Sao Tome and Principe

republic on an island west of Africa

São Tomé and Príncipe (English pronunciation , Portuguese pronunciation ), officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is an island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Africa. It consists of two islands: São Tomé and Príncipe, located about 140 kilometres apart and about 250 and 225 kilometres respectively, off of the northwestern coast of Gabon. Both islands are part of an extinct volcanic mountain range. São Tomé, the sizable southern island, is situated just north of the equator. It was named after Saint Thomas by Portuguese explorers who discovered the island on his feast day.
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Noun
1. island nation in the South Atlantic off the West coast of Africa; achieved independence from Portugal in 1975; has enormous offshore oil reserves
(synonym) Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Sao Tome e Principe, Sao Thome e Principe, St. Thomas and Principe
(hypernym) country, state, land
(part-holonym) Atlantic, Atlantic Ocean
(part-meronym) Sao Tome

n. Sao Tome and Principe, republic on an island west of Africa

Flag of Sao Tome and Principe
Background Discovered and claimed by Portugal in the late 15th century, the islands' sugar-based economy gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. Although independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. Though the first free elections were held in 1991, the political environment has been one of continued instability with frequent changes in leadership and coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. The recent discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea is likely to have a significant impact on the country's economy. Map of Sao Tome and Principe More about Sao Tome and Principe: Geography People Government Economy Communications Transportation Military Transnational Issues