歷史
主條目：貝寧歷史
因地形及部族因素，原名達荷美之貝寧在獨立前即分為西南，東南，北部三大派系相互傾軋不已。1960年獨立建國後紛爭愈烈，首任總統馬加（Hubert Maga）在1963年欲藉軍方力量彈壓反對派，自己反遭罷黜。軍人還政文人後至1972年止，先後發生五次政變事件，政權六度易手，而1970年所設由三地區領袖每二年輪任總統職之制度實為各類妥協方法試用殆盡後不得已之對策，亦未收效。至1972年10月26日克雷庫中校發動政變，改弦易轍，正式采用馬列主義，1975年12月1日並改國號為貝寧人民***和國，進行軍事集權。1989年12月7日因經濟瀕臨崩潰，宣布放棄馬列主義。1990年3月1日再改國號為貝寧***和國。
經濟
是世界最不發達國家之壹。經濟以農業為主。由於南部地區壹些強大的部落王國自古以來便支持與歐洲人的往來，因此促使農業經濟過早地專業化，糧食方面不能自給。南方地區和達荷美高原種植經濟作物油棕櫚。棕櫚仁和棕櫚油是貝寧最主要的出口項目，其棕櫚油的特點是胡蘿蔔素含量高（1.7%-2%）。糧食作物有薯蕷、木薯、甘薯、玉米、豌豆、蠶豆及花生。
貝寧獨立之前，壹些大型種植園中有巨大的棕櫚油工廠。全國***有四座這樣的工廠，年產量為20000噸棕櫚油。貝寧獨立之後將種植園和工廠收歸國有，導致產量急劇下降，在中國和蘇聯的援助下方緩慢上升。還有兩家用棕櫚油制作肥皂的工廠，數家生產椰幹的工廠。
棉花的種植方式比其他非洲國家細致，因此質量較好。壹半的棉花產量和全部棉籽均供出口。花生的出口比例更少。
比爾馬河流域有少量露天沙金。科烏安德地區有金紅石和鈦鐵礦。石油探明儲量約為1000萬噸。
Benin (pronounced /b?n?n/), officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north; its short coastline to the south leads to the Bight of Benin.
Its size is just over 110000 km2 with a population of almost 8,500,000. Its capital is the Yoruba founded city of Porto-Novo but the seat of government is the Fon city of Cotonou.
A democratic government between 1960 and 1972 was followed by a self-proclaimed "Marxist-Leninist" dictatorship between 1972 and 1991, which was highly repressive and led to economic collapse. Multiparty elections have taken place since 1991. About a third of the population live below the international poverty line of US$1.25 per day.[3] Main income sources are subsistence agriculture and cotton.
History
Main article: History of Benin
The Kingdom of Dahomey formed from a mixture of ethnic groups on the Abomey plain. Historians theorized that the insecurity caused by slave trading may have contributed to mass migrations of groups to modern day Abomey, including some Aja, a Gbe people who are believed to have founded the city. Those Aja living in Abomey mingled with the local Fon people, also a Gbe people, creating a new ethnic group known as "Dahomey".
The Gbe peoples are said to be descendents of a number of migrants from Wyo. Gangnihessou, (a member of an Aja dynasty that in the 16th century along with the Aja populace had come from Tado before settling and ruling separately in what is now Abomey, Allada, and Porto Novo), became the first ruler of the Dahomey Kingdom. Dahomey had a military culture aimed at securing and eventually expanding the borders of the small kingdom with its capital at modern day Abomey.
The Dahomey Kingdom was known for its culture and traditions. Young boys were often apprenticed to older soldiers, and taught the kingdom's military customs until they were old enough to join the navy. Dahomey was also famous for instituting an elite female soldier corps, called Ahosi or "our mothers" in the Fongbe language, and known by many Europeans as the Dahomean Amazons. This emphasis on military preparation and achievement earned Dahomey the nickname of "black Sparta" from European observers and 19th century explorers like Sir Richard Burton.
Though the leaders of Dahomey appeared initially to resist the slave trade, it flourished in the region of Dahomey for almost three hundred years (beginning in 1472 with a trade agreement with Portugese merchants), leading to the area being named "the Slave Coast". Court protocols, which demanded that a portion of war captives from the kingdom's many battles be decapitated, decreased the number of enslaved people exported from the area. The number went from 20,000 per year at the beginning of the seventeenth century to 12000 at the beginning of the 1800s. The decline was partly due to the banning of the trans-Atlantic trade by Britain and other countries. This decline continued until 1885, when the last Portuguese slave ship departed from the coast of the present-day Benin Republic.
By the middle of the nineteenth century, Dahomey started to lose its status as the regional power. This enabled the French to take over the area in 1892. In 1899, the French included the land called Dahomey within the French West Africa colony. In 1958, France granted autonomy to the Republic of Dahomey, and full independence as of August 1, 1960. The president who led them to independence was Hubert Maga.
For the next twelve years, ethnic strife contributed to a period of turbulence. There were several coups and regime changes, with three figures dominating — Sourou Apithy, Hubert Maga, and Justin Ahomadegbé — each of them representing a different area and ethnicity of the country. These three agreed to form a presidential council after violence marred the 1970 elections.
On May 7, 1972 Maga turned over power to Ahomadegbe. On October 26, 1972 Lt. Col. Mathieu Kérékou overthrew the ruling triumvirate, becoming president, and stating that the country will not "burden itself by copying foreign ideology, and wants neither Capitalism, Communism, nor Socialism", then on November 30 announcing that the country was officially Marxist, under the control of the Military Council of the Revolution (CNR), which nationalized the petroleum industry and banks. On November 30, 1975 he renamed the country to People's Republic of Benin.
In 1979, the CNR was dissolved, and Kérékou arranged show elections where he was the only allowed candidate. Establishing relations with the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and Libya, he put nearly all businesses and economic activities under state control, causing foreign investment in Benin to dry up.[4] Kérékou attempted to reorganize education, pushing his own aphorisms such as "Poverty is not a fatality", resulting in a mass exodus of teachers, along with a large number of other professionals.[4] The regime financed itself by contracting to take nuclear waste from France.[4]
In 1980 Kérékou converted to Islam and changed his first name to Ahmed, then changed his name back after claiming to be a born-again Christian.
In 1989, riots broke out after the regime did not have money to pay its army. The banking system collapsed. Eventually Kérékou renounced Marxism. A convention forced the Kérékou to release political prisoners and arrange elections.[4]
The name of the country was changed to the Republic of Benin on March 1, 1990, once the newly formed country's constitution was complete, after the abolition of marxism-leninism in the nation in 1989.[5][6]
In 1991 Kérékou was defeated by Nicéphore Soglo, and became the first black African president to step down after an election. Kérékou returned to power after winning the 1996 vote. In 2001, a closely fought election resulted in Kérékou winning another term, after which his opponents claimed election irregularities.
Kérékou and former president Soglo did not run in the 2006 elections, as both were barred by the constitution's restrictions on age and total terms of candidates. Kérékou is widely praised[citation needed] for making no effort to change the constitution so that he could remain in office or run again, unlike many African leaders.
On March 5, 2006 an election was held that was considered free and fair. It resulted in a runoff between Yayi Boni and Adrien Houngbédji. The runoff election was held on March 19, and was won by Boni, who assumed office on April 6. The success of the fair multi-party elections in Benin won praise internationally. Benin is considered by a few to be a model democracy in Africa, but with such a short track record that only time will tell.
Arts
See also: Literature of Benin and Music of Benin
Beninese literature had a strong oral tradition long before French became the dominant language.[15] Felix Couchoro wrote the first Beninese novel, L'Esclave in 1929.
Post-independence, the country was home to a vibrant and innovative music scene, where native folk music combined with Ghanaian highlife, French cabaret, American rock, funk and soul, and Congolese rumba.
Singer Angélique Kidjo and actor Djimon Hounsou were both born in Cotonou, Benin