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Cidade Velha - Language
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Cidade Velha (Portuguese for “old city”, also: Santiago de Cabo Verde) is a city[2] in the southern part of the island of Santiago, Cape Verde. Founded in 1462,[3]:77 it is the oldest settlement in Cape Verde and its former capital. Once called Ribeira Grande, its name was changed to Cidade Velha in the late 18th century.[4] It is the seat of the Ribeira Grande de Santiago municipality.
Located off Africa’s northwest coast, this town was the first European colonial settlement in the tropics. Some of the meticulously planned original design of the site is still intact, including a royal fortress, two churches and a 16th-century town square. Today, Cidade Velha is an Atlantic shipping stop and center for Creole culture. The city became a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the Seven Wonders of Portuguese Origin in the World in 2009.
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On this journey, we’ll delve into the history of Cape Verd, observing the beautiful Portuguese structures erected in the 14th century.
António da Noli, a Genoese under Portuguese employ, discovered Santiago Island in 1460. Together with his family and fellow Portuguese from the regions of Algarve and Alentejo, da Noli established a settlement at Ribeira Grande in 1462. The location was ideal, benefiting from an abundant supply of water from the Ribeira Grande river, giving it an edge over another Santiago settlement, Alcatrazes.
The site soon became a crucial stopover for Portuguese colonization heading to Africa and South America. In the 16th and 17th centuries, it served as a hub for sea commerce between Africa, the Cape, Brazil, and the Caribbean. Its closeness to the African coast made it an indispensable base for the slave trade.
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