Ziguinchor

There are several competing etymologies for Ziguinchor's name. The best known comes from the time when Portuguese traders and explorers came to the region to form a trading post. It is derived from a Portuguese phrase, Cheguei e choram, "I came and they cry". The local people, seeing the Europeans, began crying, thinking they were about to be enslaved. Other scholars believe that the name likely predates the Portuguese arrival.

The earliest sources mention the Bainuk of Ezigichor. The term may come from the Bainuk language words "asi nin core," meaning "places to go are finished," relating to the end of the Bainuk migrations in their traditional history. It could also come from "ji gi cor,"' meaning "place of several fields."Bühnen, Stephan. “Place Names as an Historical Source: An Introduction with Examples from Southern Senegambia and Germany.” History in Africa,'' vol. 19, 1992, pp. 45–101. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/3171995. Accessed 27 Jul. 2022.

File:ASC Leiden - Coutinho Collection - 7 02 - Official opening of a PAIGC secondary school in Ziguinchor, Senegal - 1974.tif Secondary School official opening in Ziguinchor, Senegal – 1974]]

File:ASC Leiden - Coutinho Collection - 11 06 - Ziguinchor hospital, Senegal - 1973.tif Ziguinchor hospital, 1973]]

The oldest habitation of the area was a Jola village.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}} The first European settlement in the area was founded by the Portuguese in 1645 as a dependency of Cacheu populated by settlers from Cape Verde, and lancados and other Afro-Europeans.{{cite book |first1=Richard Andrew Jr. |last1=Lobban |first2=Peter Karibe |last2=Mendy |title=Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau |edition=4th |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2013 |place=Lanham |isbn=978-0-8108-5310-2|pages=433–435}}

The Portuguese objective was to found a trading post and establish an alliance with the local mansa or king of the Kasa kingdom. Chroniclers described him as the ruler most friendly to the Portuguese along the Guinean coast. The king started to live in a European manner, with table, chairs and western clothing. His court included several Portuguese merchants.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}} One of the commodities for trade were enslaved Africans, and Ziguinchor became a slave port during much of the Portuguese rule.

The post boasted a fort with a few pieces of artillery by 1700, but was never an important economic center. The French occupied Carabane island downstream in 1836, forcing Portuguese ships to pay duties there. Despite frantic diplomatic efforts by governor Honório Barreto, Portugal never really tried to defend their claim to the region. Ziguinchor was eventually transferred to France on 22 April 1888, fulfilling a deal brokered at the Berlin conference of 1886.

Under the French, Ziguinchor became a major trade port, mostly due to the intensive groundnut cultivation which the colonial government encouraged in the interior. By 1900, the area was largely converted to Christianity, although significant Syncretist and Muslim communities flourish.

Rice growing, the traditional crop of the region, was hurt by the government's push to cultivate groundnuts. They forced the clearing of extensive forest areas. The French government also imported rice from the intensive farming they encouraged in French Indochina, shrinking the market for Casamance's traditional main produce.

After independence, the city's economic growth slowed, in part due to the War of Independence in neighboring Guinea-Bissau. The Portuguese military crossed into the area at least once, pursuing PAIGC rebels. Cannon fire could be heard in the city for much of the war. During this period Ziguinchor became a main post for both the Senegalese Army and French forces, guarding the frontier that cut Jola families and communities in two.

As the capital of Casamance, Ziguinchor has been at the center of a three-decade-long conflict with Dakar that has flared into open civil war on more than one occasion. With a population with a majority of Diola and Christian,Caroline JUILLARD. [http://www.utexas.edu/cola/insts/france-ut/archives/Fall2003/ConfLangImmigration/juillard.pdf Sub-Saharian immigration in France: from diversity to integration] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080813031522/http://www.utexas.edu/cola/insts/france-ut/archives/Fall2003/ConfLangImmigration/juillard.pdf |date=13 August 2008 }}. Université René Descartes-Paris V. Conference paper. University of Texas (2003) pp.9–10.
For full population summary, see [https://web.archive.org/web/20071117170035/http://www.culture.gouv.sn/article.php3?id_article=108 Centre culturel régional de Ziguinchor] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071117170035/http://www.culture.gouv.sn/article.php3?id_article=108 |date=17 November 2007 }}, Ministère de la Culture, du Patrimoine historique classé, des Langues nationales et de la Francophonie, Government of Senegal (2004). the effects of a large migration of Wolof Muslims fleeing drought in the north during the 1970s caused tensions to flare. A 1983 demonstration against price rises in Ziguinchor Market was put down violently by Senegalese forces, and an insurgency by the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC) followed, effectively wrecking the economy of the region. The 2004 peace accords, signed in Ziguinchor, were hoped to be the end of the violence, but in 2006, sporadic fighting by an MFDC split and laying of land mines again erupted in rural areas nearby.[https://www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/afrec/vol19no1/191senegal.htm Ernest Harsch. Peace pact raises hope in Senegal: After 22 years, Casamance war is winding down] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214113129/http://www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/afrec/vol19no1/191senegal.htm |date=14 February 2008 }}, From Africa Renewal, Vol.19 No. 1 (April 2005), page 14.
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4135797.stm Crowds cheer Senegal peace deal], BBC, 30 December 2004.

[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1743090.stm Casamance rebels attack town], BBC, 4 January 2002.

Ousmane Sonko, a prominent opposition leader, was elected mayor of Ziguinchor in 2022. The city was the scene of large protests in June 2023 after his conviction on charges that many Senegalese, especially youth, view as a political ploy by President Macky Sall to discredit a rival.{{cite news |last1=Peltier |first1=Elian |title=Protests Erupt in Senegal After Opposition Leader Is Sentenced to Prison |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/01/world/africa/senegal-ousmane-sonko.html |access-date=28 August 2023 |agency=New York Times |date= 1 June 2023}}

File:Port de Ziguinchor .jpg

Ziguinchor remains economically dependent on its role as a cargo port, transport hub and ferry terminal. The "Nationale 4" highway crosses the Casamance River just east of the city, linking the region with Bignona about 25 km to the north, and (via The Gambia), the rest of Senegal.

A vibrant tourist destination, the beaches of nearby Cap Skirring were discovered by foreign tourists in the 1960s, and the location was built up to become one of the first Club Med resorts. Ziguinchor region is also known for growing great quantities of rice, oranges, mangoes, bananas, cashews, tropical fruits and vegetables, fish, and prawns, much of which are processed locally and exported from the city, its port, and its airport. It is also home to a large peanut oil factory.

File:Ziguinchor9.JPG

File:ZiguinchorCasamance.JPG

The MV Joola, which sank in 2002, was sailing from Ziguinchor to Dakar. The loss of the ferry, which was not replaced until 2005, cut the main link between Casamance and the rest of the country.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/2286486.stm Eyewitness: Senegal weeps for ferry loss], BBC, 28 September 2002.
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4431820.stm Senegal restores vital ferry link], BBC, 12 November 2005. The new ferry, which began regular runs in 2007, is named for local anti-colonial martyr Aline Sitoe Diatta, and promises a boost to the local economy.

[http://www.xibar.net/index.php?action=article&numero=5935 LIAISON MARITIME DAKAR-ZIGUINCHOR: "Aline Sitoé Diatta, c'est le refus de la fatalité", selon le président], Le Soleil, 15 December 2007.

The city has an airport, Ziguinchor Airport.

A number of buildings in the town have been classified by government decree as historic, the cemetery and several government buildings, like the Ziguinchor Regional Council.{{cite web|url=http://www.jo.gouv.sn/spip.php?article4607|title=ARRETE MINISTERIEL n° 2711 mcphc-dpc en date du 3 mai 2006|publisher=Republic of Senegal|access-date=17 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304030850/http://www.jo.gouv.sn/spip.php?article4607|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=dead}}

File:ZiguinchorImpluviumEntrance.jpg

File:ZiguinchorCathédrale.JPG

Among the places of worship, they are predominantly Christian churches and temples: Roman Catholic Diocese of Ziguinchor (Catholic Church), Assemblies of God, Universal Church of the Kingdom of God.J. Gordon Melton, Martin Baumann, Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices, ABC-CLIO, USA, 2010, p. 2573-2575 There are also Muslim mosques.

Ziguinchor is a melting pot of all the ethnic groups co-existing in Senegal: Mandinka, Jola, Wolof, Fula/Halpulaar, Mancagne, Manjack, Soninke, Serer, Bainouk, Balanta and Creole. Jola have been the majority of the population in the region since at least 1500, and culturally share much with the people of Guinea-Bissau. One of three dialects of Guinea-Bissau Creole, Cacheu–Ziguinchor, is centered around the city. Resistant to first Islam and later Christianity, many Jola retain a degree of animist practices, while Basse Casamance is the only majority Catholic area in Senegal.

Ziguinchor is the birthplace of some famous Senegalese people.

• Sembene Ousmane

• The Tourekunda brothers

• Djibril Sonko{{Cite web|url=https://www.sudquotidien.sn/djibril-sonko-elu-maire-de-ziguinchor/|title=Djibril Sonko élu maire de Ziguinchor|date=27 June 2024|website=Sud Quotidien|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250301151722/https://www.sudquotidien.sn/djibril-sonko-elu-maire-de-ziguinchor/|archive-date=1 March 2025|access-date=1 March 2025|url-status=live|language=fr}}

• Jules Francois Bocande, footballer
• Bassirou N'Diaye
• Lansana Coly, judoka
• Basile de Carvalho, footballer
• Aliou Cissé, footballer and coach
• Nicolas Jackson, footballer
• Sadio Mané, footballer

Ziguinchor has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw). It has hot, rainless winters and warm, very wet summers. The average annual rainfall is approximately {{convert|1550|mm|in|0|disp=or}}, which is more than three times that of Dakar, although less than half that of Conakry.

{{Weather box

| width = auto

| metric first = yes

| single line = yes

| location = Ziguinchor (1991–2020)

| Jan high C = 34.1

| Feb high C = 36.7

| Mar high C = 38.4

| Apr high C = 38.4

| May high C = 37.2

| Jun high C = 35.5

| Jul high C = 33.1

| Aug high C = 32.3

| Sep high C = 33.0

| Oct high C = 34.4

| Nov high C = 34.6

| Dec high C = 33.7

| year high C = 35.1

| Jan low C = 17.8

| Feb low C = 18.7

| Mar low C = 19.7

| Apr low C = 20.4

| May low C = 22.1

| Jun low C = 24.1

| Jul low C = 23.9

| Aug low C = 23.7

| Sep low C = 23.5

| Oct low C = 23.7

| Nov low C = 21.7

| Dec low C = 18.7

| year low C = 21.5

| Jan record low C = 12.4

| Feb record low C = 13.5

| Mar record low C = 13.9

| Apr record low C = 15.2

| May record low C = 18.2

| Jun record low C = 20.4

| Jul record low C = 18.4

| Aug record low C = 20.0

| Sep record low C = 20.5

| Oct record low C = 20.0

| Nov record low C = 14.7

| Dec record low C = 13.1

| year record low C = 12.4

| precipitation colour = green

| Jan precipitation mm = 4.9

| Feb precipitation mm = 0.2

| Mar precipitation mm = 0.0

| Apr precipitation mm = 0.0

| May precipitation mm = 2.9

| Jun precipitation mm = 93.1

| Jul precipitation mm = 341.1

| Aug precipitation mm = 480.7

| Sep precipitation mm = 358.6

| Oct precipitation mm = 113.5

| Nov precipitation mm = 6.1

| Dec precipitation mm = 0.1

| year precipitation mm = 1401.2

| unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm

| Jan precipitation days = 1.2

| Feb precipitation days = 0.1

| Mar precipitation days = 0.0

| Apr precipitation days = 0.0

| May precipitation days = 0.7

| Jun precipitation days = 6.6

| Jul precipitation days = 17.5

| Aug precipitation days = 21.4

| Sep precipitation days = 18.4

| Oct precipitation days = 7.9

| Nov precipitation days = 0.3

| Dec precipitation days = 0.0

| year precipitation days = 74.1

| Jan sun =251.1

| Feb sun =249.2

| Mar sun =291.4

| Apr sun =282.0

| May sun =285.2

| Jun sun =240.0

| Jul sun =182.9

| Aug sun =170.5

| Sep sun =195.0

| Oct sun =241.8

| Nov sun =261.0

| Dec sun =257.3

| year sun =

| Jand sun =8.1

| Febd sun =8.9

| Mard sun =9.4

| Aprd sun =9.4

| Mayd sun =9.2

| Jund sun =8.0

| Juld sun =5.9

| Augd sun =5.5

| Sepd sun =6.5

| Octd sun =7.8

| Novd sun =8.7

| Decd sun =8.3

| yeard sun =

| source = NOAA{{cite web

|url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/2.2/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Senegal/CSV/Ziguinchor_61695.csv

|title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020 — Ziguinchor

|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

|access-date = 10 January 2024}} (sun 1961-1990){{cite web |url =https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/WMO/1961-1990/RA-I/SG/61695.TXT |title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1961-1990: Ziguinchor |publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |access-date =4 August 2024}}

}}

File:Ziguinchor10.JPG

In the decades following independence, Ziguinchor was a stronghold of the Socialist Party of Senegal (PS). Robert Sagna, a long-time minister in Socialist Party governments, was also Mayor of Ziguinchor from 1984 to 2009. In the beginning of 2007 Sagna left the PS and led the Taku Défaraat Sénégal coalition in a failed presidential bid.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6379847.stm Mame Less Camara, Senegal's presidential contenders], BBC News, 22 February 2007. In 2001's legislative elections, a big push by President Abdoulaye Wade's ruling PDS party, spearheading the Sopi coalition (joined in 2008 by And-Jëf/Pads), was led by Ziguinchor politician Abdoulaye Baldé, a former General Secretary to the President. In the 2001 elections, the a Ziguinchor National Assembly seat was gained by the PDS, and held again in 2007, prompting speculation that Sagna and his party's days of dominating local politics were numbered. Sagna, though, won a legislative seat on proportional representation in 2007, and continued in both offices[http://www2.rewmi.com/index.php?action=article&numero=8665&PHPSESSID=14acc234575a650e97660c8a87820b7c Pds et Aj décident d'aller en coalition à Ziguinchor] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080304125101/http://www2.rewmi.com/index.php?action=article&numero=8665&PHPSESSID=14acc234575a650e97660c8a87820b7c |date=4 March 2008 }}, Le Soleil, 28 February 2008.

{{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20091203021059/http://nettali.net/spip.php?article3394 SÛR DE LA VICTOIRE DE LA COALITION SOPI A ZIGUINCHOR]}}, Abdoulaye Baldé lance des piques à Robert Sagna. Nettali. 12 May 2007 .

[https://archive.today/20091202124116/http://www2.rewmi.com/index.php?action=article&numero=1728 Deux défaites successives à Ziguinchor: Est-ce le chant du cygne pour Robert Sagna ?], Rewmi, 6 June 2007

[http://www.socialisme-republiquesn.org/old/spip.php?article386 Robert Sagna va t-il vers la rupture ? Chronique d'un départ annoncé] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091202152741/http://www.socialisme-republiquesn.org/old/spip.php?article386 |date=2 December 2009 }}, Parti socialiste Sénégal, 13 December 2006 until 2009. The Sopi Coalition won the March 2009 local election in Ziguinchor, and Baldé was elected Mayor.[http://xalimasn.com/spip.php?article1292 "Passation de service à la mairie de Ziguinchor: Baldé fait de Robert Sagna, "le maire honoraire de la ville""]{{dead link|date=July 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, xalimasn.com, 18 April 2009 {{in lang|fr}}. He served until 2022, when he was defeated by Ousmane Sonko, a nationally prominent leader of the Yewwi Askan Wi coalition.{{cite news |last1=Soumaré |first1=Marième |title=Senegal: Oppositionist Ousmane Sonko celebrates his election victory in Ziguinchor |url=https://www.theafricareport.com/169945/senegal-oppositionist-ousmane-sonko-celebrates-his-election-victory-in-ziguinchor/ |access-date=28 August 2023 |agency=The Africa Report |date=25 January 2022}}

{{unreferenced section|date=July 2022}}

Ziguinchor was one of the venues for the 1992 Africa Cup of Nations football championship. The city Sports and Arts Associations conceived for the first time the concept of having specific suburbs barracking for each national team in order to give a vibrant and joyful atmosphere to the Football tournament that saw Algeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Zambia, Egypt, Congo play the first half of the Championship in that city. This successful and original experience inspired other tournament organisers from then on. Mali hosting the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations used the same concept through the famous Ndiatiguiya, (having specific suburbs barracking for a specific team throughout the tournament), and then Korea/Japan during the 2002 World Cup used the same concept as well.

École française François-Rabelais, a French international school serving maternelle (preschool) through collège, is in Ziguinchor."[http://www.aefe.fr/reseau-scolaire-mondial/rechercher-un-etablissement/senegal-ziguinchor-ecole-francaise-francois École française François-Rabelais]." AEFE. Retrieved on 3 May 2015.

The Catholic University of West Africa opened a campus in Ziguinchor in 2006. Ziguinchor University was founded in 2007.[http://www.sudonline.sn/spip.php?article871 OUVERTURE DE L'UNIVERSITE DE ZIGUINCHOR] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015114148/http://www.sudonline.sn/spip.php?article871 |date=15 October 2007 }}, Agance Pres Senegalais, 3 March 2007.

Ziguinchor is twinned with:

• {{flagicon|FRA}} Compiègne, France{{cite web |title=Villes jumelées|url=https://www.agglo-compiegne.fr/villes-jumelees|publisher=Compiègne|language=fr|access-date=2023-11-23}}
• {{flagicon|ITA}} Rimini, Italy{{cite web |title=Gemellaggi|url=https://www.comune.rimini.it/vivere-il-comune/gemellaggi|publisher=Rimini|language=it|access-date=2023-11-23}}
• {{flagicon|FRA}} Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, France{{cite web |title=Découvrez Saint-Maur|url=https://www.saint-maur.com/ma-mairie/decouvrir-saint-maur/jumelages|publisher=Saint-Maur-des-Fossés|language=fr|access-date=2023-11-23}}
• {{flagicon|CPV}} São Filipe, Cape Verde{{cite web |title=Ilhas de Cabo Verde: Ilha do Fogo|url=http://www.caboverde.com/ilhas/fogo/fogo-12.htm|publisher=Cabo Verde Islands|language=pt,fr|access-date=2023-11-23}}
• {{flagicon|POR}} Viana do Castelo, Portugal{{cite web |title=Relações internacionais / cooperação|url=https://www.cm-viana-castelo.pt/municipio/relacoes-internacionais-cooperacao/|publisher=Viana do Castelo|language=pt|access-date=2023-11-23}}

{{Reflist}}

• Much of this article was translated from the French language Wikipedia article :fr:Ziguinchor.
• Ferdinand de Jong. Politicians of the Sacred Grove: Citizenship and Ethnicity in Southern Senegal. Africa: Journal of the International African Institute, Vol. 72, No. 2 (2002), pp. 203–220 On the political and cultural tactics of longtime mayor Robert Sagna.

• {{in lang|fr}} Jean-Claude Bruneau, {{lang|fr|Ziguinchor en Casamance: aspects géographiques de la capitale régionale du Sud Sénégalais}}, Université de Bordeaux III, 1975, 409 p. (Thèse de 3rd cycle)
• {{in lang|fr}} Jean-Claude Bruneau, {{lang|fr|Ziguinchor en Casamance: la croissance urbaine dans les pays tropicaux}}, Talence, Ministère des universités, CNRS, Centre d'études de géographie tropicale, 1979
• {{in lang|fr}} Nfally Diedhiou, {{lang|fr|Administration coloniale et travail forcé en Casamance. Étude de cas du réseau routier à travers la construction de la route Tobor-Ziguinchor}}, Dakar, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, 2000, 119 p. + annexes, (Mémoire de Maîtrise)
• {{in lang|fr}} Maguette Diop, {{lang|fr|Monographie climatique d'une station synoptique: Ziguinchor (1946–1975)}}, Université de Dakar, 1977 (Mémoire de Maîtrise)
• {{in lang|fr}} Baudouin Duquesne, {{lang|fr|Le secteur informel en Afrique. Approche théorique et étude de cas: "les barroms-sarrettes de Ziguinchor"}}, Sénégal, 1986
• {{in lang|fr}} Mamadou Goudiaby, {{lang|fr|Monographie de la ville de Ziguinchor de 1886 à 1960: le problème des sources}}, Dakar, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, 2001, 51 p. (Mémoire de DEA)
• {{in lang|fr}} Caroline Juillard, {{lang|fr|Sociolinguistique urbaine: la vie des langues à Ziguinchor (Sénégal)}}, Paris, CNRS, 1995
• {{in lang|fr}} Mamadou Goudiaby, {{lang|fr|Monographie de la ville de Ziguinchor de 1886 à 1960: le problème des sources}}, Dakar, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, 2001, 51 p. (Mémoire de DEA)
• {{in lang|fr}} Jacqueline Trincaz, {{lang|fr|Colonisations et religions en Afrique noire. L'exemple de Ziguinchor}}, Paris, L'Harmattan, 1981, VIII + 360 p. (Thèse de 3rd cycle publiée)
• {{in lang|fr}} Pierre-Xavier Trincaz, {{lang|fr|Colonisation et régionalisme, la double domination: exemple de Ziguinchor en Casamance, Sénégal. Etude urbaine socio-économique d'une capitale régionale d'Afrique}}, Paris, Université de Paris V, 1979 (Thèse de 3rd cycle publiée en 1984, Colonisation et Régionalisme. Ziguinchor en Casamance, Paris, ORSTOM, 270 p.

{{Commons category}}

• {{in lang|fr}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20071013192149/http://www.aimf.asso.fr/article2.asp?ville=Ziguinchor&num_menu=12000 Mayor of Ziguinchor's statistics] at the International Association for Francophone Mayors.
• {{in lang|fr}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20071117170035/http://www.culture.gouv.sn/article.php3?id_article=108 Centre culturel régional de Ziguinchor], Ministère de la Culture, du Patrimoine historique classé, des Langues nationales et de la Francophonie, Senegal.
• {{in lang|fr}} [https://travelaffect.com/2017/02/ziguinchor-basse-casamance-senegal/ Video of Ziguinchor 2017] Documentary about Ziguinchor and Nella Star, a Dutch anthropologist, revisiting Ziguinchor after 44 years to bring back memories.

{{Portuguese overseas empire}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Coord|12|35|N|16|16|W|region:SN_type:city|display=title}}

Category:Casamance

Category:Casamance River

Category:Regional capitals in Senegal

Category:Former Portuguese colonies

Category:Communes of Senegal

Category:Populated places in the Ziguinchor department