Dakar

Dakar
Place de l'indépendance
Soumbedioune boats of Médina
Dakar skyline
Flag of Dakar
Coat of arms of Dakar
City of Dakar, divided into 19 communes d'arrondissement
City of Dakar, divided into 19 communes d'arrondissement
Dakar is located in Senegal
Dakar
Dakar
Location within Senegal
Dakar is located in Africa
Dakar
Dakar
Dakar (Africa)
Coordinates: 14°41′34″N 17°26′48″W / 14.69278°N 17.44667°W / 14.69278; -17.44667
Country Senegal
RégionDakar
DépartementDakar
Settled15th century
Communes d'arrondissement
19
  • Cambérène
  • Parcelles Assaines
  • Pattie d'Oies
  • Hann Bel-Air
  • Dieuppeul Derklé
  • HLM
  • Biscuiterie
  • Grand Dakar
  • Plateau
  • Médina
  • Fass-Gueule Tapée-Colobane
  • Fann Point-E
  • Mermoz-Sacré-Coeur
  • Ouakam
  • Yoff
  • Ngor
  • Liberté
  • Grand-Yoff
  • Cape Verde Peninsula
Government
 • MayorBarthélemy Dias (YAW/MTS)
Area
79.83 km2 (30.82 sq mi)
 • Metro
535 km2 (207 sq mi)
Elevation22 m (72 ft)
Population
 (2023 Census)[3]
1,278,469
 • Density16,000/km2 (41,000/sq mi)
 • Metro
4,004,427[1]
 • Metro density7,485/km2 (19,390/sq mi)
 Data here are for the administrative Dakar région, which matches almost exactly the limits of the metropolitan area
Time zoneUTC+00:00 (Greenwich Mean Time)
 • Summer (DST)(Not Observed)
Websitevillededakar.sn

Dakar (/dɑːˈkɑːr, dæ-/ UK also: /ˈdækɑːr/;[4] French: [dakaʁ]; Wolof: Ndakaaru)[5] is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 million in 2023.

Dakar is situated on the Cap-Vert peninsula, the westernmost point of mainland Africa.[6] Cap-Vert was colonized by the Portuguese in the early 15th century. The Portuguese established a presence on the island of Gorée off the coast of Cap-Vert and used it as a base for the Atlantic slave trade. France took over the island in 1677. Following the abolition of the slave trade and French annexation of the mainland area in the 19th century, Dakar grew into a major regional port and a major city of the French colonial empire. In 1902, Dakar replaced Saint-Louis as the capital of French West Africa. From 1959 to 1960, Dakar was the capital of the short-lived Mali Federation. In 1960, it became the capital of the independent Republic of Senegal. Dakar will host the 2026 Summer Youth Olympics.

  1. ^ Senegal: Administrative Division
  2. ^ "climatemps.com".
  3. ^ Senegal: Administrative Division
  4. ^ "Dakar". Cambridge Dictionary. Retrieved 17 December 2022. ("Definition of Dakar from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press")
  5. ^ "Dakar – definition of Dakar". The Free Dictionary. Retrieved 29 October 2013. /dəˈkɑːr, dɑːˈkɑːr, ˈdækər/ "Define Dakar". Dictionary.com. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
  6. ^ Roger J., Banton O., Barusseau J.-P., Castaigne P., Comte J.-C., Duvail C., Nehlig P., Noël B. J., Serrano O., Travi Y., Notice explicative de la cartographie multi-couches à 1/50 000 et 1/20 000 de la zone d’activité du Cap-Vert, Ministère des Mines, de l’Industrie et des PME, Direction des Mines et de la Géologie, Dakar, 245 p., 2009d.

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