São Tomé

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Jump to: navigation, search

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

For other uses, see São Tomé (disambiguation).
São Tomé
City
São Tomé palace
São Tomé palace
Flag of São Tomé
Flag		 Coat of arms of São Tomé
Coat of arms
São Tomé location in São Tomé and Príncipe
São Tomé location in São Tomé and Príncipe
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country Flag of Sao Tome and Principe.svg São Tomé and Príncipe
Province São Tomé Province
District Água Grande
Founded 1485
Area
 • Total 17 km2 (7 sq mi)
Elevation 137 m (449 ft)
Population (2008)
 • Total 56,945
 • Density 3,300/km2 (8,700/sq mi)
Time zone UTC (UTC+0)
Area code(s) +239-11x-xxxx through 14x-xxxx

São Tomé is the capital city of São Tomé and Príncipe and is by far the nation's largest town. Its name is Portuguese for "Saint Thomas". The population of its agglomeration is 56,945 (2008 est.).[1]

History

São Tomé was founded by Alvaro Caminha in 1493. The Portuguese came to São Tomé in search of land to grow sugar. The island was uninhabited before the arrival of the Portuguese sometime around 1470. São Tomé was right on the equator and wet enough to grow sugar in wild abundance. Its proximity to the African Kingdom of Kongo provided an eventual source of slave labourers to work the sugar plantations. São Tomé is centred on a sixteenth-century cathedral. Another early building is Fort São Sebastião, built in 1575 and now the São Tomé National Museum. In 1599, the city as well as the islands were taken by the Dutch for two days and again in 1641 for a year. It was the capital of the Portuguese colony of São Tomé and Príncipe and, since São Tomé and Príncipe's independence in 1975, capital of the sovereign nation.

Geography and location

The cathedral - Sé - of São Tomé

São Tomé is located at Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.. [1]

Important as a port, São Tomé is located on Ana Chaves Bay in the northeast of São Tomé Island, and Ilhéu das Cabras lies nearby offshore. São Tomé is located northeast of Trindade, southeast of Guadalupe and northwest of Santana. It is linked to these towns by various roadways, but especially by the highway encircling the entire island of São Tomé. It is linked to Cape Verde by a weekly ferry.

Features of the town include the Presidential Palace, the Cathedral, and a cinema. The city is also home to schools, middle schools, high schools, one polytechnic, two markets, three radio stations, the public television station TVSP, several clinics and hospitals, the country's main airport - São Tomé International Airport (with direct regular scheduled flights to Angola, Gabon and Portugal as well as occasional domestic flights to Príncipe), and many squares (praças). São Tomé also serves as the centre of the island's road and bus networks. The town is well known for the Tchiloli play.

Population history

Historical population
Year Pop. ±%
1990
(June 23, Census)		 42,331 —    
2000
(June 16, Census)		 49,997 +18.1%
2003
(Estimate)		 53,300 +6.6%
2005
(January 1, Estimate)		 56,166 +5.4%

Transport

São Tomé seen from space

São Tomé is served by São Tomé International Airport (IATA: TMS, ICAO: FPST) with regular flights to Europe and other African Countries.

Climate

São Tomé features a tropical wet and dry climate with a relatively lengthy wet season and a short dry season. The wet season runs from October through May while the dry season covers the remaining four months. São Tomé sees on average just under 1,000 mm (39 in) of precipitation per year. Temperatures in the city are relatively constant, with average high temperatures usually around 30 °C (86 °F) and average low temperatures around 22 °C (72 °F).

Climate data for São Tomé
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 32
(90)		 33
(91)		 33
(91)		 33
(91)		 32
(90)		 31
(88)		 31
(88)		 31
(88)		 32
(90)		 32
(90)		 32
(90)		 32
(90)		 33
(91)
Average high °C (°F) 30
(86)		 30
(86)		 31
(88)		 30
(86)		 29
(84)		 28
(82)		 28
(82)		 28
(82)		 29
(84)		 29
(84)		 29
(84)		 29
(84)		 29
(84)
Average low °C (°F) 23
(73)		 23
(73)		 23
(73)		 23
(73)		 23
(73)		 22
(72)		 21
(70)		 21
(70)		 21
(70)		 22
(72)		 22
(72)		 22
(72)		 22
(72)
Record low °C (°F) 20
(68)		 20
(68)		 20
(68)		 20
(68)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)		 19
(66)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 81
(3.19)		 107
(4.21)		 150
(5.91)		 127
(5)		 135
(5.31)		 28
(1.1)		 0
(0)		 0
(0)		 23
(0.91)		 109
(4.29)		 117
(4.61)		 89
(3.5)		 966
(38.03)
Source: BBC Weather [2]

Education

The following Portuguese international schools are in the city:[3]

Notable people

International relations

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in São Tomé and Príncipe

Twin towns – Sister cities

São Tomé is twinned with:

References

  1. ↑ INE, Evolução da população São-Tomense por localidades, 2001/2007-08
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ "ESCOLAS COM CURRÍCULO PORTUGUÊS EM S. TOMÉ" (Archive). Direção de Serviços de Ensino e Escolas Portuguesas no Estrangeiro (DSEEPE) of the Portuguese Education Ministry. Retrieved on October 26, 2015.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

Retrieved from "https://infogalactic.com/w/index.php?title=São_Tomé&oldid=191583"