Geba is a village in

Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, is a country in West Africa that covers with an estimated population of 2,026,778. It borders Senegal to Guinea-Bissau–Senegal border, its north and Guinea to Guinea–Guinea-Bissau b ...

, on the north bank of the eponymous

Geba river The Geba ( French: ''Rivière Geba'', Portuguese: ''Rio Geba'') is a river of West Africa that rises in the northernmost area of Guinea in the Fouta Djallon highlands, passes through southern Senegal, and reaches the Atlantic Ocean in Guinea-B ...

Etymology

The name 'Geba' originated from the Biafada term 'bejébi', meaning 'fresh water'.

History

The Geba region was originally inhabited by the Biafada people, though they were progressively displaced by the

Mandinka Mandinka, Mandika, Mandinkha, Mandinko, or Mandingo may refer to: Media * Mandingo (novel), ''Mandingo'' (novel), a bestselling novel published in 1957 * Mandingo (film), ''Mandingo'' (film), a 1975 film based on the eponymous 1957 novel * ''Man ...

of the

Kaabu Kaabu (1537–1867), also written Gabu, Ngabou, and N'Gabu, was a federation of Mandinka kingdoms in the Senegambia region centered within modern northeastern Guinea-Bissau, large parts of today's Gambia, and extending into Koussanar, Kou ...

federation. The town was established by Portuguese traders in the early 16th century, and it quickly became one of the most important ports in

Portuguese Guinea Portuguese Guinea (), called the Overseas Province of Guinea from 1951 until 1972 and then State of Guinea from 1972 until 1974, was a Portuguese overseas province in West Africa from 1588 until 10 September 1974, when it gained independence as G ...

, shipping thousands of slaves to the Americas every year. By the 1640s the town had become increasingly Africanized and, dominated by the Kaabu province of Ganadu, hard for Portuguese authorities to control. In 1644, they forced the town's merchants to move to Cacheu and

Farim Farim is a town of northern Guinea-Bissau. It sits on the north bank of the Farim/Cacheu River, about 215 km (135 miles) up the river from Cacheu. Population 8,661 (2009 census).Soninke-Marabout Wars of the 19th century dramatically curtailed trade in Geba. Efforts by the Portuguese colonial governors to sideline the powerful and independent merchants of the town also continued. The collapse of Kaabu and the rise of Fuladu further weakened Geba's commercial position. The town also became a center of creole resistance to the extension of Portuguese hegemony in the area. By the early 1900s, the population of the town had dwindled to a few hundred. The ''presidio'' of Geba was transferred to nearby

Bafatá Bafatá is the second-largest city in Guinea-Bissau, known as the birthplace of Amílcar Cabral. The town has a population of 22,501 (2008 est). It is the capital of Bafatá Region as well as the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bafatá, w ...

in 1912. The catholic parish headquarters also moved in 1944, around the time Geba lost its last administrative status.

Amilcar Cabral The Amilcar was a French automobile manufactured from 1921 to 1940. History Foundation and location Amilcar was founded in July 1921 by Joseph Lamy and Emile Akar. The name "Amilcar" was an imperfect anagram of the partners' names. The busine ...

's father Juvenal taught at the Geba school.

Culture

Some of the inhabitants of Geba are commonly known as 'Kriston', a term derived from Portuguese "cristão", meaning "Christian", and the town still boasts a Catholic church.

References

Sources

* *{{cite journal , last1=Kohl , first1=Christoph , title=The Praça of Geba - Marginalisation Past and Present as Resource , journal=Mande Studies , date=2009 , volume=11 , pages=73–90, doi=10.2979/mnd.2009.a873530 Bafatá region Populated places in Guinea-Bissau