After being called various names including the Congo Free State, Belgian Congo and Congo-Lopoldville, what was the (now) Democratic Republic of the Congo known as?
Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville) and purposes, the Democratic Republic of the Congo had effectively come to an end, but it would be another year before Mobutu officially changed the country's name to Zaire. Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville) The Republic of the Congo () was a sovereign state in Central Africa that was created with the independence of the Belgian Congo in 1960. From 1960 to 1966, the country was often known as Congo-Léopoldville (after its capital) in order to distinguish it from its north-western neighbour, also called the Republic of the Congo or Congo-Brazzaville. With the renaming of Léopoldville as Kinshasa on 1
Democratic Republic of the Congo inhabitants, the Kongo people, when they encountered them in the 16th century. The word "Kongo" comes from the Kongo language (also called "Kikongo"). According to American writer Samuel Henry Nelson "It is probable that the word 'Kongo' itself implies a public gathering and that it is based on the root "konga", 'to gather' (trans[itive])." The modern name of the Kongo people, "Bakongo" was introduced in the early 20th century. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been known in the past as, in chronological order, the Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, the Republic of Congo-Léopoldville, the Democratic Republic of the