Port Louis, Mauritius

Port Louis is the capital of the Republic of Mauritius, an island nation off the coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean. The Republic of Mauritius includes both the island of Mauritius and the islands of Agalega, Rodriguez, and Saint Brandon. Port Louis was established by the French colonial government in the eighteenth century as a waypoint for the French shipping fleet and has grown to become the economic hub of the nation. Port Louis has a long history of immigration and contains an ethnically diverse population that includes persons of Chinese, African, Indian, and European descent.

Landscape

Port Louis is located on the northwestern coast of Mauritius within the Moka Mountain Range, which forms a semicircle around the city and rises to more than 800 meters (2,647 feet). Elevations fall swiftly from the mountains to the port harbor, and most of the urban area sits at sea level.

Mauritius is classified as a subtropical maritime climate zone. Temperatures and humidity vary only slightly between the wet and dry seasons. The average temperature on the coast varies from 22 to 25 degrees Celsius (71 to 77 degrees Fahrenheit). Elevated temperatures and high humidity characterize the hottest period, which occurs from November to April. Temperatures during the hot season can reach 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit), with humidity at 90 percent. The coast experiences frequent cyclones and tropical storms, which are most common in January and March.

The city of Port Louis covers approximately 43 square kilometers (17 square miles), including the surrounding suburbs. The central urban area is roughly 6 square kilometers (2.4 square miles) divided into a number of irregular grids. The architecture of Port Louis is a blend of colonial French and modern design. Streets in Port Louis were designed to be wider than average urban roads, and many are lined with trees. The peripheral areas of the city are more modern, and factories and other industrial facilities are concentrated at the edge of the urban area.

People

The Republic of Mauritius had an estimated population of 1,309,448 as of 2023, according to the US Central Intelligence Agency’s (CIA) World Factbook. Many residents are descended from Indian and African laborers who were brought to the island during the colonial period. The population of Port Louis was 149,000 as of 2018. The city is more ethnically diverse than the nation as a whole, and there are substantial populations of ethnic Chinese and Europeans living in the city. The Indo-Mauritian ethnic group is the nation’s largest ethnicity and accounts for approximately two-thirds of the population, according to the CIA. The second-largest ethnic group is the Mauritian Creole population. Members of the Mauritian Creole population are descended from African and Malagasy ethnic groups. In addition, a small percentage of the population is of Chinese or mixed Chinese descent while others are of French or European descent.

The primary language of Mauritius is a form of French Creole known as Morisyen, or Mauritian Creole, which was spoken by over 86 percent of the population as of the 2011 census. Morisyen is largely based on French but also contains elements of English and African languages. English is one of two official languages of the National Assembly and is used in governmental and educational functions. French is also common in major cities, such as Port Louis, though less than 5 percent of the population uses standard French as their primary language. Because of the large Indian population, several Indian dialects are spoken in Mauritius.

Over 48 percent of Mauritians were Hindu as of 2011, most of whom belong to the Indo-Mauritian population. Some form of Islam is practiced by approximately 17 percent of the population. Catholicism is also popular in Mauritius, especially among the Afro-Creole population; approximately 26 percent of the population practices Catholicism. Other forms of Christianity can be found on the island, though more often in other major cities. Small populations of Buddhists and Taoists may be found among the nation’s Chinese population.

Mauritian culture is a blend of Asian, African, European, and Indian influences. The cuisine reflects the island’s cultural variation, with blends of African, Indian and European food being common. Public dances are common among the Afro-Mauritian population, including the Sega, a type of ritual dance based on African musical styles and patterns. Football (soccer) and tennis are among the most popular sports on the island and are often played in public venues. As Port Louis is located near a number of popular beaches, ocean activities such as boating, scuba diving, snorkeling, and parasailing are also common recreational activities for many Mauritians.

Economy

Port Louis is the nation’s only port and is therefore the center of the nation’s import and export industries. The country’s most important exports are sugarcane and refined sugar, and sugar accounts for 3–4 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), according to the CIA. Around 90 percent of the land on Mauritius that is suitable for agriculture is used for the production of sugarcane. Approximately 8 percent of the population is employed in agriculture, producing sugarcane, fruits and vegetables, corn and grain, and tea and coffee.

The primary industry on Mauritius is the refinement of sugar. A number of sugar refineries are located around Port Louis and employ a large portion of the population. In addition to sugar refinement, other industries include textile and chemical production, mining, and the tourism industry, which has grown in the twenty-first century to become one of the city’s fastest growing industries (according to Statistics Mauritius, the country saw nearly one million tourist arrivals in 2022). Industrial production employed 29.8 percent of the population as of 2014 and contributed approximately 22 percent to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) as of 2017, according to the CIA. The services industry, which includes tourism and ecotourism, constituted over 74 percent of the nation’s GDP by that time.

Mauritius’s chief trading partners are in Europe. European countries purchased around 44.7 percent of the country's exports in 2019. Other important trade partners included South Africa, Madagascar, and the United States. As of 2017, when the European Union abolished sugar quotas, Mauritius sought to diversify its export markets to ensure that it could compete and survive.

Since the country gained independence in 1968, the Mauritians have been successful in diversifying their economy and have achieved economic growth. Mauritius has one of the highest standards of living among African nations and has consistently invested its economic surplus into the infrastructure and services sector. Though Mauritians still suffer from relatively high levels of poverty and unemployment, government initiatives have fostered a high level of income equality, which has helped to stabilize the economy. As the nation’s principal port, Port Louis is the first city on the island to benefit from economic growth. Since the early 2000s, infrastructure and development projects have also been focused on making the city smarter.

The country was hit hard by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The ongoing war caused energy and food prices to skyrocket, and Mauritius saw inflation of more than 10 percent in 2022.

Landmarks

Among the most popular attractions in Port Louis is the Natural History Museum of Port Louis, which contains a variety of exhibits about the island’s ecological history. The museum’s collection includes the only remaining skeleton of the extinct dodo, a flightless bird that once populated the island until the eighteenth century, when it was hunted to extinction. In addition, Port Louis has the Blue Penny Museum, founded in 2001, which holds an extensive collection of stamps.

Port Louis is also known for its bustling Chinatown area, an ethnic neighborhood that contains a variety of Chinese shops and restaurants and is home to many of the nation’s Chinese residents. Royal Road, the main street in the city’s Chinese district, is lined with dozens of small stores selling crafts, food products, and other items. Chinese holidays, including the New Moon Festival and the Chinese New Year, are celebrated in Chinatown with parades and other festivities.

The Jummah Mosque, which is located in the center of urban Port Louis, is one of the largest religious institutions in the nation. The mosque was constructed in the nineteenth century and was expanded in the twentieth century. The mosque is a popular site for tourists and also holds a significant place in the lives of the Islamic population of Port Louis, many of whom visit the mosque for religious services. As a majority of the Mauritian and Port Louis population is Hindu, the city is also home to numerous Hindu structures.

History

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Mauritius became a common port for Portuguese and Dutch vessels, though neither nation attempted to claim the island or develop permanent settlements. The Dutch named the island in honor of Dutch prince Maurice of Nassau, who was famous for his role in the Dutch rebellion against Spanish domination in the 1590s.

In 1638, the Dutch established the first permanent settlement on the island, a timber harvesting community located near present-day Port Louis. The Dutch imported Malagasy slave labor from Madagascar in an effort to bolster the timber industry, but inclement weather and insufficient resources hindered development. The Dutch eventually abandoned the island, though they left a small population of former slaves behind, who formed their own settlements in the central regions of the island.

The French arrived on Mauritius in 1715, shortly after the Dutch evacuation in 1710, but did not form a permanent settlement until 1722. The French named their colony Port Louis, in honor of King Louis XV, and began a tumultuous project to develop a timber-harvesting industry. An important figure in the development of Port Louis was Bertrand-Francois Mahe De La Bourdonnais, a member of the French East India Trading Company, whose economic initiatives prevented the French colony from suffering a collapse similar to that of its Dutch predecessor. The town of Mahebourg in Mauritius is named after La Bourdonnais, in recognition of his contributions to the nation.

During the French period, hundreds of Africans and Indians were brought to the island to serve as laborers, and they quickly outnumbered the French population. Though some slave protests occurred, the French introduced gradual reforms that prevented outright revolt. In 1744, the nation opened its first sugar refinement factory near Port Louis, marking the beginning of the nation’s transition to industrial refinement in place of agricultural production.

During the French Revolution, the Mauritian colonies gained autonomy from the French government. This was largely in response to the abolishment of slavery by the French government, which the Mauritian French viewed as a threat to their economic stability. In 1803, French leader Napoleon Bonaparte sent a new governor to Mauritius with the task of bringing the island back to French control by offering to allow the Mauritians to retain their slaves.

In 1810, towards the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the British defeated French forces in the Indian Ocean and took control of Mauritius. The British controlled the island from 1810 to 1868, during which time they invested heavily in the development of Mauritius. The British paved roads, instituted a more comprehensive education system and developed public utilities. Britain abolished slavery in 1835 but was forced to provide financial compensation to many of the Mauritian slave owners to prevent revolt.

After the abolishment of slavery, the British invited Indian, African, and Chinese laborers to settle on the island in return for guaranteed labor contracts and housing. Thousands of Indians arrived on the islands in the mid- to late-nineteenth century and quickly became the largest ethnic minority in the nation. Though Indian laborers were not slaves, their working and living conditions were poor, and the contracts offered amounted to indentured servitude. Indian spiritual leader Mohandas Gandhi visited Port Louis in 1907 to help negotiate trade disputes and argue for better wages and rights for the nation’s laborers.

Port Louis was an important military base during World War II and was developed into a major naval port. After the war, political changes led to the development of a more influential independence movement. Not wanting to face revolt, the British allowed Mauritius to become an independent nation within the British Commonwealth in 1968. In 1992, Mauritius became an independent republic.

Beginning in 2015, the Porlwi contemporary culture festival has been held in Port Louis to celebrate and promote discussion of the regeneration of the city, adopting a new theme each year.

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