Greeks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Έλληνες στην Λαϊκή Δημοκρατία του Κονγκό | |
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Roman Catholicism | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Greeks, White Africans of European ancestry |
The first communities of the Greeks in the
History
Colonial Era
In the early to mid 20th century nearly all Congolese cities on the Belgian side had a Greek community and usually all hailing from a particular part of Greece as people would arrive, get settled in and send for their families.[2] By the 1920s there were established Greek fishing and trading communities in the trading cities of
Post-independence
When the country declared its independence in 1960 there were violent clashes and uncertainty followed by three decades of totalitarian rule by Mobutu Sese Seko which led to the exodus of most Greek settlers and the decline of the Greek community.
Around the year 2000 there were about 100 Greeks left in the capital
Language
Most Greeks in the Democratic Republic of Congo speak French as their native language, [citation needed] while some can only speak Greek.
See also
References
- ^ a b Hellenic Republic: Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Democratic Republic of Congo: The Greek Community Archived 2009-03-23 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ ISBN 1-85984-368-9, ch. 2
- ISBN 0-226-31580-0.
- ISSN 0308-6534.
- ^ Declan Walsh, City Life: Kisangani - Congo's last few Greeks look back in wonder, The Independent, (London), Oct 2, 2000
- ^ "Greeks Around the Globe". Archived from the original on 2006-06-19.
- ^ "The Hellenic Community".