Río Muni

Río Muni

coat of arms of the Spanish Rio Muni colony

Río Muni (called Mbini in Fang) is the Continental Region of Equatorial Guinea, and comprises the mainland geographical region, covering 26,017 km².

History

Río Muni was ceded by Portugal to Spain in 1778 in the Treaty of El Pardo. The Spanish had hoped to collect slaves to work in their other overseas possessions, but their settlers died of yellow fever and the area was deserted. Cocoa and timber became major industries upon recolonization. Río Muni became a province of Spanish Guinea along with Bioko in 1959.

Population

Río Muni currently has a population of about 300,000, mainly composed of ethnic Fang tribes.

Provinces

Rio Muni is composed of four provinces:

• Centro Sur
• Kie-Ntem
• Litoral
• Wele-Nzas

Cities

The largest city is Batait is in the continental region of Rio Muni which also serves as the regional administrative capital. Other major towns include Evinayong, Ebebiyín, Acalayong, Acurenam, Mongomo, Sevilla de Niefang, Valladolid de los Bimbiles and Mbini.

See also

• Postage stamps and postal history of Equatorial Guinea

External links

•  Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Muni River Settlements" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.