Overview
The Republic of the Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply Congo (its name from 1971 to 1997; the period during which the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo was officially named Zaire), is a country located on the western coast of Central Africa to the west of the Congo River. It is bordered to the west by Gabon, to the northwest by Cameroon, to the northeast by the Central African Republic, to the southeast by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south by the Angolan exclave of Cabinda, and to the southwest by the Atlantic Ocean. The region was dominated by Bantu-speaking tribes at least 3,000 years ago, who built trade links leading into.