Gabon Estuary

Gabon Estuary
Inlet of the Gulf of Guinea, western Gabon.

Fed by the Como and Mbeï rivers, it is 40 mi (64 km) long and 9 mi (14 km) wide at its mouth. It was explored in the 1470s by Portuguese navigators and was long considered the finest harbour of the West African coast. Libreville is its main port.

* * *

French  Estuaire Du Gabon,  

      inlet of the Gulf of Guinea, in western Gabon. It is fed by the Como and Mbeï rivers, which rise in the Cristal Mountains to the northeast. The estuary is 40 miles (64 km) long and 9 miles (14 km) wide at its mouth. It was explored in the 1470s by Portuguese navigators who may have named it Gabão (“Hooded Cloak with Sleeves”; hence Gabon) because of its shape, and it was long considered the finest harbour of the West African coast.

      The main port on the estuary, Libreville, became Gabon's national capital and largest city. Logs are floated down the Como River to Owendo and Libreville on the estuary's northwest shore, and hydroelectric power is provided to the locality by a dam at Kinguélé upstream on the Mbeï River.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Gabon Estuary — The Gabon River or Gabon Estuary is a short wide estuary in the west of Gabon. The capital Libreville has a large port on the north bank of the estuary which collects water from the River Komo and River Ebe. The estuary empties into the Gulf of… …   Wikipedia

  • Gabon — /gann bawonn /, n. 1. Official name, Gabonese Republic. a republic in W equatorial Africa: formerly a part of French Equatorial Africa; member of the French Community. 1,190,159; 102,290 sq. mi. (264,931 sq. km). Cap.: Libreville. 2. an estuary… …   Universalium

  • Gabon — For other uses, see Gabon (disambiguation). Gabonese Republic République Gabonaise …   Wikipedia

  • Gabon — geographical name 1. (or Gaboon) (or Gabun) river NW Gabon flowing into the Atlantic through long wide estuary 2. country W Africa on the Atlantic; formerly a territory of French Equatorial Africa, since 1958 a republic capital Libreville area… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Gabon — Ga•bon [[t]gaˈbɔ̃[/t]] also Gabun n. 1) geg Official name, Gab′onese Repub′lic. a republic in W equatorial Africa: formerly a part of French Equatorial Africa; member of the French Community. 1,225,853; 102,290 sq. mi. (264,931 sq. km) Cap.:… …   From formal English to slang

  • Santa Clara, Gabon — Infobox Settlement official name = Santa Clara, Gabon other name = native name = nickname = settlement type = motto = imagesize = image caption = flag size = image seal size = image shield = shield size = image blank emblem = blank emblem type =… …   Wikipedia

  • History of Gabon — This article documents the History of Gabon.Early historyFrom the 1300s until the present time Bantu groups immigrated into Gabon from several directions to escape enemies or to find new land. Little is known of tribal life before European… …   Wikipedia

  • United States Ambassador to Gabon — In the 15th century, the area of central Africa that is now the nation of Gabon was populated by Bantu groups. Little is known of their civilization prior to European contact.Gabon’s first confirmed European visitors were Portuguese traders who… …   Wikipedia

  • Owendo — ▪ Gabon  deepwater port, northwestern Gabon, on the north shore of the Gabon Estuary; it serves the national capital, Libreville (9 miles [15 km] north northwest), and was designed to handle ore vessels. It has a seaplane base and road… …   Universalium

  • Kango — ▪ Gabon       town, northwestern Gabon. The town is situated about 50 miles (80 km) east of Libreville and lies on the Como River at the head of the Gabon Estuary. Kango is the site of one of Africa s largest cellulose and paper pulp factories,… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”