French Guiana

FRENCH GUIANA is an overseas territory of France located in Northern South America. French Guiana's bordering countries are Brazil to the south and east and Suriname to the west. Its northern coast borders the North Atlantic Ocean. As this Suriname border dispute post (opens in new tab/window) reveals, Suriname claims a portion of French Guiana west of the Marouini River.

● ● ● ● ●  People and Places  ● ● ● ● ●  The capital and largest city is Cayenne, which has less than 60,000 residents and is located along the Atlantic coast. Other communities scattered throughout French Guiana include Cacao, Camopi, Citron, Grand Santi, Iracoubo, Kaw, Kourou, Maripasoula, Montsinéry, Ouanary, Régina, Roura, Saint-Élie, Saint-Georges, Saint-Jean, Saint-Laurent du Maroni, Saül, Sinnamary, and Tonate. The French Guianese people use the Euro currency, the same currency used in France. French is the official language, and other European languages spoken in French Guiana include Dutch, English, Portuguese, and Spanish. Other languages include French Guianese Creole, Maroon dialects, and various indigenous languages. Residents living in French Guiana are mostly Creoles, people with African ancestry, and native American Indians. Others include folks from countries such as Brazil, China, and France.

● ● ● ● ●  Land Features  ● ● ● ● ●  About 9/10 of French Guiana, especially the southern area, is covered by equatorial rainforests. Rivers flow throughout the rainforests. In addition to Marouini River mentioned above, rivers include Approuague, Camopi, Lawa, Litani, Mana, Maroni, Oyapock, Sinnamary, and Tampoc. Lawa, Litani, and Maroni rivers form the western border with Suriname, while Oyapock forms part of the eastern border with Brazil. French Guiana's highest point is Bellevue de l'Inini, which stands 851 meters tall (almost 2,800 feet) in south-central French Guiana east of the town Maripasoula. The small Îles du Salut (Islands of Salvation) are located near the coastline north of Kourou. Colloquially known as "Devil's Island," the Îles du Salut served various functions for the penal colony. There are also small islands near Cayenne.

● ● ● ● ●  Guiana Space Centre  ● ● ● ● ●  Operated by the European Space Agency, the Guiana Space Centre (Centre Spatial Guyanais) in Kourou was chosen for its ideal location. Since Kourou is near the Equator, satellites launched into orbit do not need as many trajectory adjustments compared to satellites launched farther away from the Equator.