GABUN  , a

district on the west coast of Africa, one of the colonies forming French Congo (q.v.) . It derives its designation from the settlements on the Gabun river or Rio de Gabao . The Gabun, in reality an estuary of the sea, lies immediately north of the equator . At the entrance, between Cape Joinville or Santa Clara on the N. and Cape Pangara or Sandy Point on the S., it has a width of about to m . It maintains a breadth of some 7 M. for a distance of 40 M. inland, when it contracts into what is known as the Rio Olambo, which is not more than 2 or 3 M. from bank to bank . Several rivers, of which the Komo is the chief, discharge their waters into the estuary . The Gabun was discovered by Portuguese navigators towards the close of the 15th century, and was named from its fanciful resemblance to a gabdo or cabin . On the small island of Konike, which lies about the centre of the estuary, scanty remains of a Portuguese fort have been discovered . The three principal tribes in the Gabun are the Mpongwe, the Fang and the Bakalai .