400 m wide) in the Senegal River, 25 km from its mouth. At this point the river is separated from the Atlantic Ocean to the west by a narrow sand spit, the Langue de BarbarieLangue de Barbarie
The Langue de Barbarie is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis.. The peninsula separates the ocean from the final section of the Senegal River...
(300 m wide), which has also been urbanized (the seaside neighborhoods of Ndar Tout and Guet Ndar). Yet a third part of the city, Sor, lies on the eastern mainland and is nearly surrounded by tidal marshes
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
. Saint-Louis is situated on the Mauritanian
Mauritanian
Mauritanian may refer to:* Something of, from, or related to Mauritania, a country in northwest Africa.* A person from Mauritania, or of Mauritanian descent. For information about the Mauritanian people, see Demographics of Mauritania....
border, though the border crossing is at Rosso
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 year-round navigation. The town is 204 km south of the capital Nouakchott...
, 100 km upstream.
Three characteristics give Saint-Louis its distinctive geographic appearance: the Sahel
Sahel
The Sahel is the ecoclimatic and biogeographic zone of transition between the Sahara desert in the North and the Sudanian Savannas in the south.It stretches across the North African continent between the Atlantic Ocean and the Red Sea....
, the marshes and the Langue de Barbarie.
The Sahel
Part of the Sahel, a transitional desertic band that separates “[…] the dunes of the Sahara from the baobabs of the savanna”, Saint-Louis’ landscape is characterized by occasional acaciaAcacia
Acacia is a genus of shrubs and trees belonging to the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae, first described in Africa by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1773. Many non-Australian species tend to be thorny, whereas the majority of Australian acacias are not...
s and is disturbed by sand storms during the dry season.
The Marshes
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 and pelicans.The Langue de Barbarie
The Langue de BarbarieLangue de Barbarie
The Langue de Barbarie is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis.. The peninsula separates the ocean from the final section of the Senegal River...
("Tongue of Barbary"), a 600 km long stretch of sand from Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou is the second largest city in Mauritania and serves as a major commercial centre. The city itself has about 75,000 inhabitants expanding to over 90,000 in the larger metropolitan area. It is situated on a 40-mile peninsula or headland called Ras Nouadhibou, Cap Blanc, or Cabo Blanco, of...
in Mauritania to Saint-Louis, over a stretch of 25 km separates the lower Senegal River
Sénégal River
The Sénégal River is a long river in West Africa that forms the border between Senegal and Mauritania.The Sénégal's headwaters are the Semefé and Bafing rivers which both originate in Guinea; they form a small part of the Guinean-Malian border before coming together at Bafoulabé in Mali...
from the Atlantic Ocean. Its vegetation mainly consists of Filao trees, propagated to prevent soil erosion in sandy and salty soils.
Climate
Saint-Louis 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 HarmattanHarmattan
The Harmattan is a dry and dusty West African trade wind. It blows south from the Sahara into the Gulf of Guinea between the end of November and the middle of March...
winds. The city was named the most flooded city on the planet by a BBC documentary in May, 2011 due to the intense rainfall during the rainy season.
History
Capture of Senegal
The Capture of Senegal took place in 1758 when a British military expedition landed and captured the French settlement of Saint-Louis, Senegal during the Seven Years War.-Background:...
in 1758, but was later returned to France. In the late 18th century, Saint Louis had about 5,000 inhabitants, not counting an indeterminate number of slaves in transit. "Saint-Louis became the leading urban centre in sub-Saharan Africa”.
Gorée
Île de Gorée Île de Gorée Île de Gorée (i.e. "Gorée Island"; is one of the 19 communes d'arrondissement (i.e. "commune of arrondissement") of the city of Dakar, Senegal. It is a island located at sea from the main harbor of Dakar ....
, a Franco-African Creole, or Métis
Métis
A Métis is a person born to parents who belong to different groups defined by visible physical differences, regarded as racial, or the descendant of such persons. The term is of French origin, and also is a cognate of mestizo in Spanish, mestiço in Portuguese, and mestee in English...
, merchant community characterized by the famous "signares", or bourgeois women entrepreneurs, grew up in Saint-Louis during the 17th and 18th centuries. The Métis
Métis
A Métis is a person born to parents who belong to different groups defined by visible physical differences, regarded as racial, or the descendant of such persons. The term is of French origin, and also is a cognate of mestizo in Spanish, mestiço in Portuguese, and mestee in English...
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
Métis
A Métis is a person born to parents who belong to different groups defined by visible physical differences, regarded as racial, or the descendant of such persons. The term is of French origin, and also is a cognate of mestizo in Spanish, mestiço in Portuguese, and mestee in English...
mayor was first designated by the Governor in 1778. Civic franchise was further consolidated in 1872, when Saint-Louis became a French "commune".
Louis Faidherbe
Louis Faidherbe
Louis Léon César Faidherbe was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal.- Background :...
, who became the Governor of the Colony of Senegal in 1854, contributed greatly to the development and modenization 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
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
. Saint-Louis became capital of the federation of French West African colonies in 1895, but relinquished this role to Dakar in 1902.
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
, took over the new commercial networks of the interior, marginalizing the Métis
Métis
A Métis is a person born to parents who belong to different groups defined by visible physical differences, regarded as racial, or the descendant of such persons. The term is of French origin, and also is a cognate of mestizo in Spanish, mestiço in Portuguese, and mestee in English...
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
Tourism
Tourism 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”: BahiaBahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
, Cartagena
Cartagena, Spain
Cartagena is a Spanish city and a major naval station located in the Region of Murcia, by the Mediterranean coast, south-eastern Spain. As of January 2011, it has a population of 218,210 inhabitants being the Region’s second largest municipality and the country’s 6th non-Province capital...
, Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
and New Orleans. 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
Île de Gorée Île de Gorée Île de Gorée (i.e. "Gorée Island"; is one of the 19 communes d'arrondissement (i.e. "commune of arrondissement") of the city of Dakar, Senegal. It is a island located at sea from the main harbor of Dakar ....
Island.
Natural sites
Among Saint-Louis’ numerous natural sites we have the National Park of the Langue de Barbarie, the National Park of the Birds of DjoudjDjoudj National Bird Sanctuary
The Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary lies on the southeast bank of the River Senegal in Senegal, in northern Biffeche, north east of St-Louis. It provides a range of wetland habitats which prove very popular with migrating birds, many of which have just crossed the Sahara. Of almost 400 species of...
, the Fauna Reserve of Gueumbeul, beaches like that of the Langue de Barbarie
Langue de Barbarie
The Langue de Barbarie is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis.. The peninsula separates the ocean from the final section of the Senegal River...
, the colonial waterworks at Makhana, the palace of Baron Roger at Richard-Toll, the Maka-Diama dam, and various hunting lodges on the south side of the Senegal River.
National Park of the Langue de Barbarie
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.
National Park of the Birds of Djoudj
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.
Fauna Reserve of Guembeul
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
Dama Gazelle
The Dama Gazelle is a species of gazelle. It lives in Africa in the Sahara desert and migrates south in search of food during the dry season. Their habitat includes open steppes, bushy, grassy steppes, semi-desert, and deserts, while their diet includes grasses, leaves, shoots, fruit, and...
, the Patas monkey
Patas Monkey
The patas monkey , 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. It is the only species classified in the genus Erythrocebus...
and the African Spurred Tortoise
African Spurred Tortoise
The African spurred tortoise , also called the African spur thigh tortoise or the sulcata tortoise, is a species of tortoise which inhabits the southern edge of the Sahara desert, in northern Africa...
.
Museums, monuments and edifices
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. Other 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 Faidherbe
Louis Léon César Faidherbe was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal.- Background :...
, colonial-era hotels, the historic airport at Dakar-Bango on the mainland, the Grande Mosquée, the Faidherbe Bridge
Faidherbe Bridge
Faidherbe Bridge is a road bridge over the Sénégal 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 which the longest five are ....
that connects the island to the Langue de Barbarie and the Gaol and Servatius bridges that connect the island to the continent.
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 were aired on the radio. After WWII, 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.
Other economic activities
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 FulasFula people
Fula people or Fulani or Fulbe are an ethnic group spread over many countries, predominantly in West Africa, but found also in Central Africa and Sudanese North Africa...
live in the inland and practice pastoral farming. The Maures who are migrants from Mauritania (Saint-Louis is less than six miles south of the border with Mauritania) are mostly merchants, traders and shopkeepers found everywhere in Saint Louis.
Saint-Louis:World Heritage
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.
Threats to old city
Rising sea levels, as well as water levels flowing out of the Senegal RiverSénégal River
The Sénégal River is a long river in West Africa that forms the border between Senegal and Mauritania.The Sénégal's headwaters are the Semefé and Bafing rivers which both originate in Guinea; they form a small part of the Guinean-Malian border before coming together at Bafoulabé in Mali...
now threaten the low lying islands which make up the city. In June 2008, Alioune Badiane of the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
' UN-Habitat
United Nations Human Settlements Programme
The United Nations Human Settlements Programme is the United Nations agency for human settlements. It was established in 1978 and has its headquarters at the United Nations Office at Nairobi, Kenya...
agency designated Saint-Louis as "the city most threatened by rising sea levels in the whole of Africa", citing climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
and a failed 2004 river and tidal canal project as the cause.
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.Gaston Berger University of Saint-Louis
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.Prytanée Militaire of Saint-Louis
The Military Academy Charles Ntchorere, commonly known as the Prytanee Militaire of Saint Louis, was created in 1922. The school’s mission today is to provide pupils from various African countries not only with a secondary education, but also a moral formation on the principles of patriotism, honor and discipline.Notable inhabitants
Saint Louis has been the birthplace or home of famous men such as El Hadj Malick Sy, Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba Mbacké, Alfred-Amédée DoddsAlfred-Amédée Dodds
Alfred-Amédée Dodds was a French General, commander of French forces in Sénégal from 1890, commander of French forces in the second expeditionary force to suppress The Boxer Rebellion, and commander of French forces during the Second Franco-Dahomean War...
, the fathers Jean-Baptiste Labat
Jean-Baptiste Labat
Jean-Baptiste Labat was a French clergyman, botanist, writer, explorer, ethnographer, soldier, engineer, and landowner.-Life:...
, Abbé David Boilat, and Daniel Brattier, the naturalist Michel Adanson
Michel Adanson
Michel Adanson was a French naturalist of Scottish descent.Adanson was born at Aix-en-Provence. His family moved to Paris on 1730. After leaving the College Sainte Barbe he was employed in the cabinets of R. A. F. Reaumur and Bernard de Jussieu, as well as in the Jardin des Plantes. At the end of...
, Louis Faidherbe
Louis Faidherbe
Louis Léon César Faidherbe was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal.- Background :...
, politicians Blaise Diagne
Blaise Diagne
Blaise Diagne was a French political leader, the first black African elected to the French National Assembly, and mayor of Dakar.- Background :...
and Lamine Guèye, the boxer Mbarick Fall aka Battling Siki, the soccer player El Hadji Diouf
El Hadji Diouf
El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf is a Senegalese footballer who currently plays for Doncaster Rovers. He can play on both wings as well as in attack. He has also garnered a large amount of notoriety for a series of controversial incidents.-Early career:Diouf started his career in France with...
, University of Virginia basketball player Assane Sene, Maine Red Claws center Bamba Fall
Bamba Fall
Bamba Fall is a Senegalese basketball center currently playing for BC Kalev/Cramo. He played college basketball at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, USA as well as playing internationally with the Senegal national basketball team.-College career:Fall attended Oak Hill Academy from...
and the French photographer François-Edmond Fortier
François-Edmond Fortier
François-Edmond Fortier was a French documentary photographer, editor and ethnographer.He published over 3000 postcards of French West Africa . These were published during his lifetime, with or without his permission, in more than 10 books...
. Syracuse Orange forward Baye Moussa Keita
Twinnings
St. LouisSt. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Fes
Fes
Fes or Fez is the second largest city of Morocco, after Casablanca, with a population of approximately 1 million . It is the capital of the Fès-Boulemane region....
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, since 1979 Liège
Liège
Liège is a major city and municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège, of which it is the economic capital, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium....
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, since 1991 Toulouse
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, since 2003 Fortaleza
Fortaleza
Fortaleza is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeastern Brazil. With a population close to 2.5 million , Fortaleza is the 5th largest city in Brazil. It has an area of and one of the highest demographic densities in the country...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, since 2006
External links
- Senegal's decaying city of charm, Tidiane Sy, BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
, 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, 2004.
Events in Saint-Louis, Senegal