In the 2021 census, there were 151,103 inhabitants in the metropolitan area of Cayenne (as defined byINSEE),[3] 63,468 of whom lived in the city (commune) of Cayenne proper.[7]
The Spanish explorers who first visited the area found the region too hot and therefore chose not to settle it. The region was not colonized until 1604, when the French founded their first settlement. However, it was soon destroyed by thePortuguese, determined to enforce theTreaty of Tordesillas. French colonists returned in 1643 and founded Cayenne, but were forced to leave once more following the attacks by the localIndigenous Amerindian population. In 1664, France finally established a permanent settlement at Cayenne. Over the next decade the colony changed hands between the French,Dutch, andEnglish, before being restored to France.[citation needed] Cayenne was made a municipality in 1790.[8] It wascaptured by an Anglo-Portuguese force in 1809 and administered from Brazil until 1814, when it was returned to French control. It was used as a Frenchpenal colony from 1854 to 1938.[citation needed]
Pedestrian street not far from Fort Cépérou.
The city's population has grown dramatically over time, owing to high levels of immigration (chiefly from theWest Indies and Brazil) as well as a high birth rate.
Cayenne is located on theestuary of theCayenne River on the Atlantic Ocean. The city occupies part of Cayenne Island. It is 268 kilometres (167 mi) fromSaint-Laurent-du-Maroni and 64 kilometres (40 mi) fromKourou.[9]
Paramaribo, capital ofSuriname: 342 kilometres (213 mi) to the northwest
Macapá, capital of the state ofAmapá, Brazil: 554 kilometres (344 mi) to the southeast
Mexico City, capital of Mexico: 5,534 kilometres (3,439 mi) to the northwest
San Diego, southwestern city inCalifornia, United States: 7,363 kilometres (4,575 mi) to the northwest
2003 (left) and 2012 (right) aerial views of Cayenne. Note: themangrove, which had invaded the coastline of Cayenne in the late 2000s, has completely disappeared as of the late 2010s.[11]
The commune of Cayenne with its formercantons in the early 2010s.(note: the cantons were abolished in 2015)
Cayenne is acommune of the French Republic and as such, administered by a mayor and a municipal council. The current mayor is Sandra Trochimara, who was 1st deputy mayor under the former mayorMarie-Laure Phinéra-Horth, and succeeded her as mayor of Cayenne in October 2020 after Phinéra-Horth won the localSenate race the month before (under French law, members of theFrench Senate cannot exercise the mandate of mayor). Marie-Laure Phinéra-Horth, a former member of theGuianese Socialist Party, daughter of a former president of theGeneral Council of French Guiana, Stéphan Phinéra-Horth, from the Guianese Socialist Party, who governed the department of French Guiana from 1994 to 1998, was supported by various left-wing parties and had been mayor of Cayenne since 2010.[12][13]
Town hall
As in the rest of France, the small size of the commune of Cayenne does not cover the entire urban area of Cayenne. This has led to the creation of anintercommunal authority which groups Cayenne and five suburban communes: thecommunauté d'agglomération du Centre Littoral. The current president of the intercommunal authority of Centre Littoral since November 2020 has been Serge Smock, mayor ofMatoury, who ran on a centrist platform affiliated withEmmanuel Macron'sLREM party and defeated Sandra Trochimara, successor of Marie-Laure Phinéra-Horth as mayor of Cayenne, who was also trying to succeed her as president of the intercommunal authority with the support of an array of Left-wing parties. It is the first time since 2001 that the intercommunal authority is not presided by the mayor of Cayenne.[14] Marie-Laure Phinéra-Horthwas was president of the intercommunal authority of Centre Littoral from 2014 to 2020, and did not run for reelection due to her election to the French Senate in September 2020.
The intercommunal authority of Centre Littoral, which levies its own taxes, is in charge of refuse collection, water supply and sewage treatment, urban planning, and public transport for the 5,087 km2 (1,964 sq mi) of Cayenne and its suburbs.
Until 2015, the commune of Cayenne was divided into sixcantons, but these were abolished in 2015 when the department and the region of French Guiana were abolished and replaced by the French Guiana Territorial Collectivity.
26.7% in other foreign countries (notablyHaiti and Brazil, followed bySuriname andGuyana); among these, 25.0% were immigrants and 1.7% were children of French citizens born abroad
These were the countries of birth of the immigrants living in the Cayenne metropolitan area at the 2009 census:[18]
Health conditions in Cayenne and French Guiana are generally good. The principal illnesses that cause mortality are circulatory, infectious and parasitic diseases, as well as cancer. A branch of thePasteur Institute in Paris, located in Cayenne, conducts research on tropical and endemic local diseases and is renowned throughoutLatin America. Life expectancy averages about 76 years for men and 83 years for women.[19] The main hospital of the city is theAndrée-Rosemon Hospital which opened in 1992.[20]
Direction départementale de l'Agriculture et de la Forêt (Office of Departmental Service for Forests and Agriculture)
Cayenne is an important seaport in South America. The major port ofDégrad des Cannes is on theestuary of the riverMahury, replacing Larivot and theÎles du Salut.Timber, rosewood essence, rum, and gold are exported in small quantities. In the mid-1960ssugarcane and pineapple were planted around the city, and a pineapplecannery and a shrimp-processing plant were later built. A seafront avenue links Cayenne with the suburbs of Chaton and Montabo, where the French Institute of Tropical America and the Pasteur Institute are located. Historic landmarks include the Church of the Holy Saviour and a prefecture on the Place d'Armes. TheFélix Eboué International Airport is the only international airport serving Cayenne.[21]
Under theKöppen climate classification, Cayenne has atropical monsoon climate (Am) bordering on anequatorial climate (Af). Average high and low temperatures are nearly identical throughout the course of the year, averaging about 30 °C (86 °F) and 23 °C (73 °F) respectively, although temperatures are somewhat cooler in the wet season than in the dry season. Cayenne sees copious precipitation during the year, with its weather being more strongly affected by theIntertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) than thetrade winds. The city experiences a very lengthywet season and a very shortdry season – the dry season covers only August to October, while the wet season covers the remainder of the year. Some precipitation is seen even during the dry season, a trait common in tropical climates. Cayenne averages roughly 3,500 millimetres (140 in) of rain each year.
Comparison of local Meteorological data with other cities in France[22]
The high altar, the pulpit, and the confessional of the penitentiary chapel on theÎlet la Mère were transferred to the cathedral in 1876.
In 1933, the church was declared a cathedral. It was consecrated in November 1934 by monseigneurPierre Gourtay [fr], the first bishop of Guyana. In 1952, construction workers discovered a lead case containing 21 coins, the oldest of which dated to theNapoleonic period, and 20 seals from the reign ofCharles X.
Between 1952 and 1954, the ceiling, the windows, and the floors of the tribunal were replaced. The bell tower was renovated in 2000–01.[28]
Fort Cépérou, originally known as Fort Saint-Michel, is a 17th-century fortification on Mount Cépérou, named forthe Amerindian chief who in 1643 sold the rock on which it stands to the FrenchmanCharles Poncet de Brétigny, governor of Cayenne in 1644–1645.[29]
View of Cayenne from Fort Cépérou with belfry in foreground, May 2015.
Initially it was a plaza to aerate the city after the demolition of the city walls in 1810. It was named Place de la Savane ("Savanna Square") after the grasses that grew there. Later someroyal palms from the area ofGuisanbourg were planted there, and the plaza was renamed Place des Palmistes ("Royal Palms' Square"). In 1880, a bronze column was erected bearing the bust of theMarianne, commemorating the seizure of theBastille. GovernorGaston Gerville-Reache transformed the plaza into an English garden, with artificial hills, masses of flowers and ornamental plants. Because it regularly flooded in the rain, Governor Marc Chanel in 1925 bordered it with a network of cemented canals, still there to this day. A statue ofFélix Éboué, an illustrious Guianan, stands at the Merlet fountain.[30] Today it is a lively place where the residents meet. In the evening, food carts sell French fries, sandwiches, local juices and other street food, andbami and lassi (Javanese delicacies brought in by way ofSuriname).
Botanical garden of Cayenne, with a statue ofGaston Monnerville statue at its center.
In 1786,Louis XVI had a garden that served as a storehouse and nursery for various plants and trees from various locations.Louis Claude Richard, director of the garden, brought from India nutmeg trees, rattan, cardamom andblack pepper vines. At this period, it was called King's Garden. In 1821 a house was built for the botanist.[31] In 1879, the park changed its name and became the Botanical Garden, a floral park in the city center. It covers an area of three hectares. A statue ofGaston Monnerville stands in the garden's center.[32]
Right aisle of the Cayenne market.La place du Coq.
These two adjoining buildings are located near the old port of Cayenne. As early as 1703, a Place du Port appears on a map of the city of Cayenne. It then became Place du Marché in 1842. In 1888, a covered market and a public garden were built there. In 1907 the municipal council led by mayor Eugène Gobert decided to remove the garden and build a new covered market, the one we know today. In 1920 thewar memorial of theFirst World War was inaugurated on the site of the old market, surmounted by a rooster, which gave the place its current name.
Thevillage chionois (Chinese Village) in Cayenne is located on the edge of the city's center along the Cayenne River.[33] Colloquially known aslaCrique orChikago, the neighborhood is reportedly a top destination for internal migration from elsewhere in French Guiana.[34]
Carnival parade in the streets of Cayenne in 2006.Carnival parade in Cayenne in 2007
This festival is part of theGuianan Creole culture. It was originally a carnival as practiced in Europe. In earlycolonial times, the settlers held the carnival, but it was forbidden to slaves. Braving the ban, slaves held clandestine festivals to regain some freedom, celebrate Africans, fertility and harvest, and make fun of the settlers.
Groups disguised according to the theme of the year march to the rhythm of drums and brass in a parade around decorated floats. These groups prepare for months for to parade in front of thousands of spectators massed on the sidewalks and the stands erected for the occasion.
The best-known groups are:
Kassialata
Reno Band
OsBand
les Belles de la Madeleine
Brazilian bands just like to those at theRio Carnival are also appreciated for their alluring rhythms and costumes, and Asian community of Cayenne brings dragons to the parade as well.
Nightclubs, called "universities" in this context, organize masked balls in which men come to dance withTouloulous at soirées held on Friday and Saturday nights. This tradition is peculiar to French Guiana, and does not exist anywhere else.
The carnival dances are thepolka,mazurka,biguine andpiké djouk. The Touloulou invite the men to dance, and the men cannot refuse. Only Touloulous have the right to dance, and if a undisguised woman tries to dance, the orchestra stops playing.[35]
Since the 1990s, tololo parties have been held where men disguise themselves and play the role of the Touloulous, inviting undisguised women to dance. These evenings are more and more popular and take place several times during the carnival.
The family carnival
Families gather every week to eatking cake, a European tradition observed throughout the carnival. The cake can be frangipane, cream, coconut orguava.
After the abolition of slavery in 1848, the economy of French Guiana was devastated, and much of the population lived by working the land in “habitations”. People farmed and knew the value of working together. The tradition of the king cake was born in the Guiana of this period, or more precisely, “rend le bouquet”. One couple organized the meal and celebration, and at its end designated the couple who would organize the following gathering by handing them the bouquet.
Cayenne centres on its main commercial street, the Avenue Général de Gaulle. At the east end of the avenue near the coast is the Place des Palmistes and the Place de Grenoble (also known as the Place Léopold Héder). Most of the official buildings are located in this area: theHôtel de Ville (town hall), the Post Office, thePréfecture, residence of French Guiana's Préfect, and the Musée Départmental Franconie. To the west of this area liesFort Cépérou, built in the 17th century, though now mostly in ruins. To the south lie the Place du Coq and Place Victor Schoelcher (named in honour of the anti-slavery activist) and a market. The Hôtel de Ville was completed in 1924.[36]
To the south of this compact region is theVillage Chinois (known as Chicago), separated from the rest of Cayenne by the Canal Laussat. It has a reputation for being a dangerous area.
Other buildings in the city includeCayenne Cathedral, municipal library, the municipal museum and a museum of French Guianese Culture (Musée des Cultures Guyanaise) and a scientific research institute (IRD or Institut de recherche pour le développement, formerly Orstom). TheJardin botanique de Cayenne is the city'sbotanical garden.
French Guiana's main seaport is the port ofDégrad des Cannes, located on theestuary of theMahury River, in the commune ofRemire-Montjoly, a south-eastern suburb of Cayenne. Almost all of French Guiana's imports and exports pass through the port of Dégrad des Cannes. Built in 1974, it replaced the old harbour of Cayenne which was congested and could not cope with modern traffic.[37][38]
^"La sécurité routière en Guyane"(PDF) (in French). Ministère de l'Écologie, du Développement durable, des Transports et du Logement. 2010. Retrieved19 March 2021.
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