Porto-Novo (Portuguese for 'New Port',Portuguese pronunciation:[ˈpoɾtuˈnovu],French pronunciation:[pɔʁtɔnɔvo];Yoruba:Àjàṣẹ́;Fon:Xɔ̀gbónù; also known asHogbonu andAjashe) is thecapital andsecond-largest city ofBenin. The commune covers an area of 110 square kilometres (42 sq mi) and as of 2002 had a population of 223,552 people.[2][3]
Situated on an inlet of theGulf of Guinea, in the southeastern portion of the country, the city was originally developed as a port for thetransatlanticslave trade led by thePortuguese Empire. It is Benin's second-largest city, and although it is the official capital, where the national legislature sits, the larger city ofCotonou is theseat of government, where most of the government buildings are situated and government departments operate.
Porto-Novo was once a tributary of theYoruba kingdom ofOyo,[4][5] which had offered it protection from the neighbouringFon, who were expanding their influence and power in the region. The Yoruba community in Porto-Novo today remains one of the two ethnicities aboriginal to the city. The city was originally calledAjashe (Àjàṣẹ́ in Yoruba orthography) by the Yorubas, andHogbonu by theGun.[citation needed]
Although historically the original inhabitants of the area wereYoruba speaking, there seems to have been a wave of migration from the region ofAllada further west in the 1600s, which brought Te-Agbalin (or Te Agdanlin) and his group to the region of Ajashe in 1688.[6][citation needed]
In 1730, the Portuguese Eucaristo de Campos named the city "Porto-Novo." Although colonizers claim the name was due to its resemblance to the city ofPorto.,[7][8] the real reason was to signal the develoment of a new port for theslave trade.[9]
In 1861, theBritish, who were active in nearbyNigeria, bombarded the city, which persuaded the Kingdom of Porto-Novo to acceptFrench protection in 1863.[10] The neighbouringKingdom of Dahomey objected to French involvement in the region and war broke out between the two states. In 1883, Porto-Novo was incorporated into the French "colony ofDahomey and its dependencies" and in 1900, it became Dahomey's capital city.[6] As a consequence, a community that had previously exhibited endoglossic bilingualism now began to exhibit exoglossic bilingualism, with the addition of French to the language repertoire of the city's inhabitants.[citation needed] Unlike the city's earlierGun migrants, however, the French sought to impose their language in all spheres of life and completely stamp out the use and proliferation of indigenous languages.[citation needed]
Porto-Novo (1887)
The kings of Porto-Novo continued to rule in the city, both officially and unofficially, until the death of the last king,Alohinto Gbeffa, in 1976.[6] From 1908, the king held the title ofChef supérieur.[citation needed]
Under French colonial rule, flight across the newborder to British-ruledNigeria in order to avoid harsh taxation, military service and forced labour was common.[citation needed] Of note is the fact that the Nigeria-Benin southern border area arbitrarily cuts through contiguous areas of Yoruba andEgun-speaking people. A combination of the aforementioned facts, coupled with the fact that the city itself lies within the sphere of Nigerian socioeconomic influence, have given Porto-Novians a preference for some measure of bi-nationality or dual citizenship, with the necessary linguistic consequences; for example, Nigerian home video films in Yoruba with English subtitles have become popular in Porto-Novo and its suburbs.[citation needed]
Benin's parliament (Assemblée nationale) is in Porto-Novo, the official capital, butCotonou is the seat of government and houses most of the governmental ministries.
Porto-Novo is served by an extension of theBénirail train system.[citation needed] Privately owned motorcycle taxis known aszemijan are used throughout the city.[13] The city is located about 40 kilometres (25 miles) away fromCotonou Airport, which has flights to major cities in West Africa and Europe.
Porto-Novo had an enumerated population of 264,320 in 2013.[1] The residents are mostlyYoruba and Gun people as well as people from other parts of the country, and from neighbouringNigeria.
Porto-Novo has atropical savanna climate (KöppenAw) with consistently hot and humid conditions and two wet seasons: a long wet season from March to July and a shorter rain season in September and October. The city’s location on the edge of theDahomey Gap makes it much drier than would be expected so close to the equator, although it is less dry thanAccra orLomé.
King Toffa's Palace (also known as theMusée Honmé and the Royal Palace), now a museum, shows what life was like for African royalty.[6] The palace and the surrounding district was added to theUNESCOWorld Heritage Tentative List on October 31, 1996 in the Cultural category.[15]
Jardin Place Jean Bayol is a large plaza which contains a statue of the first King of Porto-Novo.
The Da Silva Museum is a museum of Beninese history.[6] It shows what life was like for the returning Afro-Brazilians.
Thepalais de Gouverneur (governor's palace) is the home of the national legislature.
The Isèbayé Foundation is a museum ofVoodoo and Beninese history.[6]
Adjogan music is endemic to Porto-Novo.[16] The style of music is played on analounloun, a stick with metallic rings attached which jingle in time with the beating of the stick.[citation needed] The alounloun is said to descend from the staff of office of King Te-Agdanlin and was traditionally played to honour the King and his ministers.[citation needed] The music is also played in the city'sRoman Catholic churches, but the royal bird crest symbol has been replaced with a cross.[citation needed]
^Hargreaves, John (1963).Prelude to the Partition of West Africa. London: MacMilland. pp. 59–60.[ISBN missing]
^Foster, F. Blanche (1971).Dahomey. F. Watts. p. 49.ISBN978-0-531-00720-4.A large agricultural school in Porto Novo prepares its students for their role in manufacturing such goods as soap, exported palm oil, cotton, and kapok.
^McColl, R. W. (14 May 2014).Encyclopedia of World Geography. Infobase Publishing. p. 90.ISBN978-0-8160-7229-3.
^"Government page on Fassassi" (in French). Archived from the original on November 19, 2003. Retrieved2007-05-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link).
Sappho Charney (1996)."Porto-Novo (Oueme, Benin)". In Noelle Watson (ed.).International Dictionary of Historic Places: Middle East and Africa. UK: Routledge. p. 588+.ISBN1884964036.
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