| Cidade do Maio | |
|---|---|
| Settlement | |
 Its adjacent saltpans of Cidade do Maio located northwest, its city limits runs in one portion | |
  Cidade do Maio | |
| Coordinates: 15°08′17″N23°12′40″W / 15.138°N 23.211°W Coordinates: 15°08′17″N23°12′40″W / 15.138°N 23.211°W | |
| Country | Cape Verde |
| Island | Maio |
| Municipality | Maio |
| Civil parish | Nossa Senhora da Luz |
| Elevation | 10 m (30 ft) |
| Population (2010) [1] | |
| • Total | 2,971 |
Cidade do Maio, also known as Porto Inglês ("English Port"), is a city [2] in the southwestern part of the island of Maio in southeastern Cape Verde. It is the main urban settlement of the island, and also seat of the Maio Municipality. Its population was 2,971 in 2010. Before 2010, when it became a city, it was known as Vila do Maio. The name Porto Inglês (Portuguese for "English port") refers to English ships that exported salt produced on the island of Maio from this town. Salt exploitation continued until the 19th century. [3] The inconclusive Battle of Maio was fought between British and French frigate squadrons close to the town on 23 January 1814 in the last stages of the Napoleonic Wars.
Maio is the easternmost of the Sotavento islands of Cape Verde. Maio is located south of the island of Boa Vista and east of Santiago. Administratively, the island forms one concelho (municipality): Maio.
Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country spanning an archipelago of 10 volcanic islands in the central Atlantic Ocean. It forms part of the Macaronesia ecoregion, along with the Azores, Canary Islands, Madeira, and the Savage Isles. In ancient times these islands were referred to as "the Islands of the Blessed" or the "Fortunate Isles". Located 570 kilometres (350 mi) west of the Cape Verde Peninsula off the coast of Northwest Africa, the islands cover a combined area of slightly over 4,000 square kilometres (1,500 sq mi).
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The port of Cidade do Maio has ferry services to Praia on the island of Santiago. The domestic Maio Airport lies 1 km north of the city. A landmark is Forte de São José and its adjacent lighthouse. The Nossa Senhora da Luz (Our Lady of Light) church was opened in 1872.
Praia, is the capital and largest city of Cape Verde, an island nation in the Atlantic Ocean west of Senegal. It lies on the southern coast of Santiago island in the Sotavento Islands group. It is the island's ferry port and is home to one of the nation's four international airports. The city centre is known as Plateau due to its location on a small plateau.
Santiago is the largest island of Cape Verde, its most important agricultural centre and home to half the nation’s population. Part of the Sotavento Islands, it lies between the islands of Maio and Fogo. It was the first of the islands to be settled: the town of Ribeira Grande was founded in 1462. Santiago is home to the nation's capital city of Praia.
The Maio Airport is an airport in Cape Verde located in the island of Maio, about 3 km north of the island capital Porto Inglês. Its runway measures 1,200 metres (3,900 ft) by 30 metres (98 ft) wide. Of the seven functioning civil airports in Cape Verde, Maio is the airport with the least traffic.
