Today we hear of the Gabonese republic or simply Gabon. The name Gabon comes from the Portuguese word “gabao” meaning “cloak”. Early explorers thought the estuary of the Komo River by the capital of Libreville resembled a coat with sleeves and a hood.
Portuguese first settled in the areas of Fernando Po and Sao Tome Principe as Gabon was then ruled by the Kingdoms of Loango. The Loango people believed in a God whom they called Sambian and deities who existed in different natural forms and had priests who would perform different rituals in order to identify a protector for a particular household or community. Find out more about how Christianity came to this land of copper.
