French Guiana is the overseas region of France that has a dual status of being a region and a department. It has been a part of the Republic of France since 1946. French Guiana is a coastal region located very close to the northern part of Latin America. The areas near the coast of the North Atlantic Ocean are densely populated while the other part of French Guiana is covered by impenetrable forests. The area bordering Brazil and near the border has several mountain ranges that include but are not limited to Tumac-Humac, Mont Machalou, Mont Favard and Mont St Marcel.

French Guiana has an old history that dates back to the fifteenth century. In earlier times, French Guiana was occupied by the Latin American tribes until Christopher Columbus visited this part of the American continent. After this visit, several different European ethnicities settled in this region. The French attempted to control this region in the seventeenth century, but failed, as the Portuguese forced them to evacuate, citing an earlier treaty. The French in later part of the seventeenth century made consistent efforts to establish themselves in French Guiana, but had to evacuate for one reason or other. Finally, in the second half of the eighteenth century, the French gained a better hold on the region and were successful in settling their colonies. French control remained undisturbed for another few decades, until a minor stint in which it was again conquered by the Portuguese.

French Guiana was finally declared to be an overseas region of France in the year 1946, and still remains so with few minor differences over the border with Suriname. The other significant time in the history of French Guiana occurred in 1964, when the French government selected it as a location for launching French spacecraft. During the next four years, the Guiana Space Centre was finally established at Kourou. This location was selected mainly because of its prime geographical location of being close to the Earth’s equator.

French Guiana today is an important overseas region of France, and also a member of the European Union. Like in France, the currency in French Guiana is the Euro. It has a population of over 250,000, who are mainly Roman Catholics that speak either French or French Creole dialects. French Guiana is connected to Paris with daily flights. French Guiana has administration divisions which consist of two arrondissements which are subdivided into nineteen cantons and twenty two communes. The major business of French Guiana is gold mining, fishing and extraction of timber.