On the northeastern coast of South America is French Guiana. It is ruled by France as an overseas department. Cayenne is its largest city, capital, and cultural center.

Geography

French Guiana covers an area of 33,399 square miles (86,504 square kilometers). Although most of the region is low-lying, the Tumac-Humac Mountains in the south reach an elevation of 2,300 feet (700 meters).

The Maroni River separates French Guiana from Suriname to the west. The Oyapock River forms the border between French Guiana and Brazil in the east and south. The Atlantic Ocean is to the north, and about 10 miles (16 kilometers) off the coast is Devil's Island, once known for housing France's political prisoners and wartime spies.

French Guiana is a warm, humid place. Temperatures average around 80° F (27° C) throughout the year. Rainfall is heaviest from December to July. Northeast trade winds blow constantly inland from the ocean.

Plants and animals

Tropical rain forest covers much of the land in French Guiana. Most of the trees are hardwoods. Animals of the region include tapir, ocelots (a type of wildcat), sloths, great anteaters, armadillos, monkeys, and parrots.

People and culture

Guianese Mulattos (people with both black and white ancestry) are the largest ethnic group in French Guiana. The territory is also home to smaller groups of French, Haitians, Surinamese, Antilleans, Chinese, Brazilians, and East Indians. French is the official language. More than 80 percent of the population belongs to the Roman Catholic faith.

French Guiana has a small population for the amount of land it covers. Most residents live in Cayenne and in other places along the coast; very few people live in the interior region. About three fourths of the people live in areas that can be classified as urban.

Cayenne contains an international airport and some tropical research institutes. The city also has movie theaters, libraries, museums, and other attractions.

Economy

French Guiana relies heavily on other countries for items ranging from mineral fuels to milk. It is especially dependent upon France. About half of the goods French Guiana imports come from France, and France is the main destination for things exported by French Guiana. French Guiana's main port is Dégrad des Cannes at the mouth of the Mahury River.

Most of the land in French Guiana is not suitable for growing crops so agriculture makes up a small part of the economy. Some of the crops grown in French Guiana are rice, cassava, sugarcane, cabbages, taro, bananas, and tomatoes. Shrimp is the primary catch and one of the chief exports. The territory has mines that produce gold, stone, sand, and gravel. French Guiana's limited manufacturing industries mainly process meat, create wood products, and produce parts for air and space vehicles. Much of the population works in public administration and service industries. A rocket-launching base at Kourou that is used by the European Space Agency brings in revenue for the territory as well.

History

The Spanish explored the Guiana coast in the early 16th century. The French, British, and Dutch later made various attempts at settling the area. French merchants opened a trading center in 1624, and Cayenne was founded in 1643.

Many important events happened during the 1800s. France took control of the region, and the inhabitants were made full French citizens who had representation in the French parliament. Plantations (large farms) suffered when slavery was abolished, but the discovery of gold created a new source of income and attracted speculators to the area. A Roman Catholic community established at Mana created one of the earliest educational systems for freed black slaves and women.

By the mid-1800s, the French were using the territory as a place to send prisoners. Cayenne became known as the city of the condemned. The prisons closed in 1945, and the territory became a French overseas department in 1946. Population (2001 estimate), 168,000.