São Tomé

São Tomé is the capital and largest city of the Central African island country of São Tomé and Príncipe. Its name is Portuguese for "Saint Thomas". Founded in the 15th century, is one of Africa's oldest colonial cities.[1]

For other uses, see São Tomé (disambiguation).
São Tomé
City
Independence Square, Downtown São Tomé
Flag
Coat of arms
São Tomé
Location on São Tomé Island
São Tomé
São Tomé (Africa)
Coordinates: 0°20′10″N 6°43′50″E
Country São Tomé and Príncipe
IslandSão Tomé
DistrictÁgua Grande
Founded1485
Area
 • Total17 km2 (7 sq mi)
Elevation
137 m (449 ft)
Population
 (2015 estimate)
 • Total71,868
 • Density4,200/km2 (11,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+0 (GMT)
Area code(s)+239-11x-xxxx through 14x-xxxx

History
See also: Timeline of São Tomé

Álvaro Caminha founded the colony of São Tomé in 1493. The Portuguese came to São Tomé in search of land to grow sugarcane. The island was uninhabited before the arrival of the Portuguese sometime around 1470. São Tomé, situated about 40 kilometres (25 mi) north of the equator, had a climate wet enough to grow sugarcane in wild abundance. 2,000 Jewish children, eight years old and under, were taken from the Iberian peninsula for work on the sugar plantations.[2] The nearby African Kingdom of Kongo eventually became a source of slave labor as well. The island of São Tomé was the main center of sugar production in the sixteenth century; it was overtaken by Brazil by 1600.[3]

São Tomé is centred on a sixteenth-century cathedral, that was largely rebuilt in the 19th century. Another early building is Fort São Sebastião, built in 1566 and now the São Tomé National Museum. On July 9, 1595, a slave revolt led by Rei Amador took control of the capital; they were subjugated the following year.[4] In 1599, the Dutch took the city as well as the islands for two days; they re-occupied it in 1641 for a year. The city served as the capital of the Portuguese colony of São Tomé and Príncipe and, from São Tomé and Príncipe's independence in 1975, as capital of the sovereign nation.[5]

Geography

Important as a port, São Tomé is located on Ana Chaves Bay in the northeast of São Tomé Island, and Ilhéu das Cabras lies nearby offshore. São Tomé is located northeast of Trindade, southeast of Guadalupe and northwest of Santana. It is linked to these towns by a highway which encircles the entire island of São Tomé. It is linked to Cape Verde by a weekly ferry.

Features of the town include the Presidential Palace, the cathedral, and a cinema. The city is also home to schools, and middle schools, high schools, one polytechnic, two markets, three radio stations, the public television station TVSP, several clinics and hospitals, the country's main airport - São Tomé International Airport (with direct regular scheduled flights to Angola, Gabon, Ghana and Portugal as well as occasional domestic flights to Príncipe), and many squares (praças). São Tomé also serves as the centre of the island's road and bus networks. The town is well known for the tchiloli playing.[6]

Population history
Historical population
YearPop.±%
1990
(June 23, Census) 		42,331—    
2000
(June 16, Census) 		49,957+18.0%
2003
(Estimate) 		53,300+6.7%
2018
(July 1, Estimate) 		71,868+34.8%

Transport

São Tomé is served by São Tomé International Airport (IATA: TMS, ICAO: FPST) with regular flights to Europe and other African Countries.

Climate

São Tomé features a tropical wet and dry climate (As) with a relatively lengthy wet season and a short dry season. The wet season runs from October through May while the dry season covers the remaining four months. São Tomé sees on average just under 900 mm (35 in) of precipitation per year. Temperatures in the city are relatively constant, with average high temperatures usually around 30 °C (86 °F) and average low temperatures around 22 °C (72 °F).

Climate data for São Tomé (São Tomé International Airport)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 32.0
(89.6)		 33.6
(92.5)		 33.5
(92.3)		 33.4
(92.1)		 33.9
(93.0)		 31.0
(87.8)		 30.7
(87.3)		 31.0
(87.8)		 31.7
(89.1)		 31.5
(88.7)		 31.6
(88.9)		 32.0
(89.6)		 33.9
(93.0)
Average high °C (°F) 29.4
(84.9)		 29.9
(85.8)		 30.2
(86.4)		 30.1
(86.2)		 29.3
(84.7)		 28.0
(82.4)		 27.3
(81.1)		 27.7
(81.9)		 28.6
(83.5)		 28.7
(83.7)		 29.0
(84.2)		 29.1
(84.4)		 28.9
(84.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) 25.9
(78.6)		 26.2
(79.2)		 26.4
(79.5)		 26.4
(79.5)		 26.0
(78.8)		 24.7
(76.5)		 23.8
(74.8)		 24.1
(75.4)		 25.0
(77.0)		 25.2
(77.4)		 25.5
(77.9)		 25.6
(78.1)		 25.4
(77.7)
Average low °C (°F) 22.4
(72.3)		 22.5
(72.5)		 22.6
(72.7)		 22.6
(72.7)		 22.6
(72.7)		 21.4
(70.5)		 20.4
(68.7)		 20.5
(68.9)		 21.3
(70.3)		 21.8
(71.2)		 22.0
(71.6)		 22.1
(71.8)		 21.8
(71.2)
Record low °C (°F) 19.1
(66.4)		 19.6
(67.3)		 19.2
(66.6)		 19.4
(66.9)		 18.5
(65.3)		 14.0
(57.2)		 14.0
(57.2)		 13.4
(56.1)		 16.0
(60.8)		 18.3
(64.9)		 18.8
(65.8)		 19.6
(67.3)		 13.4
(56.1)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 81
(3.2)		 84
(3.3)		 131
(5.2)		 122
(4.8)		 113
(4.4)		 19
(0.7)		 0
(0)		 1
(0.0)		 17
(0.7)		 110
(4.3)		 99
(3.9)		 108
(4.3)		 884
(34.8)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 8 8 12 11 10 3 2 3 6 12 11 8 94
Average relative humidity (%) 85 84 83 83 84 79 77 78 79 82 85 85 82
Mean monthly sunshine hours 142.6 135.6 139.5 126.0 145.7 165.0 161.2 148.8 120.0 114.7 135.0 142.6 1,676.7
Mean daily sunshine hours 4.6 4.8 4.5 4.2 4.7 5.5 5.2 4.8 4.0 3.7 4.5 4.6 4.6
Source: Deutscher Wetterdienst[7]

Education

The following Portuguese international schools are in the city:[8]

  • Escola Portuguesa de S. Tomé
  • Instituto Diocesano de Formação João Paulo II
  • Escola Bambino
  • Escola Internacional de S. Tomé e Príncipe

Health

The main hospital of the country is Hospital Ayres de Menezes.

Sports

Sports clubs based in the city include Sporting Praia Cruz and Vitória FC based in the neighborhood of Riboque. All clubs play at Estádio Nacional 12 de Julho.

Places of worship

Among the places of worship, they are predominantly Christian churches and temples : Roman Catholic Diocese of São Tomé and Príncipe (Catholic Church), Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, Assemblies of God.[9]

Notable people

Sports

International relations
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in São Tomé and Príncipe

São Tomé is twinned with:

References
  1. http://www.stp.gov.st/
  2. Allen, Theodore (1997). The invention of the white race (Second ed.). London: Verso. p. 5. ISBN 9781844677719. OCLC 738350824.
  3. Manning, Patrick (2006). "Slavery & Slave Trade in West Africa 1450-1930". Themes in West Africa's history. Akyeampong, Emmanuel Kwaku. Athens: Ohio University. pp. 102–103. ISBN 978-0-8214-4566-2. OCLC 745696019.
  4. A Verdadeira Origem do Célebre Rei Amador Gerhard Seibert of Espaço Cultural STP (in Portuguese)
  5. Roman Adrian Cybriwsky, Capital Cities around the World: An Encyclopedia of Geography, History, and Culture, ABC-CLIO, USA, 2013, p. 275
  6. https://www.telanon.info/topico/cultura/
  7. "Klimatafel von Sao Tomé (Flugh.) / Sao Tomé und Principe" (PDF). Baseline climate means (1961-1990) from stations all over the world (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  8. "ESCOLAS COM CURRÍCULO PORTUGUÊS EM S. TOMÉ" (Archive). Direção de Serviços de Ensino e Escolas Portuguesas no Estrangeiro (DSEEPE) of the Portuguese Education Ministry. Retrieved on October 26, 2015.
  9. Britannica, Sao Tome and Principe, britannica.com, USA, accessed on July 7, 2019
  10. "Lisboa - Geminações de Cidades e Vilas" [Lisbon - Twinning of Cities and Towns]. Associação Nacional de Municípios Portugueses [National Association of Portuguese Municipalities] (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2013-08-23.
  11. "Acordos de Geminação, de Cooperação e/ou Amizade da Cidade de Lisboa" [Lisbon - Twinning Agreements, Cooperation and Friendship]. Camara Municipal de Lisboa (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2013-08-23.
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