LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Gabon
built 633 days ago
Gabon was first inhabited by the Pongoue (Mpongwe) people after the 16th century, who were in turn, followed by the Fang. Ultimately, the French built a port in the region in 1843 and in 1949, named a group of Pongoue villages Libreville. From 1860 to 1874, the British, Germans, and Americans started businesses in Gabon. Libreville was the capital of French Equatorial Africa from 1888 to 1904. Since independence in 1960, in sharp contrast with its neighbors, Gabon has experienced peace and stability with only brief and limited outbreaks of violence. It became autonomous in 1958 and gained its independence on 17th August 1960.
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Discoveries of tools from the end of the Old Stone Age and the New Stone Age indicate early settlements in what is now Gabon, but little is known about the first inhabitants. By the 13th century ad the Mpongwe people were established in the country. The first contact with Europeans was with the Portuguese in the 1470s. During the following 350 years, first the Portuguese and later the French, Dutch, and English carried on a lucrative trade in slaves. The first permanent European settlement was made by the French, with the agreement of the Mpongwe ruler, in 1839. Libreville was founded a decade later by freed slaves.
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Gabon ... features internationally celebrated masks, such as the n'goltang (Fang) and the relicary figures of the Kota. Each group has its own set of masks used for various reasons. They are mostly used in traditional ceremonies such as marriage, birth and funerals. Traditionalists mainly work with rare local woods and other precious materials.
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The flag represents Gabon's geographical position in the world. The yellow stripe through the middle of the flag represents the equator which runs through Gabon, and it ... represents the sun. The color blue represents the Atlantic Ocean which laps Gabon's shores, and the color green symbolizes the country's lush vegetation and forests.
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Gabon has a hot and humid climate. The temperature varies only slightly throughout the year. The average daily temperature is 27°C (80°F). The dry seasons are from May to September and December to January, while the rainy seasons are from February to April and October to November. At Libreville the average annual rainfall averages 2,520 mm (99 in).
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Gabon has a small manufacturing sector, the leading products being refined petroleum and wood items. Other manufactures include processed food, beer, and cement. About 914 million kwh of electricity were generated annually in the early 1990s. About three-fourths of the power was produced in hydroelectric facilities, primarily at an installation at Kinguélé (near Libreville).
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