Bay of Benin

The Gulf of Guinea with the Bay of Benin

The Benin coast with the seaport of Cotonou in the background

The Bay of Benin is a bay in West Africa . It stretches for about 640 km between Cape St. Paul in the west and the Nun River of the Niger in the east, where the Bay of Bonny (former Bay of Biafra ) connects. The bay is part of the Gulf of Guinea .

The bay takes its name from the historic Kingdom of Benin . It is known for its dangerous waves and has long been associated with the Atlantic slave trade . The rhyme "Beware, beware the Bight of Benin: One comes out, where fifty went in!" Comes from these times - in several variations . The author Philip McCutchan also used this verse as a book title.

Between 1852 and 1861 there was a British protectorate of the Bay of Benin .

Today's neighbors of the bay are Benin , Togo and Nigeria .

Individual evidence

1. ^ Philip McCutchan: Beware the Bight of Benin . Futura Publ., London 1976, ISBN 0-86007-282-7 (former title: Beware, beware the Bight of Benin ).

Coordinates: 5 °  N , 2 °  E