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Benin gained it’s independence from France in 1960 and after ethnic strife and a military coup, from 1972 to 1991, was a communist country. It is now considered a model democracy from other African nations.
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French is widely spoken in , however, the lingua franca is Fon.
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The name of the largest city Contonue, comes from the Fon phrase meaning, “lake of the dead,” which refers to the adjacent lagoon and the belief that falling stars represent the souls of those who have just died, falling to the underworld. When
Cotonou was founded, the city lights reflecting on the water suggested the fallen stars at the bottom.
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