Saint-Denis, Réunion

Saint-Denis (/ˌsæ̃dəˈniː/, French pronunciation: ​[sɛ̃ dəni], unofficially Saint-Denis de La Réunion for disambiguation; Reunionese Creole: Sin-Dni) is the prefecture (administrative capital) of the French overseas department and region of Réunion, in the Indian Ocean. It is located at the island's northernmost point, close to the mouth of the Rivière Saint-Denis.

For other places named Saint-Denis, see Saint Denis (disambiguation) § Places.

Saint Denis
Prefecture and commune
From top, left to right: Panoramic view of the city from the heights of Bellepierre; canons at the Barachois waterfront; Saint-Denis Cathedral; Palais de la Source, seat of the departmental council; Saint-Denis's historic city hall and Victory Column; La Réunion's Natural History Museum; city center and Indian Ocean in the evening.
Coat of arms
Location of Saint Denis
Coordinates: 20°52′44″S 55°26′53″E
CountryFrance
Overseas region and departmentRéunion
ArrondissementSaint-Denis
Canton4 cantons
IntercommunalityNord de la Réunion
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Ericka Bareigts[1] (PS)
Area
1
142.79 km2 (55.13 sq mi)
 • Metro
 (2020)
547.8 km2 (211.5 sq mi)
Population
 (Jan. 2019)[2]
153,810
 • Density1,100/km2 (2,800/sq mi)
 • Metro
 (Jan. 2018[3][4])
309,635
 • Metro density570/km2 (1,500/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+04:00
INSEE/Postal code
97411 /97400
Elevation0–2,276 m (0–7,467 ft)
(avg. 23 m or 75 ft)
WebsiteVille-saintdenis-reunion.fr
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Saint Denis is the most populous commune in the French overseas departments and the twentieth most populous in all of France. At the 2018 census, there were 309,635 inhabitants in the metropolitan area of Saint Denis (as defined by INSEE),[4] 150,535 of whom lived in the city (commune) of Saint-Denis proper and the remainder in the neighbouring communes of La Possession, Sainte-Marie, Sainte-Suzanne, Saint-André, and Bras-Panon.[3]

History

Saint-Denis was founded in 1669 by Étienne Regnault, first governor of Bourbon Island (as La Réunion was then called), on the northern side of the island, where a larger and more fertile plain was deemed more propitious for the development of settlements than the drier and more barren area of Saint-Paul on the western side of the island. Saint-Paul had been the site of the first French settlement in 1663 due to the better anchorage and wind conditions of the western coast.

The new settlement was named Saint-Denis after the name of a ship owned by one of governor Regnault's friends, which had landed in Réunion in 1668. Saint-Denis and Saint-Paul shared the role of colonial capital of Bourbon for some years, with the governor and colonial council staying alternatively in the two settlements, until Saint-Denis was chosen as the permanent location of Bourbon's colonial government in 1738.

Soon after 1738, work was started to establish a seaport in the little bay of Le Barachois, on the eastern side of the Saint-Denis River, to replace the seaport of Saint-Paul, but its site did not offer a safe haven, due to unpredictable winds and tides, as well as frequent high surf which forced ships to unload their cargo in the open roadstead away from the shore, from where it was carried to the shore with the use of a mobile pier. Improvements in the 19th century resulted in the construction of a small artificial harbor where surf boats in charge of unloading cargo from larger ships could be protected from winds and swells, but it was regularly damaged by cyclones. Eventually it was replaced by a new and much larger artificial harbor built on the northwest coast of La Réunion in the 1880s, in today's commune of Le Port, 15 km (9 mi) from Saint-Denis.

Bilingual sign in French and Réunion Creole

Geography
Saint Denis from the SPOT satellite

The city is located on the north end of the island, and was a port. Saint Denis was "originally the main port of Réunion, but an artificial harbour at Le Port, on the northwest coast, replaced it in the 1880s, because of unpredictable winds and tides at Saint-Denis." The city includes some of the island's mountains, with a peak elevation of 2,276 meters (7,467 ft) within the metro area, which begins at sea level at the coast line.[5]

The city has many neighbourhoods: Le Barachois, Bellepierre, Bois-de-Nèfles, La Bretagne (Le Cerf), Le Brûlé, Les Camélias, Centre-ville, Champ-Fleuri, La Montagne (Le Colorado, Ruisseau Blanc, Saint-Bernard), Montgaillard, La Providence, La Rivière Saint-Denis (La Redoute), Ruisseau des Noirs, Saint-François, Saint-Jacques, Sainte-Clotilde (Le Butor, le Chaudron, Commune Prima, Domenjod, Le Moufia), La Source, La Trinité, Vauban

Climate

Saint-Denis features a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen Am) with two distinct seasons: a hot and humid wet season from December to April and a very warm, less humid drier season for the remaining seven months of the year, with July to October qualifying as true dry season months. The dry season does typically feature relatively light rain, but it is not wet enough to be a tropical rainforest climate. During the wet season, tropical cyclones often affect the city.

Climate data for Saint-Denis, Réunion (Gillot Airport) (1981−2010 normals, extremes 1953−present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 35.2
(95.4)		 34.0
(93.2)		 33.1
(91.6)		 32.7
(90.9)		 30.6
(87.1)		 29.9
(85.8)		 29.0
(84.2)		 28.2
(82.8)		 29.2
(84.6)		 30.5
(86.9)		 31.8
(89.2)		 34.5
(94.1)		 35.2
(95.4)
Average high °C (°F) 30.0
(86.0)		 30.0
(86.0)		 29.8
(85.6)		 29.1
(84.4)		 27.5
(81.5)		 26.1
(79.0)		 25.2
(77.4)		 25.3
(77.5)		 25.9
(78.6)		 26.9
(80.4)		 28.1
(82.6)		 29.1
(84.4)		 27.7
(81.9)
Daily mean °C (°F) 26.6
(79.9)		 26.7
(80.1)		 26.4
(79.5)		 25.5
(77.9)		 23.9
(75.0)		 22.4
(72.3)		 21.6
(70.9)		 21.6
(70.9)		 22.1
(71.8)		 23.2
(73.8)		 24.4
(75.9)		 25.7
(78.3)		 24.2
(75.6)
Average low °C (°F) 23.2
(73.8)		 23.5
(74.3)		 23.0
(73.4)		 22.0
(71.6)		 20.3
(68.5)		 18.7
(65.7)		 17.9
(64.2)		 17.8
(64.0)		 18.3
(64.9)		 19.5
(67.1)		 20.7
(69.3)		 22.3
(72.1)		 20.6
(69.1)
Record low °C (°F) 18.2
(64.8)		 18.6
(65.5)		 18.4
(65.1)		 15.6
(60.1)		 15.3
(59.5)		 13.6
(56.5)		 12.9
(55.2)		 12.8
(55.0)		 13.0
(55.4)		 13.4
(56.1)		 15.0
(59.0)		 17.8
(64.0)		 12.8
(55.0)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 278.6
(10.97)		 351.0
(13.82)		 232.5
(9.15)		 154.3
(6.07)		 97.6
(3.84)		 76.9
(3.03)		 57.8
(2.28)		 57.8
(2.28)		 50.0
(1.97)		 43.4
(1.71)		 70.0
(2.76)		 188.7
(7.43)		 1,658.6
(65.30)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1 mm) 13.3 14.3 13.0 11.3 9.6 7.2 8.8 9.6 8.1 7.1 5.9 11.1 119.4
Mean monthly sunshine hours 216.6 194.7 215.3 220.0 212.6 215.8 221.7 210.9 208.1 210.3 211.2 219.7 2,556.9
Source: Meteo France[6]

Demographics

Saint-Denis is the most populous commune in the French overseas departments. The population of St Denis has grown substantially since 1954, both in the commune and the metropolitan area. In the 64 years from 1954 to the census in 2018, population has more than tripled. The annual rate of population growth has been lower in the 21st century than in the 20th century.

Historical population Saint-Denis (commune)
YearPop.±% p.a.
1954 41,863—    
1961 65,275+6.30%
1967 85,444+4.57%
1974 103,512+2.78%
1982 109,072+0.71%
1990 121,999+1.41%
1999 131,557+0.84%
2008 144,238+1.05%
2013 142,442−0.25%
2018 150,535+1.11%
Source: INSEE[7]
Historical population Saint-Denis (metropolitan area)
YearPop.±% p.a.
1954 86,267—    
1961 117,345+4.32%
1967 146,215+3.72%
1974 173,346+2.46%
1982 187,541+1.07%
1990 215,970+1.78%
1999 251,044+1.69%
2008 290,622+1.67%
2013 297,467+0.47%
2018 309,635+0.81%
Source: INSEE[7][4]

The places of birth of the 304,223 residents in the Saint-Denis metropolitan area at the 2015 census were the following:[8]

Transport

The closest airport is Roland Garros Airport, 7 km east of the city in Sainte-Marie, Réunion, which is also the main international airport of Réunion. Air Austral is the regional air carrier, with its Indian Ocean hub located at the airport. The airline has begun serving some cities in mainland France. Five or six other airlines serve the airport. There is a good road network in Saint-Denis.

On March 15, 2022, an aerial tramway, named Papang, started operating, strecthing 2.7 km (approximately 1.67 mi) and serving 5 stations between the neighbourhoods of Le Chaudron and Bois-de-Nèfles.[9]

Mayors

Culture
  • Léon Dierx Museum (art gallery and museum)
  • Jardin de l'État (public gardens – includes a natural history museum)
  • Le Barachois, seafront park
  • La Roche Écrite (15 km (9 mi) south of the city), summit overlooking Saint-Denis, with impressive views over the city
  • Brasseries de Bourbon

Places of worship

Among the places of worship, they are predominantly Christian churches and temples : Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint-Denis de La Réunion (Catholic Church), Assemblies of God.[11] There are also Muslim mosques.

Education

The University of Reunion Island admits 15,000 students each year, with 6 campus sites in Saint-Denis.[12] Course work is aligned with European standards for university education. There is a school of engineering as well. The language is French, and there are connection with educational institutions in France on the continent of Europe.

The commune maintains various elementary schools for each sector.[13]

Economy

IBM has an office in Saint-Denis.[14] The island began organizing to be a digital hub for nearby African nations, relying on its two undersea cables for good internet connections.[15] The potential for services would alter the island's economy, now reliant on sugar, an agricultural product. The university in Saint-Denis has programs to educate the young population in digital skills.[15] New businesses are forming to serve the needs of airlines for software.[15]

International relations
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

Saint Denis, Réunion is twinned with:

Notable residents

Sentenced to exile in Réunion, the Moroccan Rais Abd el-Krim lived a few years in Saint-Denis from 1926.

Prince Bảo Vàng of Vietnam (also known as Yves Claude Vinh San) the son of Emperor Duy Tân, was born and resided in Saint Denis, Réunion for his final years. His family also resided there.

Other people connected with Saint Denis include:

Monument honoring Roland Garros at Le Barachois

See also

References
  1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  2. "Populations légales 2019". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 29 December 2021.
  3. "Historique des populations légales" [History of the legal population]. INSEE. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  4. "Base des aires d'attraction des villes 2020". INSEE. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  5. Tikkanen, Amy (21 June 2019). "Saint-Denis". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  6. "Statistiques 1981−2010 et records GILLOT−AEROPORT (974)" (PDF) (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  7. Populations communales de 1876 à 2018, INSEE
  8. "Recensement de la population de 2015 - Individus localisés au canton-ou-ville en 2015". INSEE. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  9. "Un premier téléphérique urbain entre en service à La Réunion" [A first urban cable car enters service in Reunion] (in French). 22 March 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  10. "Résultats du premier tour et second tour des élections à Saint-Denis". Le Monde. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  11. Melton, J. Gordon; Baumann, Martin, eds. (2010). "Réunion". Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 5. ABC-Clio. pp. 2411–2412. ISBN 978-1-59884-204-3. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  12. "University of Reunion Island". Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  13. "L'école" (in French). Commune of Saint Denis. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
  14. "IBM Réunion". IBM. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  15. Shapshak, Toby (1 December 2016). "How Reunion Is Reinventing Itself As A Digital Hub". Forbes. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  16. "Villes jumelées avec la Ville de Nice" (in French). Ville de Nice. Archived from the original on 29 October 2012. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
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