Maripasoula, previously named Upper Maroni, is a commune of
French Guiana
French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label= French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas ...
, an
overseas region
The overseas departments and regions of France (french: départements et régions d'outre-mer, ; ''DROM'') are departments of France that are outside metropolitan France, the European part of France. They have exactly the same status as mainla ...
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
located in
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...
. With a land area of , Maripasoula is the largest commune of France.
Suriname
Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the nor ...
Antecume Pata
Antecume Pata is a village in French Guiana, France. It was founded by André Cognat, a Pierre-Bénite-born Wayana tribal chief. It is home to a nursery and primary state school. Even though French is taught at the school, Sranan Tongo is still th ...
*
Élahé
Élahé, also known by the names Malipahpan and Maripahpan, is a Wayana village on the Tampok River in French Guiana. A minority of Teko also live in the village.
Education
A primary school opened in Élahé in 1985.
Geography
Élahé is si ...
Kayodé
Kayodé or Cayodé is a Teko and Wayana village on the Tampok River in French Guiana
French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label= French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial c ...
Nouveau Wakapou
Nouveau Wakapou, also Nouveau Wacapou, is an Aluku maroon village situated on the Lawa River in French Guiana. The village is located across the Surinamese gold mining village of Benzdorp.
Overview
In the early 20th century gold was discovered ...
Pëleya
Pëleya, also spelt as Péléa, is a Wayana village on an island in the Litani River.
Geography
Pëleya lies about downstream the Litani River from the village of Palimino
Palimino is a Wayana village on the Litani River.
Geography
Palimin ...
Talhuwen
Talhuwen, also spelt as Taluwen, Taluhen and Taluen, is a Wayana village situated on the Lawa River in French Guiana.
Education
Talhuwen features the only primary school in the immediate vicinity. Children from the villages of Kawemhakan and K ...
*
Tedamali
Tedamali, also known as Telamali, is a Wayana village on the Lawa River in French Guiana.
Geography
Tedamali lies about upstream the Lawa river from Maripasoula
Maripasoula, previously named Upper Maroni, is a commune of French Guiana, an ...
Transport
Maripasoula is served by
Maripasoula Airport
Maripasoula Airport is an airport north of Maripasoula, a commune in the arrondissement of Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni in French Guiana. It is near the Lawa River, which forms the border between French Guiana and Suriname.
The Maripasoula non-dir ...
, with services on one commercial passenger airline.
The commune can be accessed only by air, or by boat via the Maroni river. The unpaved path between Maripasoula and
Papaïchton
Papaichton (unofficial spelling Papaïchton with a trema) is a commune in the overseas region and department of French Guiana. The village lies on the shores of the Lawa River. Papaichton is served by the Maripasoula Airport.
The village whic ...
will be turned into a proper road. Road work has commenced on 20 July 2020 and is scheduled to be completed by 2021. There are plans to extend the Route Nationale from
Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni
Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni (; gcr, Senloran di Maronni) is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni is one of the three sub-prefectures of French Guiana and the sea ...
to Maripasoula, however the Route Nationale currently ends south of
Apatou
Apatou is a commune in French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France in South America. Apatou is home to Maroons of the Aluku, Paramacca, Ndyuka, and Saramaka tribes.
History
The town of Apatou was founded in 1882 as Moutendé ...
.
Climate
Maripasoula has a
tropical monsoon climate
An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...
( Köppen ''Am'') and is very warm to hot and humid all year round. Although there is a decline in rainfall between August and November, this is much less marked than in Cayenne and Kourou.
History
The town of Maripasoula was officially founded as Upper Maroni at the end of the 19th century when gold was discovered. In 1953, the residents decided to change the name to Maripasoula. Since the beginning of the 21st century, Maripasoula has been at the heart of a
gold rush
A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New ...
. The majority of fortune seekers are illegal Brazilian ''garimpeiro''. Efforts by the French gendarme and military to stop the illegal gold mining have resulted in illegal settlements across the Lawa River in Suriname where villages like Antonio do Brinco have sprung up. These villages contain a string of supermarkets, restaurants, bars and brothels, and cater to both the gold prospectors and the town of Maripasoula because of significantly lower prices and convenience.
Because of problems with crime in the region, the town was often referred to as "Far West" in the early 2000's, in a reference to the United States' historical
Wild West
The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...
. In August 2020, the development of the first
Lycee
In France, secondary education is in two stages:
* ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15.
* ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children betwee ...
de Maripasoula for 820 students was announced, and €32 million for construction work between Maripasoula and
Papaïchton
Papaichton (unofficial spelling Papaïchton with a trema) is a commune in the overseas region and department of French Guiana. The village lies on the shores of the Lawa River. Papaichton is served by the Maripasoula Airport.
The village whic ...
.
Population
Maripasoula City's inhabitants are known in French as ''Maripasouliens'' and ''Maripasouliennes''. They are mainly the
Maroon
Maroon ( US/ UK , Australia ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word ''marron'', or chestnut. "Marron" is also one of the French translations for "brown".
According to multiple dictionaries, there are vari ...
tribes
Aluku
The Aluku are a Bushinengue ethnic group living mainly on the riverbank in Maripasoula in southwest French Guiana. The group are sometimes called Boni, referring to the 18th-century leader, Bokilifu Boni.
History
The Aluku are an ethnic gr ...
(aka Boni), the
Amerindian
The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples.
Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...
Wayana
The Wayana (alternate names: Ajana, Uaiana, Alucuyana, Guaque, Ojana, Oyana, Orcocoyana, Pirixi, Urukuena, Waiano etc.) are a Carib-speaking people located in the southeastern part of the Guiana highlands, a region divided between Brazil, Surin ...
tribe, and the Saint Lucian and Guadeloupean Creoles. Except for residents of the city centre, the commune has a largely tribal population. The town is very ethnically diverse. In 1945, the town centre was home to 45 people, and the entire region was home to 952 people; today the population has increased from 4,507 people in 2006 to 13,227 in 2016.
Sites of interest
Protected buildings and historical monuments
Near the
Maroni River
The Maroni or Marowijne (french: link=no, Maroni, nl, Marowijne, Sranan Tongo: ''Marwina-Liba'') is a river in South America that forms the border between French Guiana and Suriname.
Course
The Maroni runs through the Guianan moist for ...
,
petroglyph
A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...
s have been found depicting many animals and humans. Other monuments are the Roches gravées de la crique du Marouini à Maripasoula.
National park
Most of the southern territory of Maripasoula makes up most of the area dedicated to the Guiana Amazonian Park (). The
Biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity'') ...
Bellevue de l'Inini
Bellevue de l'Inini, also known as ''Mont Bellevue'', ''Montagne Bellevue'', and ''Montagne Bellevue de l'Inini'', is the highest point of French Guiana, an overseas department
The overseas departments and regions of France (french: départ ...
, the highest mountain in French Guiana, is located in Maripasoula.
Notable residents
*
Cyrille Regis
Cyrille Regis, MBE (9 February 1958 – 14 January 2018) was a professional footballer who played as a forward. His professional playing career spanned 19 years, where he made 614 league appearances and scored 158 league goals, most prolifical ...
– former
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
,
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...
, and
England national football team
The England national football team has represented England in international Association football, football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in Engl ...
player, born in Maripasoula.
*
Jacobin Yoma
Jacobin Yoma (born 6 October 1966) is a French Guianan former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 1999, and held the European super-featherweight title from 1993 to 1995.
He was nicknamed ''l'Ouragan de Cayenne'' (The Cayenne Hurricane) ...