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97-588: Kinshasa ( / k ɪ n ˈ ʃ ɑː s ə / ; French: [kinʃasa] ; Lingala : Kinsásá ), formerly named Léopoldville until 30 June 1966, is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Once a site of fishing and trading villages along the Congo River , Kinshasa is now one of the world's fastest-growing megacities . Kinshasa's 2024 population was estimated at 17,032,322. It

194-463: A city are areas, districts, or neighborhoods primarily composed of commercial buildings, such as a strip mall , office parks , downtown , central business district , financial district , " Main Street ", or shopping centers . Commercial activity within cities includes the buying and selling of goods and services in retail businesses, wholesale buying and selling, financial establishments , and

291-542: A noun class system in which nouns are classified according to the prefixes they bear and the prefixes they trigger in sentences. The table below shows Lingala's noun classes ordered according to the numbering system widely used in descriptions of Bantu languages. Individual classes pair up to form singular/plural pairs, sometimes called genders. There are seven genders. The singular classes 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 take their plural forms from classes 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, respectively. Additionally, many household items found in class 9 take

388-410: A stock exchange or several bank headquarters . Likewise, city centre is sometimes used as a synonym for CBD or downtown, but often the geographical centre of a city not a commercial district. Often the centre of a city in older cities has many historic , institutional, or cultural areas. Most languages do not have a direct cognate for commercial district, but will have a related term such as

485-469: A vernacular has since grown with the size and importance of its main centers of use, Kinshasa and Brazzaville ; with its use as the lingua franca of the armed forces; and with the popularity of soukous music. At first the language the European pioneers and their African troops had forged out of Bobangi was called "the river language", "the trade language", and other volatile names. Beginning in 1884, it

582-779: A 150-bed building in 2012 with improved clinical services as laboratory , diagnostic radiology , intensive care , neonatal unit , family medicine , emergencies unit and a larger surgical area. Located in Kinshasa are the National Museum and the Kinshasa Fine Arts Academy . Kinshasa has a flourishing music scene which, since the 1960s, has operated under the patronage of the city's elite. The Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste , formed in 1994, began using improved musical instruments and has since grown in means and reputation. Lingala language Before 1880, Bobangi

679-563: A banana-like shape and is surrounded by eastward-oriented hills. Its low sandy alluvial masses extend from Maluku Municipality in the east to the western foothills of Ngaliema, covering approximately 20,000 hectares. The Terrace is mainly situated in the city's western expanse, between N'djili and Mount Ngafula . It comprises stony blocks of soft sandstone and silica -covered yellow clay , topped with brown silt , and ranges from 10 to 25 meters in height. It retains vestiges of an ancient surface. The Hills Area commences several kilometers from

776-406: A bíkí CL1 :recovered mo lakisi mo laí yangó a bíkí CL1.teacher CL1.tall that CL1:recovered 'That tall teacher recovered' ba to CL2 .people ba kúmisa CL2 .praise Nkómbó name ya of Yɔ́ You ba to ba kúmisa Nkómbó ya Yɔ́ CL2.people CL2.praise name of You Commercial area Commercial areas , commercial districts or commercial zones in

873-498: A class 2 prefix ( ba ) in the plural: lútu → balútu 'spoon', mésa → bamésa 'table', sáni → basáni 'plate'. Words in class 11 usually take a class 10 plural. Most words from class 14 (abstract nouns) do not have a plural counterpart. Class 9 and 10 have a nasal prefix, which assimilates to the following consonant. Thus, the prefix shows up as 'n' on words that start with t or d , e.g. ntaba 'goat', but as 'm' on words that start with b or p (e.g. mbísi 'fish'). There

970-516: A clay content typically below 20%, low organic matter , and absorbent complex saturation. The basement is composed of Precambrian bedrock , featuring finely stratified red sandstone often infused with feldspar . This rock is visible at the rapids' base near Mount Ngaliema and south of the N'djili River , and effectively withstands erosive forces. Kinshasa's vegetation comprises gallery forests , grassy formations , ruderal plant groups, and aquatic formations . These gallery forests, found along

1067-573: A collection of art , artifacts , historical objects, and modern work of arts . The College of Advanced Studies in Strategy and Defense is the highest military institution in DRC and Central Africa. The National Pedagogical University is DRC's first pedagogical university and one of Africa's top pedagogical universities. N'Djili International Airport is the largest airport in the Democratic Republic of

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1164-526: A deterioration of the overall budget balance. Nevertheless, the DRC's debt risk remains moderate, with public debt at 24.7% of GDP. The approval of the third review of the IMF program reflects the satisfactory performance of the country's reform efforts. Big manufacturing companies such as Marsavco S.A., All Pack Industries and Angel Cosmetics are located in the center of town (Gombe) in Kinshasa. There are many other industries, such as Trust Merchant Bank , located in

1261-459: A developer for future projects or leased through a real estate broker. This type of property falls somewhere between residential and industrial property. Practically every incomer must grant permission to build a new office complex or other profit-making business, the city government must determine that the chosen area is indeed commercial area. If the zones which separate commercial, industrial, and residential area are clearly zoned for commercial use,

1358-475: A four-kilometer-wide unbridged span of the Congo River. Kinshasa also functions as one of the 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and is administratively divided into 24 communes , which are further subdivided into 365 neighborhoods. With an expansive administrative region, over 90 percent of the province's land remains rural, while urban growth predominantly occurs on its western side. Kinshasa

1455-408: A full range of morphological noun prefixes with mandatory grammatical agreement system with subject–verb, or noun–modifier for each of class. It is largely used in formal functions and in some forms of writing. Most native speakers of Spoken Lingala and Kinshasa Lingala consider it incomprehensible. Northwestern (or Equateur ) Lingala is the product of the (incomplete) internalization by Congolese of

1552-466: A greater role for automobile transportation but did not predict the city's significant population growth. Thus much of the urban structure has developed without guidance from a master plan. According to UN-Habitat , the city is expanding by eight square kilometers per year. It describes many of the new neighborhoods as slums , built in unsafe conditions with inadequate infrastructure. Nevertheless, spontaneously developed areas have in many cases extended

1649-612: A highly urbanizable space , but susceptible to drainage issues; the Terrace, which is a series of low ridges overlooking the plain; and the Hills Area, which is characterized by deep valleys and cirque -shaped formations. The Malebo Pool spans over 35 kilometers in length and 25 kilometers in width and is encircled by Ngaliema Municipality to the west and Maluku Municipality to the east, traversing through Gombe , Barumbu , Limete , Masina , and Nsele municipalities. The Kinshasa Plain has

1746-582: A hill commune with population verging on one million. In 2022, Kinshasa's GDP exceeded initial expectations by expanding 8.5%, as reported by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The mining industry in the DRC has been instrumental in maintaining a positive economic outlook, even amidst the COVID-19 pandemic . Raw material exports, particularly cobalt and copper , have experienced historically high prices, resulting in substantial investment in

1843-572: A low intensity office zone that allows for small-scale offices in or adjacent to residential neighbourhoods. The allowed uses are intended to serve nearby neighbourhoods and/or have few detrimental impacts on the neighbourhood. Development is intended to be of a scale and character similar to nearby residential development to promote compatibility with the surrounding area. Development should be oriented to pedestrians along transit streets and in Pedestrian Districts. Leasing commercial office space

1940-461: A low-lying, flat terrain with an average elevation hovering around 300 meters. Positioned between latitudes 4° and 5° and longitudinal coordinates 15° to 16°32 east, Kinshasa is flanked by the provinces of Mai-Ndombe , Kwilu , and Kwango to the east, while the Congo River delineates its western and northern boundaries, naturally demarcating the border with the Republic of the Congo . To the south, it

2037-522: A process that gave rise to a new, strongly restructured variety, called "the trade language", "the language of the river", or "Bobangi-pidgin", among other names. In 1884, Europeans introduced this restructured variety of Bobangi in the state post Bangala Station to communicate with local Congolese, some of whom had second-language knowledge of original Bobangi, and with the Congolese from more remote areas whom missionaries and colonials had been relocating to

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2134-708: A program of massive corpus planning, aimed at actively "correcting" and "enlarging" Bangala from above [...]. One of them was the Catholic missionary Egide De Boeck of the Congregatio Immaculati Cordis Mariae (CICM, commonly known as "the Missionaries of Scheut" or "Scheutists"), who arrived in Bangala Station – Nouvelle Anvers in 1901. Another one was the Protestant missionary Walter H. Stapleton [...], and

2231-459: A range between 5.3 million and 7.3 million. In 2017, the most recent population estimate for the city, it has a population of 11,855,000. According to UN-Habitat, 390,000 people immigrate to Kinshasa annually, fleeing warfare and seeking economic opportunity. According to a projection (2016) the population of metropolitan Kinshasa will increase significantly, to 35 million by 2050, 58 million by 2075 and 83 million by 2100, making it one of

2328-545: A third one the Catholic Léon Derikx of the Premonstratensian Fathers [...]. By 1915, De Boeck's endeavors had proven to be more influential than Stapleton's, whose language creative suggestions, as the Protestant missionaries' conference of 1911 admitted, had never been truly implemented [...]. Under the dominance of De Boeck's work, Derikx's discontinued his after less than 10 years. Lingala's importance as

2425-463: A total 976,000 workers. Most new jobs are classified as informal. By the end of 2022, Kinshasa's foreign exchange reserves had seen a significant improvement, soaring past $ 4.5 billion. The DRC benefits from support and partnerships with several global organizations and financial institutions, including the IMF, World Bank , African Development Bank , European Union , China and France . The People's Republic of China has been heavily involved in

2522-528: A vowel shift from /ɔ/ to /o/ , leading to the absence of the phoneme /ɔ/ in favor of /o/ . The same occurs with /ɛ/ and /e/ , leading to just /e/ . So in Kinshasa, a native speaker will say mbóte as /ᵐbóte/ , compared to the more traditional pronunciation, /ᵐbɔ́tɛ/ . The prenasalized stops formed with a nasal followed by a voiceless plosive are allophonic to the voiceless plosives alone in some variations of Lingala. The prenasalized voiced occlusives, /ᵐb/, /ⁿd/, /ᵑɡ/, /ⁿz/ , do not vary. Lingala

2619-566: A wide variety of uses that are broadly classified as "business." While commercial activities typically take up a relatively small amount of land, they are extremely important to a community's economy . They provide employment , facilitate the circulation of money, and often serve many other roles important to the community, such as public gathering and cultural events. A commercial area is real estate intended for use by for-profit businesses, such as office complexes, shopping malls, service stations, bars and restaurants. It may be purchased outright by

2716-480: Is " Utsaya ", and "place of exchange" is " Intsaya ". Thus, the name evolved from Ulio to Intsaya , and later, under the influence of Kikongo, transformed into Kintsaya , eventually becoming Kinshasa . Kinshasa , also known as N'shasa , is regarded as the primary "place of exchange" on the southern bank of the Pool Malebo , where bartering occurred even before the commercial boom of Kintambo . The name Nshasa

2813-488: Is a tonal language . Tone is a distinguishing feature in minimal pairs , e.g.: mutu (human being) and mutú (head), or kokoma (to write) and kokóma (to arrive). There are two main tones, low and high, and two less common ones: starting high, dipping low, and ending high, all within the same vowel sound, e.g., mǐso (eyes); and starting low, rising high, and ending low, e.g.,  bôngó (therefore). Tense morphemes carry tones. Akin to all Bantu languages , Lingala has

2910-461: Is a city of sharp contrasts, with affluent residential and commercial areas and three universities alongside sprawling slums. The older and wealthier part of the city ( ville basse ) is located on a flat area of alluvial sand and clay near the river, while many newer areas are found on the eroding red soil of surrounding hills. Older parts of the city were laid out on a geometric pattern, with de facto racial segregation becoming de jure in 1929 as

3007-484: Is a little-studied language game (or ludic practice) musicians initially created shortly after 2000 that is increasingly used in social media and sites of cultural production. Lingala words show vowel harmony to some extent. The close-mid vowels /e/ and /o/ normally do not mix with the open-mid vowels /ɛ/ and /ɔ/ in words. For example, the words ndɔbɔ 'fishhook' and ndobo 'mouse trap' are found, but not *ndɔbo or *ndobɔ . The Lingala spoken in Kinshasa shows

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3104-601: Is a standardized form used mostly in education and news broadcasts on state-owned radio or television and in Roman Catholic religious services, It is taught as a subject at some educational levels. It is historically associated with the work of the Catholic Church, the Belgian CICM missionaries in particular. It has a seven-vowel system ( /a/ /e/ /ɛ/ /i/ /o/ /ɔ/ /u/ ) with an obligatory tense-lax vowel harmony . It also has

3201-442: Is also a prefixless class 9a and 10a, exemplified by sánzá → sánzá 'moon(s) or month(s)'. Possible ambiguities are resolved by context. Noun class prefixes show up not only on the noun itself, but as markers throughout a sentence. In the sentences below, the class prefixes are underlined. (There is a special verbal form 'a' of the prefix for class 1 nouns.) mo lakisi CL1 .teacher mo laí CL1 .tall yangó that

3298-638: Is also home to three large universities and an arts school: Primary and secondary schools: In 2020, 93% of children over six attended school and 70% of people over 15 were literate in French. There are twenty hospitals in Kinshasa, plus various medical centers and polyclinics. Since 1991, Monkole Hospital is operating as a non-profit health institution collaborating with the Health Department as district hospital in Kinshasa. Directed by Pr Léon Tshilolo, paediatrician and haematologist , Monkole Hospital opened

3395-510: Is also the primate city of the DRC with a population several times larger than the next-largest city, Lubumbashi . The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, known by its French acronym MONUSCO (formerly MONUC) has its headquarters in Kinshasa. In 2016, the UN placed more peacekeepers on active duty in Kinshasa in response to the unrest directed against Kabila, at that time. Critics, including recently

3492-588: Is believed to originate from the Teke verb " tsaya " ( tsaa ), meaning "to exchange", and the noun " intsaya " ( insaa ), referring to any market or place of exchange. It was at this location that Teke brokers traded ivory and slaves from the Banunu slave traders, often mistaken for the Yanzi , for European trade items brought by the Zombo and Kongo people. Despite the various theories,

3589-663: Is demarcated by the Kongo Central Province . The Congo River is the second longest river in Africa after the Nile and has the continent's greatest discharge . As a waterway it provides a means of transport for much of the Congo Basin ; it is navigable for river barges between Kinshasa and Kisangani ; many of its tributaries are also navigable. The river is an important source of hydroelectric power , and downstream from Kinshasa it has

3686-416: Is expected to be predominantly auto accommodating, except where the site is adjacent to a transit street or in a Pedestrian District. The development standards reflect that the site will generally be surrounded by more spread out residential development. The Office Commercial 1 (CO1) zone is used on small sites in or near residential areas or between residential and commercial areas. The zone is intended to be

3783-569: Is generally out of character with the surrounding residential development and the desired orientation of the uses. The Neighbourhood Commercial 2 (CN2) zone is intended for small commercial sites and areas in or near less dense or developing residential neighbourhoods. The emphasis of the zone is on uses which will provide services for the nearby residential areas, and on other uses which are small-scale and have little impact. Uses are limited in intensity to promote their local orientation and to limit adverse impacts on nearby residential areas. Development

3880-526: Is located on the main street . In larger cities and towns there may be multiple commercial districts, often with more specialized functions. If a city has one large central area of offices and professional buildings, this is called the Central Business District or CBD (term used especially, but not exclusively, in Australian and New Zealand English ), or downtown ( North American English with

3977-415: Is one of the largest expenses incurred by new and expanding businesses, so it is important to do your due diligence. Here are some tips for negotiating a commercial lease for your small business. Lease term and rent are your first negotiation points. It is generally recommended that small businesses negotiate one- to two-year leases with the option to renew. You will also want to factor in rent increases over

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4074-450: Is the most densely populated city in the DRC , the most populous city in Africa , the world's fourth-most-populous capital city , Africa's third-largest metropolitan area , and the leading economic , political , and cultural center of the DRC. Kinshasa houses several industries , including manufacturing , telecommunications , banking , and entertainment . The city also hosts some of DRC's significant institutional buildings, such as

4171-503: Is the language of street signs, posters, newspapers, government documents, schools; it dominates plays, television, and the press, and it is used in vertical relationships among people of different social classes. People of the same class, however, speak the Congolese languages ( Kikongo , Lingala , Tshiluba or Swahili ) among themselves. Kinshasa hosted the 14th Francophonie Summit in October 2012. The head of Kinshasa ville-province has

4268-496: Is the largest nominally Francophone urban area globally, with French being the language of government, education, media, public services and high-end commerce, while Lingala is used as a lingua franca in the street. The city's inhabitants are popularly known as Kinois , with the term "Kinshasans" used in English terminology. The Kinshasa site has been inhabited by Bantus ( Teke , Humbu  [ fr ] ) for centuries and

4365-640: The Belgian Congo , replacing the town of Boma in the Congo estuary, pursuant to the Royal Decree of 1 July 1923, countersigned by the Minister of the Colonies , Louis Franc. Before this, Léopoldville was designated an "urban district", encompassing exclusively the communes of Kintambo and the current Gombe , which burgeoned around Ngaliema Bay . Then the communes of Kinshasa , Barumbu , and Lingwala emerged. In

4462-558: The Congo River and its principal left bank tributaries, traversing the city from south to north. These include the Lukunga , Ndjili , Nsele, Bombo, or Mai-Ndombe rivers and the Mbale. Unfortunately, these waterways are polluted due to the city's demographic pressures and inadequate sanitation. Geologically, the soil in Kinshasa is of the Arenoferrasol category, characterized by fine sands with

4559-504: The Mai-Ndombe Province , Kwilu Province , and Kwango Province to the east; the Congo River delineates its western and northern perimeters, constituting a natural border with the Republic of the Congo ; to the south lies the Kongo Central Province . Across the river sits Brazzaville , the smaller capital of the neighboring Republic of the Congo, forming the world's second-closest pair of capital cities despite being separated by

4656-512: The Moyen Congo district. The city was demarcated into two zones: the urban zone, comprising Léo II, Léo-Ouest, Kalina, Léo-I, or Léo-Est, and Ndolo; and the indigenous zone to the south. The urban populace swelled in 1945 with the cessation of forced labor , facilitating the influx of native Africans from rural regions. Léopoldville then became predominantly inhabited by the Bakongo ethnic group. In

4753-650: The Palais du Peuple , Palais de la Nation , Court of Cassation , Constitutional Court , Cité de l'Union Africaine , Palais de Marbre , Stade des Martyrs , Immeuble du Gouvernement , Kinshasa Financial Center , and multiple federal departments and agencies. Covering 9,965 square kilometers, Kinshasa stretches along the southern shores of the Pool Malebo , on the Congo River . It forms an expansive crescent across flat, low-lying terrain at an average altitude of about 300 meters. Situated between latitudes 4° and 5° and longitudes East 15° and 16°32, Kinshasa shares its borders with

4850-649: The US ambassador to the UN , have accused the peacekeeping mission of supporting a corrupt government. Other non-governmental organizations play significant roles in local governance . Since 2016, the Belgian development agency ( Coopération technique belge ; CTB) has sponsored the Programme d'Appui aux Initiatives de Développement Communautaire (Paideco), a 6-million-euro program aimed at economic development. It began work in Kimbanseke ,

4947-604: The equator , so its dry season begins around its winter solstice, which is in June. This is in contrast to African cities further north featuring this climate where the dry season typically begins around December. Kinshasa's dry season is slightly cooler than its wet season, though temperatures remain relatively constant throughout the year. Kinshasa is home to a diverse range of parks and gardens: An official census conducted in 1984 counted 2.6 million residents. Since then, all estimates are extrapolations. The estimates for 2005 fell in

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5044-463: The grid street plan of the original city. Kinshasa is both a city ( ville in French) and a province, one of the 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Nevertheless, it has city subdivisions and is divided into 24 communes (municipalities), which in turn are divided into 369 quarters and 21 embedded groupings. Maluku , the rural commune to the east of the urban area, accounts for 79% of

5141-470: The 1930s, these communes predominantly housed employees of Chanic, Filtisaf, and Utex Africa . In 1941, legislative ordinance n°293/AIMO of 25 June 1941, conferred Kinshasa the status of a city and established an Urban Committee ( Comité Urbain ), with an allocated area of 5,000 hectares and a population of 53,000. Concurrently, it became the colony's capital, the Congo-Kasaï Province 's capital, and

5238-582: The 1950s, planned urban centers such as Lemba , Matete , and a segment of Ndjili were established to accommodate workers from the Limete industrial zone. Lovanium University , the colony's inaugural university, was founded in 1954. By 1957, Léopoldville comprised eleven communes and six adjunct regions: Kalamu , Dendale (present-day Kasa-Vubu commune ), Saint Jean (now Lingwala ), Ngiri-Ngiri , Kintambo , Limete , Bandalungwa , Léopoldville (current Gombe ), Barumbu , Kinshasa , and Ngaliema ; along with

5335-507: The 9,965 km (3,848 sq mi) total land area of the city-province, with a population of 200,000–300,000. The communes are grouped into four districts which are not in themselves administrative divisions. Under the Köppen climate classification , Kinshasa has a tropical wet and dry climate ( Aw ). Its lengthy rainy season spans from October through May, with a relatively short dry season, between June and September. Kinshasa lies south of

5432-536: The Congo since the 1970s, when they financed the construction of the Palais du Peuple and backed the government against rebels in the Shaba war . In 2007–2008 China and Congo signed an agreement for an $ 8.5 billion loan for infrastructure development. Chinese entrepreneurs are gaining an increasing share of local marketplaces in Kinshasa, displacing in the process formerly successful Congolese, West African, Indian, and Lebanese merchants. Mean household spending in 2005

5529-435: The Congo , Burundi and Mali , as well as all political refugees from Rwanda . In 1965, with the help of the U.S. and Belgium, Joseph-Désiré Mobutu seized power in the Congo. He initiated a policy of " Authenticity ", attempting to renativize the names of people and places in the country. On 2 May 1966, the government announced that the nation's major cities would be restored to their pre-colonial names, effective on 30 June,

5626-578: The Congo and ranks 37th in Africa in terms of passengers carried, with 12 international flights per day. In December 2015, Kinshasa was designated as a City of Music by UNESCO and has been a member of the Creative Cities Network since then. Nsele Valley Park is the largest urban park in Kinshasa, housing a range of fauna and flora . According to the 2016 annual ranking , Kinshasa is Africa's most expensive city for expatriate employees, ahead of close to 200 global locations. The origin of

5723-405: The European and African neighborhoods grew closer together. City plans of the 1920s–1950s featured a cordon sanitaire or buffer between the white and black neighborhoods, which included the central market as well as parks and gardens for Europeans. Urban planning in post-independence Kinshasa has been limited. The Mission Française d'Urbanisme drew up some plans in the 1960s which envisioned

5820-527: The French quartier d'affaires ("business quarter"), or the Japanese shōtengai (literally, "commerce shop street"). The workplace grew up in tandem with the city, which by the late 19th century was often perceived as polluted, congested and riven by social and economic strife. Although the city continued its rise until the mid-20th century, the forces that would spell its decline had been gathering steam over many decades. Commuter rail, streetcars and eventually

5917-544: The Lower Congo (now Kongo Central Province ) and South Atlantic Ocean exchanged salt for goods like iron , slaves and ivory brought by those from the Upper Congo (now Tshopo Province ). However, Hendrik van Moorsel, an anthropologist, historian and researcher, proposes that Bateke fishermen traded fish for cassava with locals along the riverbank, and the place of this exchange was called " Ulio ". In Teke , "exchange"

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6014-600: The Malebo Pool and is characterized by deep valleys and cirque-shaped formations. These hills reach heights surpassing 700 meters and exhibit gentle, rounded contours sculpted by local rivers. While their eastern counterparts may reflect remnants of the Batéké Plateau , their origins in the west and south remain enigmatic. Their natural erosion processes are exacerbated by human intervention, sometimes assuming catastrophic proportions. Kinshasa's hydrographic network encompasses

6111-415: The adjunct regions of Lemba, Binza , Makala , Kimwenza , Kimbanseke , and Kingasani. Subsequently, the adjunct regions of Ndjili and Matete were incorporated. After gaining its independence on 30 June 1960, following riots in 1959 , the Republic of the Congo elected its first prime minister, Patrice Lumumba whose perceived pro-Soviet leanings were viewed as a threat by Western interests. This being

6208-403: The automobile allowed a widening segment of residents to move out of city centers. While at first most people commuted back to industrial and commercial jobs downtown, eventually many employers followed suit, moving to suburban communities in search of educated workers, cheap land, fewer unions and a leafy suburban image. The now-familiar commercial landscape of office parks and corporate campuses

6305-515: The city will allow the sale to proceed for the stated use. If any part of the property extends into a residential or industrial zone, however, then the buyer must seek a 'variance', special permission to cross over a zone boundary. A commercial area can be held by real estate agents who treat it the same as residential areas. Signs advertising the availability and size of the real estate can be erected, and arrangements can be made to buy or lease smaller lots. Sellers may also agree to make improvements to

6402-465: The city. The announcement in 2016 that a new election would be delayed two years led to large protests in September and December which involved barricades in the streets and left dozens of people dead. Schools and businesses were closed down. Kinshasa is strategically situated on the southern bank of the expansive Malebo Pool , spanning 9,965 square kilometers, configured in a grand crescent shape atop

6499-467: The country's major industrial center, processing many of the natural products brought from the interior. Joseph Kabila , president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2001 to 2019, was not overly popular in Kinshasa. Violence broke out following the announcement of Kabila's victory in the contested election of 2006 ; the European Union deployed troops ( EUFOR RD Congo ) to join the UN force in

6596-407: The early 1880s. Around and shortly after 1901, a number of both Catholic and Protestant missionaries working in the western and northern Congo Free State, independently of one another but in strikingly parallel terms, judged that Bangala as it had developed out of Bobangi was too "pidgin like", "too poor" a language to function as a proper means of education and evangelization. Each of them set out on

6693-403: The exception of Liverpool, England, who also uniquely use the term 'downtown' [1] ). "CBD" and "downtown" usually refer to centrally located areas of a city and are of predominate importance within their city, which differentiates them from other commercial districts. The financial district of a city is the specific area of either a larger CBD or downtown or separate zone and would typically house

6790-448: The extent of borrowing varies widely with speakers of different regions (commonly among young people), and during different occasions. French Spanish Portuguese English The Lingala language can be divided into several regiolects and sociolects . The major regional varieties are northwestern Lingala, Kinshasa Lingala and Brazzaville Lingala. Literary Lingala ( lingala littéraire or lingala classique in French)

6887-404: The government's failure to pay them. Subsequently a rebel uprising began, which in 1997 finally brought down the regime of Mobutu. Kinshasa suffered greatly from Mobutu's excesses, mass corruption, nepotism and the civil war that led to his downfall. Nevertheless, it is still a major cultural and intellectual center for Central Africa, with a flourishing community of musicians and artists. It is also

6984-489: The heart of the city. Food processing is a major industry, and construction and other service industries also play a significant role in the economy. Although home to only 13% of the DRC's population, Kinshasa accounts for 85% of the Congolese economy as measured by gross domestic product. A 2004 investigation found 70% of inhabitants employed informally, 17% in the public sector, 9% in the formal private sector, and 3% other, of

7081-559: The height of the Cold War, the U.S. and Belgium did not want to lose control of the strategic wealth of the Congo, in particular its uranium. Less than a year after Lumumba's election, the Belgians and the U.S. bought the support of his Congolese rivals and set in motion the events that culminated in Lumumba's assassination. In 1964, Moïse Tshombe decreed the expulsion of all nationals of Republic of

7178-492: The historical name of Kinshasa is known to have been Nshasa , as documented by Henry Morton Stanley during his crossing of Africa from Zanzibar to Boma in 1874–1877 when he mentioned visiting "the king of Nshasa" on 14 March 1877. Prior to the establishment of Kinshasa, the area was for a time part of the Anziku Kingdom . By about 1698, it had become an essentially independent domain known as Nkonkobela . The city

7275-513: The industry. Parenthetically, production has increased, and Covid-related restrictions have eased, leading to sustained economic growth. Despite facing external challenges, including the repercussions of the Russo-Ukrainian War , the DRC has shown fiscal stability . In 2022, tax performance exceeded projections, showcasing improved revenue generation. However, increased expenditures related to security concerns and internal arrears resulted in

7372-475: The land, such as grading off uneven spots or clearing out unwanted trees. A professional developer may purchase huge swatches of this type of property simply to guarantee its availability for later projects. In the United Kingdom , commercial districts that are primarily for shopping are called high streets . In North America, in smaller towns and cities there is often only one main commercial district, which

7469-415: The largest metropolitan areas in the world. The official language of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, of which Kinshasa is the capital, is French (See: Kinshasa French vocabulary ). Kinshasa is the largest officially Francophone city in the world, albeit that the vast majority of people either cannot speak French, or struggle in speaking it. Although Lingala is widely used as a spoken language, French

7566-461: The level of industry permitted. Heavier industries often purchase property on the fringes of cities or in unincorporated areas. Some commercial zones in the city do allow for light industrial usage, usually smaller factories with minimal emissions and transportation needs. Some examples of commercial area buildings are: The Neighbourhood Commercial 1 (CN1) zone is intended for small sites in or near dense residential neighbourhoods. The zone encourages

7663-505: The literary variety's. There is a five-vowel system and no vowel harmony. Spoken Lingala is largely used in informal functions, and the majority of Lingala songs use spoken Lingala. Modern spoken Lingala is influenced by French; French verbs, for example, may be "lingalized", adding Lingala inflection prefixes and suffixes: "acomprenaki te" or "acomprendraki te" ("he did not understand", using the French word comprendre ) instead of classic Lingala "asímbaki ntína te" (literally: "s/he grasped/held

7760-443: The main watercourses within humid valleys of the Congolese guinéo ombrophile type, have degraded into highly exploited pre-forest fallows, manifesting as reclusive foresters of varying ages. Ruderal plant groups line railway tracks within narrow strips, reflecting the region's vegetation cover's discontinuity and repetition. Kinshasa is home to diverse vegetation types, each intricately linked to specific ecological parameters. Kinshasa

7857-466: The name Kinshasa is rooted in multiple theories proposed by scholars. Paul Raymaekers, an anthropologist and ethnologist , suggests that the name derives from the combination of the Kikongo and Kihumbu languages. The prefix " Ki(n) " signifies a hill or inhabited area, while " Nsasa " or " Nshasa " refers to a bag of salt. According to Raymackers, Kinshasa was a significant trading site where people from

7954-520: The port below the rapids and 150 km (93 mi) from the coast. The completion of the Matadi-Kinshasa portage railway , in 1898, provided an alternative route around the rapids and sparked the rapid development of Léopoldville. In 1914, a pipeline was installed so that crude oil could be transported from Matadi to the upriver steamers in Leopoldville. By 1923, the city was elevated to capital of

8051-457: The potential to generate power equivalent to the usage of roughly half of Africa's population. Topographically, Kinshasa has a marshy , alluvial plain , with altitudes ranging from 275 to 300 meters, along with hilly terrain that elevates from 310 to 370 meters. The city has four principal features: the Malebo Pool, a vast expanse of water with islands and islets; the Kinshasa Plain, which is

8148-507: The prescriptive rules the CICM missionaries intended when designing Literary Lingala. The northwest is a zone where the CICM missionaries strongly supported the network of schools. Spoken Lingala (called lingala parlé in French) is the variety mostly used in Lingalaphones' day-to-day lives. It has a full morphological noun prefix system, but the agreement system in the noun phrase is laxer than

8245-490: The provision of small-scale retail and service uses for nearby residential areas. Some uses which are not retail or service in nature are also allowed so a variety of uses may locate in existing buildings. Uses are restricted in size to promote a local orientation and to limit adverse impacts on nearby residential areas. Development is intended to be pedestrian-oriented and compatible with the scale of surrounding residential areas. Parking areas are restricted, since their appearance

8342-488: The root/cause not"). These French influences are more prevalent in Kinshasa and indicate an erosion of the language as education in French becomes accessible to more of the population. There are pronunciation differences between "Catholic Lingala" and "Protestant Lingala", for example nzala/njala ("hunger"). Lingala ya Bayankee (sometimes called Yanké ) is a sociolect widely used in Kinshasa, e.g., by street youth, street vendors, criminal gangs and homeless children. Langila

8439-433: The sixth anniversary of independence. Léopoldville was renamed Kinshasa , for a village named Kinshasa that once stood near the site. Kinshasa grew rapidly under Mobutu, drawing people from across the country who came in search of their fortunes or to escape ethnic strife elsewhere, thus adding to the many ethnicities and languages already found there. In 1991 the city had to fend off rioting soldiers , who were protesting

8536-535: The station by force. The language of the river was therefore soon renamed "Bangala", a label the Europeans had since 1876 also been using as a convenient, but erroneous and non-original ethnic name for all Congolese of that region. Around 1901–2, CICM missionaries started a project to "purify" the Bangala language by cleansing it from the "impure", pidginlike features it had acquired when it emerged out of Bobangi in

8633-415: The term and renewal options so you are not charged with an unexpected rent increase without warning. Consider working with a broker to help you negotiate with the landlord. It is also important to consult a knowledgeable real estate lawyer; they can often recommend the right choice for you and protect your interests as you negotiate your lease through the broker. In commercial leases the expiration date of

8730-412: The title of Gouverneur . Daniel Bumba  [ fr ] has been governor since 21 June 2024. Each commune has its own Bourgmestre . Although political power in the DRC is fragmented, Kinshasa as the national capital represents the official center of sovereignty, and thus of access to international organizations and financing, and of political powers such as the right to issue passports . Kinshasa

8827-659: Was accepted in western and northwestern Congo, and in other countries where the language was spoken, but not in northeastern Congo, where the variety of the language spoken locally is still called Bangala . Lingala is a Bantu-based creole of Central Africa with roots in the Bobangi language, which provided most of its lexicon and grammar. In its basic vocabulary, Lingala also borrows from other languages, such as Kikongo varieties, Ubangian languages , Swahili , French , Portuguese , English , and various African languages (note local and foreign interaction with Krumen). In practice,

8924-521: Was an important trade language on the western sections of the Congo River , between Stanley Pool ( Kinshasa ) and the confluence of the Congo and Ubangi rivers(Republic of Congo and Democratic Republic of Congo). When the first Europeans and their West- and East-African troops started founding state posts for the Belgian king along this river section in the early 1880s, they noticed the widespread use and prestige of Bobangi. They attempted to learn it, but only cared to acquire an imperfect knowledge of it,

9021-673: Was born. Cities often use zoning laws to prevent conflicts between residential homeowners and businesses. Land designated as a commercial area is rarely located in the middle of residential zones. City planners encourage businesses to congregate along busier streets and central downtown areas. This helps to keep traffic to these sites manageable. Some areas of the city may be designated for 'mixed usage', which means some commercial areas may be used for residential purposes. A quaint downtown shopping area with apartments would be an example of mixed usage. Commercial areas definition may include industrial usage as well, although zoning laws still regulate

9118-579: Was called "Bangala", due to its introduction in Bangala Station . After 1901, Catholic missionaries of CICM , also called the Congregation of Scheutists, proposed to rename the language "Lingala". It took some decades for this to be generally accepted both by colonials and the Congolese. The name Lingala first appears in writing in a 1901-2 publication by the CICM missionary Égide De Boeck . This name change

9215-644: Was established as a trading post by Henry Morton Stanley in 1881. It was named Léopoldville in honor of Stanley's employer King Leopold II of the Belgians . He would then proceed to take control of most of the Congo Basin as the Congo Free State , not as a colony but as his private property. The post flourished as the first navigable port on the Congo River above Livingstone Falls , a series of rapids over 300 kilometres (190 miles) below Leopoldville. At first, all goods arriving by sea or being sent by sea had to be carried by porters between Léopoldville and Matadi ,

9312-443: Was known as Nshasa before transforming into a commercial hub during the 19th and 20th centuries. The city was named Léopoldville by Henry Morton Stanley in honor of Leopold II of Belgium . The name was changed to Kinshasa in 1966 during Mobutu Sese Seko 's Zairianisation campaign as a tribute to Nshasa village. The National Museum of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is DRC's most prominent and central museum, housing

9409-401: Was the equivalent of US$ 2,150, amounting to $ 1 per day per person. The median household spending was $ 1,555, 66 cents per person per day. Among the poor, more than half of this spending goes to food, especially bread and cereal. Kinshasa is home to several higher-level education institutes, covering a wide range of disciplines, including civil engineering , nursing , and journalism . The city

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