Gabon and Libreville in other languages: provinces and La Concorde
Gabon is the Gabonese Republic, République gabonaise in French, coded GA, GAB and 266 in ISO 3166-1. This page lists the name in 168 languages, the capital Libreville in 51, the nine provinces with their capitals and the French text of the national anthem, La Concorde.
Official languagesFrench (français)
Checked
- alpha-2
- GA
- alpha-3
- GAB
- numeric
- 266
République gabonaise
- English
- GabonGabonese Republic
- Capital
- LibrevilleLibreville
ISO 3166-1, checked 28 October 2026. Flag after the Wikimedia Commons drawing: green, yellow and blue in three equal bands, proportion 3:4.
Gabon in other languages: list of exonyms
| Languages | ISO 639 | Name | Romanised |
|---|---|---|---|
| English, Breton, Cornish, Welsh, Danish, Estonian, Basque, Faroese, Finnish, Kven, French, Franco-Provençal, West Frisian, Friulian, Scottish Gaelic, Manx, Haitian Creole, Hausa, Croatian, Hungarian, Interlingua, Indonesian, Icelandic, Italian, Javanese, Jersey Norman French, Kurmanji Kurdish, Limburgish, Ladin, Maltese, Nahuatl, Dutch, Norwegian, Novial, Occitan, Polish, Romansh, Romanian, Aromanian, Sicilian, Slovak, Slovenian, Northern Sami, Swahili, Swedish, Tok Pisin, Turkish, Võro, Walloon, Zazaki | eng / bre / cor / cym / dan / est / eus / fao / fin / fkv / fra / frp / fry / fur / gla / glv / hat / hau / hrv / hun / ina / ind / isl / ita / jav / jnf / kur / lim / lld / mlt / nah / nld / nor / nov / oci / pol / roh / ron / rup / scn / slk / slv / sme / swa / swe / tpi / tur / vor / wln / zza | Gabon | same as written |
| Crimean Tatar, Gagauz, Karakalpak, Moldovan, Slovio, Turkmen | crh / gag / kaa / mol / slo / tuk | Gabon / Габон | Gabon |
| Aragonese, Asturian, Galician, Spanish | arg / ast / glg / spa | Gabón | same as written |
| Lower Sorbian, Upper Sorbian, Quechua, Saterland Frisian | dsb / hsb / que / stq | Gabun | same as written |
| German, Luxembourgish, Low German | deu / ltz / nds | Gabun | same as written |
| Corsican, Southern Sotho | cos / sot | Gabone | same as written |
| Kinyarwanda, Rundi | kin / run | Gabo | same as written |
| Latvian, Malagasy | lav / mlg | Gabona | same as written |
| Afrikaans | afr | Gaboen | same as written |
| Azerbaijani | aze | Qabon / Габон | Qabon |
| Bambara | bam | Gabɔn | same as written |
| Bosnian | bos | Gabon / Габон / غابۉن | Gabon |
| Catalan | cat | Gabó | same as written |
| Czech | ces | Gabun, Gabon | same as written |
| Esperanto | epo | Gabono | same as written |
| Irish | gle | An Ghabúin / An Ġabúin | same as written |
| Igbo | ibo | Gabọn | same as written |
| Latin | lat | Gabonia, Gabonum, Gabon | same as written |
| Lingala | lin | Gabɔ́ | same as written |
| Lithuanian | lit | Gabonas | same as written |
| Malay | msa | Gabon / ݢابون | Gabon |
| Norman French | nrm | Gaboun | same as written |
| Portuguese | por | Gabão | same as written |
| Kalderash Romani | rmy | Gabon / गाबोन | Gabon |
| Samogitian | smg | Gabuons | same as written |
| Samoan | smo | Kaponi | same as written |
| Albanian | sqi | Gaboni | same as written |
| Sardinian | srd | Gabòn | same as written |
| Tetum | tet | Gabaun | same as written |
| Uzbek | uzb | Gabon / Габон / گەبان | Gabon |
| Vietnamese | vie | Ga-bông | same as written |
| Volapük | vol | Gabän | same as written |
| Wolof | wol | Gaboŋ | same as written |
| Zulu | zul | iGabunu | same as written |
| Abkhaz, Abaza, Altai, Avar, Bulgarian, Chuvash, Kabardian, Khakas, Komi, Karachay-Balkar, Kumyk, Lezgi, Meadow Mari, Macedonian, Mongolian, Ossetian, Russian, Yakut, Tuvan, Udmurt, Kalmyk | abk / abq / alt / ava / bul / chv / kbd / kjh / kom / krc / kum / lez / mhr / mkd / mon / oss / rus / sah / tyv / udm / xal | Габон | Gabon |
| Bashkir, Chechen, Kurdish (Caucasus, Cyrillic), Serbian | bak / che / kmr / srp | Габон / Gabon | Gabon |
| Rusyn, Ukrainian | rue / ukr | Ґабон | Gabon |
| Belarusian | bel | Габон / Habon | Habon |
| Kazakh | kaz | Габон / گابون / Gabon | Gabon |
| Kyrgyz | kir | Габон / گابون / Gabon | Gabon |
| Tatar | tat | Габон / Gabon / گابون | Gabon |
| Tajik | tgk | Габон / گبان / Gabon | Gabon |
| Arabic | ara | الغابون, الجابون, غابون, جابون | al-Ġābūn, al-Gābūn, Ġābūn, Gābūn |
| South Azerbaijani | azb | قابون / Qabon | Qabon |
| Sorani Kurdish | ckb | گابۆن / Gabon | Gabon |
| Persian | fas | گابون / گابن / Gâbon | Gâbon |
| Western Punjabi | pnb | گیبون | Gēbon |
| Dari | prs | گابون | Gābōn |
| Pashto | pus | ګابون | Gābōn |
| Uyghur | uig | گابون / Gabon / Габон | Gabon |
| Urdu | urd | گبون, گیبون | Gabōn, Gēbōn |
| Dhivehi | div | ގެބޯން | Gebōn |
| Hebrew | heb | גבון, גאבון | Gabōn, Gābōn |
| Ladino | lad | גאבון / Gabon | Gabon |
| Yiddish | yid | גאַבאָן | Gabon |
| Berber (Tifinagh) | ber | ⴳⴰⴱⵓⵏ / Gabun | Gabun |
| Kabyle | kab | ⴳⴰⴱⵓⵏ / Gabun | Gabun |
| Amharic | amh | ጋቦን | Gabon |
| Greek | ell | Γκαμπόν | Gkampón |
| Armenian | hye | Գաբոն | Gabon |
| Georgian, Mingrelian | kat / xmf | გაბონი | Gaboni |
| Laz | lzz | გაბონი / Gaboni | Gaboni |
| Hindi | hin | गाबोन | Gābon |
| Bengali | ben | গ্যাবন | Gæbôn |
| Gujarati | guj | ગાબોન | Gābon |
| Oriya | ori | ଗାବୋନ | Gābon |
| Punjabi | pan | ਗਾਬੋਨ | Gābon |
| Sinhala | sin | ගැබෝන් | Gæbōn |
| Kannada | kan | ಗಬೋನ್ | Gabōn |
| Malayalam | mal | ഗാബോൺ | Gābōṇ |
| Tamil | tam | கபொன், காபோன் | Kapoṉ, Kāpōṉ |
| Telugu | tel | గబాన్ | Gabān |
| Chinese | zho | 加蓬 | Jiāpéng |
| Japanese | jpn | ガボン | Gabon |
| Korean | kor | 가봉 | Gabong |
| Tibetan | bod | གེ་བོན། | Ge.bon |
| Burmese | mya | ဂါဘွန် | Gabʰũ |
| Thai | tha | กาบอง | Kābɔ̄ṅ |
| Khmer | khm | ហ្គាបុង, កាបង់ | Hkābuṅ, Kābăṅ |
Belarusian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik and Uzbek forms are given in each script the language uses. Berber and Kabyle write the name in Tifinagh with a Latin transliteration.
From gabão to Gabon: where the name comes from
Gabon owes its name to Portuguese sailors. In the 1470s they called the estuary of the Komo River gabão, a hooded cloak, because its outline reminded them of one. The word moved from the estuary to the coast around it and finally to the colony and the state. Portuguese still writes Gabão, the only language in the table that keeps the original nasal ending.
Most other languages took the French spelling Gabon. German, Luxembourgish, Low German, Czech and the two Sorbian languages say Gabun, Spanish and Galician Gabón, Catalan Gabó, Irish an Ghabúin. Arabic writes الغابون, al-Ġābūn, with the article; Chinese renders the sound as 加蓬, Jiāpéng, and Korean as 가봉, Gabong. Zulu adds its noun prefix: iGabunu.
Libreville, French for free town, goes back to 1849. Fifty-two people freed from the slave ship L’Elizia were settled on the north bank of the estuary next to an American mission and a Mpongwe trading post. The name has hardly been translated since; Esperanto Librevilo and Kurdish Lîbrivîl only adapt the spelling, and Serbian Либервил swaps two letters.
Libreville in other languages
| Languages | ISO 639 | Name | Romanised |
|---|---|---|---|
| English, French | eng / fra | Libreville | same as written |
| German, Luxembourgish, Low German | deu / ltz / nds | Libreville | same as written |
| Azerbaijani | aze | Librevil / Либревил | Librevil |
| Bosnian | bos | Libreville / Либрвил / لٖىبروٖىل | Libreville |
| Esperanto | epo | Librevilo | same as written |
| Irish | gle | Libreville | same as written |
| Kurmanji Kurdish | kur | Lîbrivîl | same as written |
| Latvian | lav | Librevila | same as written |
| Lithuanian | lit | Librevilis | same as written |
| Moldovan | mol | Libreville / Либревил | Libreville |
| Malay | msa | Libreville / ليبرۏيل | Libreville |
| Samogitian | smg | Lėbrevėlės | same as written |
| Turkmen | tuk | Librewil / Либревиль | Librewil |
| Uzbek | uzb | Librevil / Либревиль / لىبرېۋىل | Librevil |
| Mongolian, Russian | mon / rus | Либревиль | Librevil' |
| Bashkir | bak | Либревиль / Librevil | Librevil |
| Belarusian | bel | Лібрэвіль / Librevil | Librevil |
| Bulgarian | bul | Либървил | Libărvil |
| Kazakh | kaz | Либревиль / ليبرەۆيل / Lïbrevïl | Lïbrevïl |
| Kyrgyz | kir | Либревиль / لئبرەۋىل / Librevil | Librevil |
| Serbian | srp | Либервил / Libervil | Libervil |
| Tatar | tat | Либревиль / Librevil / لىبرېۋىل | Librevil |
| Tajik | tgk | Либревил / لیبریویل / Librevil | Librevil |
| Ukrainian | ukr | Лібревіль | Librevil' |
| Arabic | ara | ليبرفيل, ليبروفيل | Lībrifīl, Lībrūfīl |
| South Azerbaijani | azb | لیبرئویل / Librevil | Librevil |
| Persian | fas | لیبرویل / Librevil / Libervil | Librevil / Libervil |
| Pashto | pus | ليبرويل | Lībrəwīl |
| Uyghur | uig | لىبرېۋىل / Libréwil / Либревиль | Libréwil |
| Urdu | urd | لیبرویل | Lībravīl |
| Hebrew | heb | ליברוויל | Lībrevīl |
| Yiddish | yid | ליברעװיל | Librevil |
| Amharic | amh | ሊብረቪል | Librävil |
| Greek | ell | Λιμπρεβίλ | Limprevíl |
| Armenian | hye | Լիբրևիլ | Librevil |
| Georgian | kat | ლიბრევილი | Librevili |
| Bengali | ben | লিব্রেভিল | Librebʰil |
| Punjabi | pan | ਲੀਬਰੀਵਿਲ | Lībrīvil |
| Kannada | kan | ಲಿಬ್ರವಿಲ್ | Libravil |
| Malayalam | mal | ലൈബ്രെവിൽ | Laibrevil |
| Tamil | tam | லிப்ரவில் | Lipravil |
| Telugu | tel | లిబ్రెవిల్ | Librevil |
| Chinese | zho | 利伯維爾/利伯维尔 | Lìbówéi'ěr |
| Japanese | jpn | リーブルヴィル | Rīburuviru |
| Korean | kor | 리브르빌 | Libeureubil |
| Thai | tha | ลีเบรอวิล | Lībrə̄win |
| Khmer | khm | ឡីប្រេវីល, លីប្រេវីល | Ḷībrevīl, Lībrevīl |
The nine provinces of Gabon and their capitals
Gabon is divided into nine provinces, each named after a river or a region and coded GA-1 to GA-9 in ISO 3166-2. The French name is the full official form with its article; the English column gives the short name that ISO lists.
| ISO 3166-2 | French | English | Administrative centre | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provinces provinces9 | ||||
| GA-1 | Province de l’Estuaire | Estuaire | LibrevilleLibreville | |
| GA-2 | Province du Haut-Ogooué | Haut-Ogooué | Franceville (Masuku)Franceville (Masuku) | |
| GA-3 | Province du Moyen-Ogooué | Moyen-Ogooué | LambarénéLambaréné | |
| GA-4 | Province de la Ngounié | Ngounié | MouilaMouila | |
| GA-5 | Province de la Nyanga | Nyanga | TchibangaTchibanga | |
| GA-6 | Province de l’Ogooué-Ivindo | Ogooué-Ivindo | MakokouMakokou | |
| GA-7 | Province de l’Ogooué-Lolo | Ogooué-Lolo | KoulamoutouKoulamoutou | |
| GA-8 | Province de l’Ogooué-Maritime | Ogooué-Maritime | Port-GentilPort-Gentil | |
| GA-9 | Province du Woleu-Ntem | Woleu-Ntem | OyemOyem | |
Codes and short names: ISO 3166-2:GA on the ISO Online Browsing Platform, read from the Wikipedia table that reproduces it, checked 28 October 2026. No change since the first edition of the standard.
Provinces named after rivers
The provinces carry the names of the Ogooué, Gabon’s main river, and of its tributaries and neighbours: the Ngounié, the Nyanga, the Ivindo, the Lolo, the Woleu and the Ntem. Three of them name a stretch of the Ogooué itself, upper, middle and maritime. The capital of Haut-Ogooué appears with two names, Franceville and its local form Masuku.
La Concorde, the national anthem of Gabon
La Concorde has been the national anthem of Gabon since independence in 1960. Words and music are credited to Georges Aleka Damas.
Questions about the names of Gabon
What does the name Gabon mean?
It comes from Portuguese gabão, a hooded cloak, the shape sailors saw in the Komo estuary in the 1470s.
Why is the capital called Libreville?
Libreville means free town in French. It was founded in 1849 for people freed from the slave ship L’Elizia.
What are the ISO codes of Gabon?
GA, GAB and 266 in ISO 3166-1. The nine provinces are coded GA-1 to GA-9 in ISO 3166-2.