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Antsirabe () is the third largest city in Madagascar and the capital of the Vakinankaratra region, with a population of 265,018 in 2014. In Madagascar, Antsirabe is known for its relatively cool climate (like the rest of the central region), its industry and the high concentration of pulled rickshaws or ''pousse-pousse''. It attracts around 30,000 tourists a year


Etymology and names

The Malagasy name ''Antsirabe'' literally means "the place of much salt". The city has the nicknames ''ville d'eau'' ('city of water' in French) and ''visy gasy'' or ''le Vichy malgache'' ('the Malagasy Vichy' in Malagasy and French respectively), referring to the presence of multiple thermal springs in the area.


History

The area where Antsirabe is found today was part of the Kingdom of Andrantsay which existed from the early 1600s until it was incorporated into the Imerina kingdom in the early 1800s. The area was a farming region, with production of rice, vegetables and fruit. The first Norwegian (Lutheran) missionaries arrived in 1868. Limestone and
sulphur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...
were exploited in the area at this time. The city was founded by Norwegian missionary T.G. Rosaas in 1872 as a hill station to serve as a retreat centre because of the much cooler climate. The thermal baths were opened in 1917. In 1886 the Norwegian mission established the leper hospital of Ambohipiantrana and it quickly developed into a village for lepers. The colonial government decided to make it the leper hospital of Vakinankaratra and the around 950 people with the illness lived there in 1904. During the
French colonial rule The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas colonies, protectorates and mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "First French Colonial Empire", that exist ...
the centre of the Vakinankaratra region shifted from the Andrantsay capital of Fivavahana to Antsirabe. In 1921 it succeeded
Betafó Tatamarina Lake in Betafo Betafo ("many roofs") is a town and urban municipality in Vakinankaratra Region in the Central Highlands of Madagascar. It is surrounded by volcanic peaks and is situated 22 km from Antsirabe. It is a typical Merina to ...
as the seat of a Catholic (pre-diocesan) Apostolic vicariate, and was promoted to a bishopric in 1955.


Population


Languages

The majority of the population belongs to the Merina ethnic group, which speaks a highland dialect of Malagasy. As in other urban areas of Madagascar, French is widely understood.


Places of worship

The places of worship, are predominantly
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
churches and temples: * Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar * Malagasy Lutheran Church *
Assemblies of God The Assemblies of God (AG), officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 144 autonomous self-governing national groupings of churches that together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination."Assemblies of God". ...
*
Association of Bible Baptist Churches in Madagascar The Association of Bible Baptist Churches in Madagascar (french: Association des églises bibliques baptistes de Madagascar , Malagasy: ''Fivondronan’ny Fiangonana Batista Biblika eto Madagasikara'') is a Baptist Christian denomination, affil ...
* Roman Catholic Diocese of Antsirabe There are also
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
mosques.


Government

Antsirabe is an urban commune or municipality (''kaominina''). The borders of the commune are identical with those of the
Antsirabe I District Antsirabe I is a district in, and capital of, Vakinankaratra Region, Madagascar. The borders of the district are identical to those of the city and urban commune of Antsirabe. The urban district of Antsirabe I borders the district of Betafo to th ...
. Antsirabe is also the capital of the Vakinankaratra region. Since April 2012, the city is governed by a "Special Delegation" with three members: Razafindrainiony Lala Marie Béryl, the previous Head of
Antsirabe I District Antsirabe I is a district in, and capital of, Vakinankaratra Region, Madagascar. The borders of the district are identical to those of the city and urban commune of Antsirabe. The urban district of Antsirabe I borders the district of Betafo to th ...
is President of the Special Delegation while Randrianarison Olivier from the TIM party and Rakotomalala Olivier from the AS party are First and Second Deputy presidents, respectively. Between November 2011 and April 2012 the position of the Mayor of Antsirabe was vacant.
Olga Ramalason Olga may refer to: People and fictional characters * Olga (name), a given name, including a list of people and fictional characters named Olga or Olha * Michael Algar (born 1962), English singer also known as "Olga" Places Russia * Olga, Russia, ...
of the TIM party was Mayor until she was appointed Minister of Commerce in Omer Beriziky's government of consensus in November 2011. The city council was elected in November 2003.


Architecture

Several buildings in central Antsirabe date back to the first decades of the 20th century. These include the thermal bath centre (opened in 1917), Hôtel des Thermes (1922), the railway station (1923), and the residence for French retirees (1934). Other sights are ''la Stèle de l'Indépendance'' (the
Stele A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ''stelæ''), whe ...
of Independence) on Independence Avenue and the two public markets: Antsenakely ("The Small Market") and the bigger Asabotsy.


Geography and climate

Antsirabe is situated at an altitude of about , making its subtropical highland climate ( Köppen: ''Cwb''), similar to Brazilian high cities of the southeast. During the winter the temperature can fall below at night, and Antsirabe has recorded the lowest temperature in Madagascar at . May to September form the coldest and driest part of the year with average monthly temperatures between and and an average number of days with precipitation per month of 1–2. From November to March the climate is warmer and wetter with on average 12 to 17 days with precipitation per month and average temperature of approximately . April and October have average temperatures of and respectively and 5–6 days of rain. The Ankaratra volcanic field covers an area about 100 km long from Antsirabe northwards to
Arivonimamo Arivonimamo is a city (commune urbaine) in Itasy Region, in the Central Highlands of Madagascar. Arivonimamo is connected by the National Road No.1 to Antananarivo (50 km in the east) and Tsiroanomandidy (west). The Antananarivo international ...
where highest peak reaches . This volcanic field is "the most prominent and volcanologically diverse (sic) on Madagascar". Several water-filled craters are found in the area around Antsirabe, including
Lake Tritriva Lake Tritriva is a volcanic lake in southwest-central Madagascar, in the region of Vàkinankàratra, located near the village of Belazao. In a distance of 15 km from Antsirabe, it is easy to reach by the National Road 34. There's a strict Fady ( ...
to the south-west. There are hot springs which are utilised by the Ranomafana thermal bath in the city. The
Mania River The Mania River is a river in Madagascar that flows from the central mountains of the island, emptying into the Mozambique Channel. The region of Amoron'i Mania is named from this river. Main affluents from the left are the Ivato, Imorona, ...
is south of Antsirabe.


Economy

Textile (COTONA, Cottonline, Aquarelle), Beverages (Star Brasseries, Malto), Food industry ( Socolait, Tsarafy), Tobacco (SACIMEM), Mineral water (Sté. des Eaux Minerales, Ravovisy), soap production (Soba). An Export Processing Zone is located in Antsirabe and the town is the home of several factories, including Star Brasseries (beverages), Cotona (textiles) and Kobama (grain).


Infrastructure

The city is at the end of the TA (Tananarive-Antsirabe) railway line, part of the Network North railway, which links Antsirabe to the capital and the port city of Toamasina. The line is operated by Madarail, currently only with freight trains. The line has been extended southwards through
Vinaninkarena Vinaninkarena is a town and commune in Madagascar. It belongs to the district of Antsirabe II, which is a part of Vakinankaratra Region. The population of the commune was estimated to be approximately 11,000 in 2001 commune census. Primary and j ...
, but this extension is not in use. National road 7 (RN7) connects the city to Antananarivo in the north and to
Fianarantsoa Fianarantsoa is a city (commune urbaine) in south central Madagascar, and is the capital of Haute Matsiatra Region. History It was built in the early 19th century by the Merina as the administrative capital for the newly conquered Betsileo king ...
and Toliara to the south. Antsirabe is connected with Morondava on the west coast through RN34 and RN 35. Public transport to and from Antsirabe are provided by taxi-brousses (share taxis) and buses. Most taxi-brousses operate from the main bus station in the north of the city. Within the city public transport consists of small buses and numerous pulled rickshaws ("pousse-pousse"), as well as cycle rickshaw ("cyclo-pousse"), auto rickshaw ("touktouks") and private taxis. The pousse-pousse is something of an emblem of the city; 5600 of them were recorded in 2006. There is also an airport.


Sports

Football: *
FC Vakinankaratra Vakinankaratra FC is a Malagasy football club based in Antsirabe, Vakinankaratra in central Madagascar. The team plays in the THB Champions League the top division of Malagasy football. In 2017 the team won the regional championship. Reference ...
*
FC Jirama Antsirabe FC Jirama Antsirabe is a Malagasy football club based in Antananarivo, Madagascar. The team currently plays in the Malagasy Second Division. Stadium Currently the team plays at the Antsirabe Stadium.GNBC


Education

The Institute of Higher Education of Antsirabe Vakinankaratra is the regional branch of the University of Antananarivo.


Museums

The Military Academy of Antsirabe hosts the
Akamia The Akamia museum is a museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importanc ...
museum, a military museum.


Twin cities

Antsirabe is twinned with: * Vacoas-Phoenix, Mauritius *
Montluçon Montluçon (; oc, Montleçon ) is a commune in central France on the river Cher. It is the largest commune in the Allier department, although the department's prefecture is located in the smaller town of Moulins. Its inhabitants are known as ...
, France * Levallois-Perret, France
/ref> Antsirabe has collaborations with: *
Stavanger Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...
, Norway


Notable locals

*
Olga Ramalason Olga may refer to: People and fictional characters * Olga (name), a given name, including a list of people and fictional characters named Olga or Olha * Michael Algar (born 1962), English singer also known as "Olga" Places Russia * Olga, Russia, ...
, mayor of Antsirabe ( TIM) until November 2011 when she became Minister of Commerce * Mohammed V of Morocco and his family, including the later Hassan II, lived in exile a
Hôtel des Thermes
in Antsirabe in 1955 *
Henri de Laulanie Henri de Laulanié from Poitou, France, joined the Society of Jesus and spent most of his Jesuit life working with rice farmers in Madagascar. He used his training from "Institut National Agronomique" in Paris, from which he graduated in 1938. to ...
, S.J., who developed an agricultural school for the area, where he developed a System of Rice Intensification that has spread worldwide * Members of the folk-pop band
Mahaleo Mahaleo is a folk-pop band from Madagascar that is widely viewed as the most popular Malagasy group of all time. The band was founded by Dama (Rasolofondraosolo Zafimahaleo) with six of his classmates after first performing together during the ...
got their start in Antsirabe as secondary school students.


References


External links

* *
Tourist information for Antsirabe (French)
{{Authority control Cities in Madagascar Populated places in Vakinankaratra Regional capitals in Madagascar