Former place names in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Map of the Belgian Congo, 1914

This is a list of place names of towns and cities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo which were subsequently changed after the end of Belgian colonial rule. Place names of the colonial era tended to have two versions, one in French and one in Dutch, reflecting the languages of Belgium. Many of these place names were chosen after local geography or eponymous colonial figures.

Many of the place name changes occurred under the authenticité programme in the 1970s during the dictatorship of Mobutu Sese Seko. Mobutu also changed the country's name from Congo to Zaire. Today, European speakers of both French and Dutch use the modern Congolese place names.

Towns and cities

Kinshasa, formerly known as Léopoldville or Leopoldstad

Lubumbashi, formerly known as Élisabethville or Elisabethstad

Kisangani, formerly known as Stanleyville or Stanleystad

Mbandaka, formerly Coquilhatville or Cocquilhatstad

Landmarks and geographic terms

Malebo Pool, formerly Stanley Pool

See also

• Authenticité (Zaire)
• Belgian colonial empire
• Mount Stanley

Notes

References