Reunion Island

Celie Intering

Reunion is a French Island located in the Indian Ocean, between Madagascar and Mauritius. It is an integral part of the French Republic and of the European Union as well. Because of its east location from Europe, Reunion was the first European region where the euro became the legal money.

 

Geography, Demography and Economy

The island is 63 kilometers long by 45 kilometers wide. Reunion’s capital city is Saint Denis. It is a hotspot in the Earth’s crust. A hotspot is a place that has experienced active volcanism  during a long time. The island houses two volcanoes. One is sleeping: The Piton des Neiges, which is the highest point on the island at 3070 meters. And the other is one of the most active volcanoes on earth: The Piton de la Fournaise. Reunion also has three calderas: Cirque de Salazie, Cirque de Cilaos and Cirque de Mafate (this one is only accessible by foot or helicopter).

The population was estimated at 802,000 people in 2008. The official language is French. But non-officially, Creole is mainly spoken. Due to the diverse population, Mandarin, Hakka, Cantonese, Tamil and Arabic (in mosques) are spoken too. The economy is largely lead by sugar exportation and tourism.

 


History


Portuguese were the first known visitors of the island. They found it inhabited in 1635, and named it Saint Apollonia. Then France annexed the piece of earth and changed its name in Ile Bourbon. Colonization began in 1665 when the French East India Company sent the first settlers. The Island became officially Reunion in 1793 to commemorate the union of revolutionaries from Marseille with the National Guard in Paris (1792). Then Reunion had trouble with its name again. Indeed, Napoleon Bonaparte renamed it Ile Bonaparte in 1801. In 1848, the island was once again given the name Reunion.

From the 17th to 19th centuries, Reunion was a centre on the Earth Indies trade route. At this time, immigration started from France, India, Africa and China, which gave the island its ethnic mix.

In 2005 and 2006, Reunion was hit by an epidemic of Chikungunya. This is a disease spread by mosquitoes. Around 255,000 people had contracted the disease. Then a large eradicated campaign was made against mosquitoes. This campaign was quite successful. Now, we are far from the epidemic.


Way of life

People in Reunion Island usually wake up early. Schools and university start at 7.30 am and shops open at 8.00 am. They behave as French from Mainland France. The breakfast is made of bread, jam, nutella, crepes and juice. But in fact the lunch is quite different. French eat European and Mediterranean food, instead of Creoles who eat curry, spicy food and a lot of rice. During their free time, people usually go for a run or a walk. We have a famous running track in Reunion, which attracts thousand of persons (also Europeans) every year. They also like to have a huge meal on Sunday, with the whole family (including grandparents, uncles, cousins...). Everybody brings some food and they share it together through the day. They play music and children play soccer. 

Reunion people take a lot of care of their family.