World Heritage Identification Number: 1359
World Heritage since: 2011
Category: Cultural Heritage
Transboundary Heritage: No
Endangered Heritage: No
Country: 🇸🇳 Senegal
Continent: Africa
UNESCO World Region: Africa
Map
Saloum Delta: A Rich Cultural and Natural Landscape in Senegal
The Saloum Delta, located in Senegal, is a unique and significant area that combines rich cultural heritage with a diverse natural landscape. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011, this 5,000 square kilometer property spans across the confluence of three rivers – the Saloum, Casamance, and Gambia – and extends into the North Atlantic Ocean.
More to come…UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site
Fishing and shellfish gathering have sustained human life in the 5,000 km2 property, which is formed by the arms of three rivers. The site comprises brackish channels encompassing over 200 islands and islets, mangrove forest, an Atlantic marine environment, and dry forest.
The site is marked by 218 shellfish mounds, some of them several hundreds metres long, produced by its human inhabitants over the ages. Burial sites on 28 of the mounds take the form of tumuli where remarkable artefacts have been found. They are important for our understanding of cultures from the various periods of the delta's occupation and testify to the history of human settlement along the coast of West Africa.
Encyclopedia Record: Saloum Delta
Saloum Delta or Sine-Saloum Delta is a river delta in Senegal at the mouth of the Saloum River where it flows into the North Atlantic Ocean. The delta covers 180,000 hectares. It extends 72.5 kilometers along the coastline and 35 kilometers inland.Additional Site Details
Area: 145,811 hectares
(iv) — Outstanding example of a type of building or landscape
(v) — Outstanding example of traditional human settlement
Coordinates: 13.8352777778 , -16.4986111111
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USGS, Public domain
