Benin: landmarks, animals & facts for kids

Benin is a country in West Africa, a long, narrow strip of land that stretches from the Gulf of Guinea northward to the Niger River. Its official capital is Porto-Novo, while the largest city and seat of government is Cotonou. About 14 million people live there. Benin is known as the home of the old Kingdom of Dahomey, as the birthplace of the Vodun religion, and for its villages built on stilts over a lake.

On My Earth Toy you can see the Door of No Return in Ouidah, a memorial arch on the beach. It remembers the many Africans who were forced onto ships from this coast during the Atlantic slave trade.

Geography and nature

Benin has a short sandy coastline with lagoons and lakes behind it. Inland the land rises gently to plateaus covered with farms, savanna and patches of forest, and in the northwest are the Atakora Mountains. In the north, Pendjari National Park, part of a larger protected area shared with Niger and Burkina Faso, is one of the last strongholds of lions in West Africa and also has elephants, hippos and antelopes.

People, languages and culture

French is the official language, and dozens of local languages are spoken, including Fon and Yoruba. Benin has many religions: Christianity, Islam and Vodun, a traditional faith that honours spirits and ancestors; National Vodun Day is celebrated each January. On Lake Nokoué, the village of Ganvié has thousands of people living in houses on stilts, travelling by canoe to school and the market. Fabric appliqué banners from Abomey tell stories of the old kings.

History in a nutshell

The Kingdom of Dahomey rose in the 1600s with its capital at Abomey, where the royal palaces are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Dahomey had a famous regiment of women soldiers. The kingdom took part in the Atlantic slave trade, and the coast became known as the Slave Coast. France conquered Dahomey in the 1890s. The country became independent on 1 August 1960 and changed its name to Benin in 1975.