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Paramaribo
Capital city
The street Waterkant in Paramaribo
The street Waterkant in Paramaribo
Nickname: 
Par'bo
Country Suriname
DistrictParamaribo District
Founded1603
Area
 • Total182 km2 (70 sq mi)
Elevation
3 m (10 ft)
Population
 (2012 census)
 • Total240,924
 • Density1,300/km2 (3,400/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-3 (ART)

Paramaribo (Dutch pronunciation: [ˌpaːraːˈmaːriboː], nickname: Par′bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 240,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's population. The historic inner city of Paramaribo has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2002.

Name

The city is named for the Paramaribo tribe living at the mouth of the Suriname River; the name is from Tupi-Guarani para "large river" + maribo "inhabitants".[1]

History

1830s lithograph of the market

The area, a trading post started by the Dutch, was taken by the English in 1630, and in 1650 the city became the capital of the new English colony. The area changed hands often between the English and Dutch but it was in Dutch hands again in 1667 and under Dutch rule from 1815 until the independence of Suriname in 1975.

Paramaribo is home to a historic Jewish community.[2] One of the oldest synagogues in the Americas is located in Paramaribo. It was built in 1685 near the Suriname River.[3]

In January 1821, a fire in the city centre destroyed more than 400 houses and other buildings. A second fire in September 1832 destroyed another 46 houses on the western part of the Waterkant.

In 1943 a military plane crashed on its way to North Africa near the city, killing two FBI Agents and 33 other people who were on board. The cause of the aircraft accident was never determined and very few remains of the 35 people aboard were found.[4]

Geography

View of Paramaribo from space

The city is located on the Suriname River, approximately 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) inland from the Atlantic Ocean, in the Paramaribo district.

  • Evolution of Paramaribo
  • Paramaribo around 1737.
    Paramaribo around 1737.
  • Paramaribo in 1821. Indicated in brown is the area devastated by the city fire of that year.
    Paramaribo in 1821. Indicated in brown is the area devastated by the city fire of that year.
  • Paramaribo around 1876.
    Paramaribo around 1876.
  • Paramaribo around 1916-1917
    Paramaribo around 1916-1917

Climate

Paramaribo features a tropical rainforest climate, under the Köppen climate classification. The city has no true dry season, all 12 months of the year average more than 60 mm of precipitation, but the city does experience noticeably wetter and drier periods during the year. September through November is the driest period of the year in Paramaribo. Common to many cities with this climate, temperatures are relatively consistent throughout the course of the year, with average high temperatures of 31 degrees Celsius and average low temperatures of 22 degrees Celsius. Paramaribo on average sees roughly 2200 mm of rain each year.

Climate data for Paramaribo
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 33
(91) 		34
(93) 		35
(95) 		37
(99) 		37
(99) 		36
(97) 		37
(99) 		37
(99) 		36
(97) 		37
(99) 		36
(97) 		36
(97) 		37
(99)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		31
(88) 		30
(86) 		31
(88) 		31
(88) 		32
(90) 		33
(91) 		33
(91) 		32
(90) 		30
(86) 		31
(88)
Daily mean °C (°F) 26
(79) 		26
(79) 		26
(79) 		27
(81) 		27
(81) 		27
(81) 		27
(81) 		27
(81) 		28
(82) 		28
(82) 		27
(81) 		26
(79) 		27
(81)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 22
(72) 		22
(72) 		22
(72) 		22
(72) 		23
(73) 		22
(72) 		22
(72) 		23
(73) 		23
(73) 		23
(73) 		23
(73) 		22
(72) 		22
(72)
Record low °C (°F) 17
(63) 		17
(63) 		17
(63) 		18
(64) 		19
(66) 		20
(68) 		20
(68) 		15
(59) 		21
(70) 		20
(68) 		21
(70) 		18
(64) 		15
(59)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 200
(7.9) 		140
(5.5) 		150
(5.9) 		210
(8.3) 		290
(11.4) 		290
(11.4) 		230
(9.1) 		170
(6.7) 		90
(3.5) 		90
(3.5) 		120
(4.7) 		180
(7.1) 		2,220
(87.4)
Source: Weatherbase[5]

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
179018,000—    
183115,265−0.40%
185316,031+0.22%
Historic Inner City of Paramaribo
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Colonial style houses, Waterkant, Paramaribo
CriteriaCultural: ii, iv
Reference940
Inscription2002 (26th Session)

Paramaribo has a population of 240,924 people (2012 census). The city is famed for its diverse ethnic makeup, including Creoles (African or African-European descent) 27%, Hindustanis (East Indian descent) 23%, Multiracials 18%, Maroons (descendants of escaped African slaves) 16%, Javanese (Indonesian descent) 10%, Indigenous (descendants of native population) 2%, Chinese (descendants of 19th-century contract workers) 1.5%, and smaller numbers of Europeans (primarily of Dutch and Portuguese descent), Lebanese and Jews. In the past decades significant amounts of Brazilians, Guyanese and new Chinese immigrants have settled in Paramaribo.

Economy

Paramaribo is the business and financial centre of Suriname. Even though the capital city does not produce significant goods itself, almost all revenues from the country's main export products gold, oil, bauxite, rice, and tropical wood are channeled through its institutions. All banks, insurance corporations and other financial and commercial companies are headquartered in Paramaribo. Around 75 percent of Suriname's GDP is consumed in Paramaribo.

Tourism is an increasingly important sector, with most visitors coming from the Netherlands.[6]

Government

Resorts of the Paramaribo district.

Administratively, Paramaribo forms its own district in Suriname. The resorts of Paramaribo district therefore correspond to boroughs of the city. There are twelve resorts in the Paramaribo district:

Resort Area in square km Population density Population (2012)
Blauwgrond 43 661.3 31,483
Rainville 31 930.7 22,747
Munder 14 1146.4 17,234
Centrum 9 3252.7 20,631
Beekhuizen 6 3297.2 17,185
Weg naar Zee 41 321.3 16,037
Welgelegen 7 3387.0 19,304
Tammenga 6 2385.5 15,819
Flora 4 3836.5 19,538
Latour 6 4358.0 29,526
Pontbuiten 6 3246.2 23,211
Livorno 9 931.8 8,209

Transport

Presidential Palace of Suriname

Paramaribo is served by the Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport and Zorg en Hoop Airport for local flights. The Jules Wijdenbosch Bridge, which is part of the East-West Link, connects Paramaribo with Meerzorg on the other side of the Suriname River.

Most airlines like Gum Air, Caricom Airways and Blue Wing Airlines have their head offices on the grounds of Zorg en Hoop Airport in Paramaribo.

Education

Paramaribo's institution of higher learning is Anton de Kom University of Suriname, the country's only university.

Healthcare

Paramaribo is home to four hospitals, the Academic Hospital Paramaribo, 's Lands Hospitaal, Sint Vincentius Hospital and Diakonessenhuis.

Notable landmarks

Paramaribo's Neveh Shalom Synagogue
Helstone Monument
The National Assembly of Suriname

Sports

Paramaribo is also the birthplace of several football players; some of them later represented the Netherlands:

Other sports such as badminton, tennis, swimming, track & field athletics, cycling, golf, volleyball and basketball are also commonly played in Suriname.

Paramaribo is also the birthplace of kickboxer and Mixed Martial Artist Tyrone Spong and kickboxer Andy Ristie.

Twin towns – Sister cities

Paramaribo is twinned with:

See also

References

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Paramaribo.
  1. ^ E.M. Pospelov, Geograficheskie nazvaniya mira (Moscow: Russkie slovari, 1998), p. 322.
  2. ^ "Extract of the Dutch Map Representing the Colony of Surinam". World Digital Library. 1777. Retrieved 2013-07-13.
  3. ^ Fox, Tamar (18 February 2011). "Discovering Suriname's Jewish past - and present". Travel. Washington Post. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  4. ^ "Office Down Memorial Page".
  5. ^ "Weatherbase: Historical Weather for Paramaribo".
  6. ^ http://www.statistics-suriname.org/images/pdf/verkeers_vervoer_publicatie2011.pdf%7C
  7. ^ Willemstad World Heritage City. Curacaomonuments.org. Retrieved on 2012-05-19.
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