BJ - Benin

The name “Benin” has relevance to the Kingdom of Benin and Benin City, from which the gulf on which today’s Benin overlooks takes its name. The name Dahomey was changed in 1975 to that of the People’s Republic of Benin, which was chosen for its neutrality, given that more than fifty different language groups and almost as many ethnic groups coexist in the country. The name Dahomey was that of the ancient kingdom of Fon, and was deemed inappropriate to define the whole nation.