Recently, we talked about the Democratic Republic of Congo. Today, I’m about to take you to the nation next door to DRC. Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Republic of Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville. That’s right, Africa actually has 2 CONGOS. Some of you are probably wondering, what is the difference between Congo Brazzaville and the Democratic Republic of Congo? The answer is actually quite simple. First of all, the name "Congo" comes from the Bakongo, a people present in both countries. So that's why these two countries have a similar name.
Then, you should know that the difference between the DRC and Congo Brazzaville is that they were colonized by two different nations! We talked about it in our video on the Democratic Republic of Congo, this country found itself colonized by the Belgians, where Congo Brazzaville was colonized by the French. Another difference between the two countries is the currency: in Brazzaville, the currency is the Central African CFA.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the most used currency is the US dollar, then the Congolese franc. Finally, one last difference is noticeable at the language level. If the two countries have French as an official language, all the other local languages and dialects are fundamentally different!
In Congo Brazzaville, the official language is the French language. It is spoken by more than half of the population, which is one of the highest rates on the continent, along with Gabon. Likewise, it is estimated that 90% of those over 15 can express themselves well in writing, showing that the official language is mastered. But it is not at all the only language spoken in the country, the others are mainly Bantu languages. The Bantu correspond to the geographical area stretching from Cameroon to the Comoros, and from Sudan to South Africa. This area is very large, and that's why there are over 400 different Bantu languages! However, in Congo Brazzaville the two most important national languages are Kituba and Lingala. Next come the téké and lari languages. There are still more than forty other languages in the country, but which are not Bantu. They are Pygmy languages. But then why was French chosen as the official language when we have so many national languages? According to Laval University, it would be because of the wars and civil wars that rocked the country. The French language would have become a language of refuge for the various armed factions. For example, people who are unsure of their skills prefer to speak French for safety reasons. It is also a way of keeping one's origin to oneself: with a language characteristic of a region, it is possible to receive derogatory remarks. By speaking French, we do not reveal our ethnicity.
Some of you may not know it, but the Republic of Congo has its other name, Congo Brazzaville, in reference to its capital. And yes, the latter is called Brazzaville and was founded on October 3, 1880. It is located in the south of the country, and has a very special history, which dates back to the time of colonization. At the time, the French had control over the territory, and wanted to create competition in Léopoldville, a town located on the opposite bank, on the DRC side. The aim was to seize power in order to explore and exploit the land along the Congo River. It was basically the small village of Mfoa that grew in importance over time, so much so that it was erected as the municipality of Brazzaville in 1911! Where does the name come from, do you think? It's simple, Brazzaville is taken from the name of a Franco-Italian explorer: Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza. It was in the capital that the Brazzaville conference took place in 1944. The purpose of this conference was to redefine, after World War II, relations between France and the African colonies. For the first time, we were talking about decolonization. This is a major historical element that played out in Brazzaville!
For this fifth fact, let's talk about one of the country's ecological prides. The Congo Basin forest is a tropical rainforest that extends over approximately 65% of the territory! Shared between six African countries, it is the second largest rainforest in the world after the Amazon rainforest. It is therefore the largest rainforest in Africa! In fact, she is one of the few to have an intact and completely sovereign nature.
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