ÃŽles de Los
The Los Islands ( Îles de Los ) are an archipelago off the coast of the West African country of Guinea.
Geography
The Îles de Los lie in the Atlantic Ocean west of Conakry, the capital of Guinea. There are three main islands:
- Tamara with the place Fotoba,
- Spot and
- Roume.
Coraille, Blanche and Cabris are smaller islands to the south.
Tamara is the largest of the islands, it is 13 km long and 1.6 km up to 3 km wide. It also has the highest elevation of 152 m. Only Tamara and spot to have a significant settlements ( Fotoba and Cite de spot ).
The archipelago is of volcanic origin and is now overgrown with palm trees.
Naming
The early Portuguese sailors named the islands " Ilhos dos Idolos ," meaning " Islands of the idols ( gods ) ," where are you now called the " Iles de Los " comes.
Until well into the 20th century, members of the Baga's annual processions were wont to perform to these islands. They brought their gods - including the fertility goddess Nimba - offerings.
History
First came the Portuguese navigator António Fernandes 1446 in the area of the islands, but only from the 16th century, the islands were first used by Europeans as a trading base, but no permanent settlements were established management. Roume was a notorious center for the African slave trade, on Tamara was a built by the British in 1812 jail. In 1818, Sir Charles MacCarthy acquired, the Governor of Sierra Leone, the island group from the tribe of Baga. End of 1884, the colonial traders Frederick Colin urged the German government to annex together with the acquired on the opposite shore regions Kapitaï and Koba the British indeed already claimed, but not yet British-occupied Los Islands. The long uninhabited islands were until 1904 attributed to the British sphere of influence before they were handed over to France. Since the Independence of Guinea in 1958 they belong to the state.
In 1949 we began to spot with the mining of bauxite; In 1966, the deposits were then exhausted. The deposits on Tamara were mined from 1967 to 1972.
Trivia
The island Roume to have Stevenson 's novel Treasure Island inspired.
Tourism
Nowadays, the Îles de Los, due to their beaches and wooded areas in the interior of the island is a popular destination, from Conakry from there are ferries to the islands.