Concept

Kisangani

Summary
Kisangani kiːsəŋˈɡɑːni (formerly Stanleyville or Stanleystad) is the capital of Tshopo province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the fifth most populous urban area in the country, with an estimated population of 1,312,000 in 2021, and the largest of the cities that lie in the tropical woodlands of the Congo. Some from the mouth of the Congo River, Kisangani is the farthest navigable point upstream. Kisangani is the nation's most important inland port after Kinshasa, an important commercial hub point for river and land transportation and a major marketing and distribution centre for the north-eastern part of the country. It has been the commercial capital of the northern Congo since the late 19th century. Timeline of Kisangani Before Henry Morton Stanley, working on behalf of King Leopold II of the Belgians, founded what would become Stanley Falls Station in 1883, on the Island of Wana Rusari in the Congo River, the area was inhabited by a native Congolese tribe known as the Clans of Enya, who had used Wagenia Falls (former name Stanley Falls) for fishing. The island is located a few meters from the shore site of the present town on the Lualaba River, its 7 falls spread over between Kisangani and Ubundu. Stanley founded the area's first trading post, some from the mouth of the Congo River, in December 1883. The settlement was known first as Falls Station (or "the Post Stanley Falls" or "The Falls" or simply "Boyoma" the African name of Boyoma Falls) and then, with Belgian colonization of the area, it grew into a settlement called Stanleyville. A city terminus of steamer navigation on the Congo River, the town began as a trading post. It has been the major centre of the northern Congo since the late 19th century. Stanley left Mr. Binnie, an engineer who was a Scotsman, in charge to trade with the local people and to be the chief representative of King Leopold's Congo Free State in the area. The name "Kisangani" was apparently used consistently by the local people, while the name "Stanleyville" was used in French (and Stanleystad in Dutch).
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