Abidjan

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History

Abidjan was originally a small Atchan fishing village. In 1896, following a series of deadly yellow fever epidemics, French colonists who had initially settled in Grand-Bassam decided to move to a safer place and in 1898 chose the current location of Abidjan. In 1903 it officially became a town. The settlers were followed by the colonial government, created in 1899. But then nearby Bingerville became the capital of the French colony, from 1900 until 1934. The future Abidjan, situated on the edge of the lagoon n'doupé ("the lagoon in hot water"), offered more land and greater opportunities for trade expansion. The wharf in Petit Bassam (now Port-Bouët) south of town quickly overtook the wharf of Grand-Bassam in importance, and became the main point of economic access to the colony. In 1904, the rail terminus was located in the Port-Bouët area of Abidjan. Several villages in Tchaman were then deserted. The leader of the Tchaman community can still be found in Adjame ("center" or "meeting" in Tchaman), north of the Plateau. South of the Plateau district (the current central district of the city of Abidjan), the village of Dugbeo was moved across the lagoon to Anoumabo, "the forest of fruit bats", which became the neighborhood of Treichville (now known as Commikro, city of clerks). Treichville was renamed in 1934, in honour of Marcel Treich-Laplène (1860–1890), the first explorer of the Ivory Coast and its first colonial administrator, considered its founder. Instead of Dugbeyo, is the current Treich-Laplénie Avenue, the bus station and water lagoon buses in Plateau, and the Avenue Charles de Gaulle (commonly called Rue du Commerce). The city was laid out like most colonial towns, on a grid plan. Le Plateau ("m'brato" in Tchaman) were inhabited by settlers. In the…

Geography

Abidjan lies on the south-east coast of the country, on the Gulf of Guinea. The city is located on the Ébrié Lagoon. The business district, Le Plateau, is the center of the city, along with Cocody, Deux Plateaux (the city's wealthiest neighborhood and a hub for diplomats), and Adjamé, a slum on the north shore of the lagoon. Treichville and Marcory lie to the south, Attecoube, Locodjro, Abobo Doume and Yopougon to the west, and Île Boulay is located in the middle of the lagoon. Further south lies Port Bouët, home to the airport and main seaport. Abidjan is located at 5°25' North, 4°2' West (5.41667, –4.03333). Abidjan experiences a tropical wet and dry climate, according to the Köppen climate classification (Köppen climate classification: Aw), closely bordering a tropical monsoon climate. Abidjan has nonconsecutive rainy seasons (precipitation above with a long rainy season from March to July and a short rainy season from September to December, and three dry months (January, February and August). Precipitation is abundant during the summer months, except for August, due to activation of the Benguela Current, which reduces the precipitation total throughout the month. The Benguela Current also lowers the mean temperature during August, making it the coolest month of the year, averaging . Abidjan has two additional dry months (January and February). Abidjan is generally humid, with average relative humidity above 80% throughout the year. {|class="wikitable" |+Abidjan mean sea temperature |- !Jan !Feb !Mar !Apr !May !Jun !Jul !Aug !Sep !Oct !Nov !Dec |- | | | | | | | | | | | | |} A 2019 paper published in PLOS One estimates that under Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5, a "moderate" scenario of climate change where global warming reaches ~ by 2100, the climate…

Most-observed species

• Pied Crow

  Corvus albus Statius Muller, 1776 · Aves
  228
• Cattle Egret

  Bubulcus ibis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  220
• Red-eyed Dove

  Streptopelia semitorquata (Rüppell, 1837) · Aves
  207
• Common Bulbul

  Pycnonotus barbatus (Desfontaines, 1789) · Aves
  205
• Black Kite

  Milvus migrans (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  198
• Laughing Dove

  Spilopelia senegalensis (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  163
• Woodland Kingfisher

  Halcyon senegalensis (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  128
• African Palm-Swift

  Cypsiurus parvus (M.H.K.Lichtenstein, 1823) · Aves
  123