Réunion island
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Réunion La Réunion |
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| Overseas region and department of France | |||
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| Motto: Florebo quocumque ferar | |||
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| Country |
 France
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| Prefecture | Saint-Denis | ||
| Departments | 1 | ||
| Government | |||
| • President of Regional Council | Didier Robert | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 2,511 km2 (970 sq mi) | ||
| Population (Jan. 2014) | |||
| • Total | 844,994 | ||
| • Density | 340/km2 (870/sq mi) | ||
| Demonym(s) | Réunionese | ||
| Time zone | RET (UTC+04) | ||
| ISO 3166 code | RE | ||
| GDP (2013) | Ranked | ||
| Total | €16.7 billion (US$22.2 bn) | ||
| Per capita | €19,854 (US$26,369) | ||
| NUTS Region | FRA4 | ||
| Website |
Prefecture Regional Council Departmental Council |
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Réunion (French: La Réunion, pronounced: [la.ʁe.y.njɔ̃]; previously Île Bourbon) is an island and region of France in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar and 175 kilometres (109 mi) southwest of Mauritius. As of 2014[update], it had a population of 844,994. It is the most prosperous island in the Indian Ocean, having the highest GDP per capita in the region.
The island has been inhabited since the 17th century, when people from France, Madagascar and Africa settled there. Slavery was abolished on 20 December 1848 (a date celebrated yearly on the island), after which indentured workers were brought from South India, among other places. The island became an overseas department of France in 1946.
As elsewhere in France, the official language is French. In addition, the majority of the region's population speaks Réunion Creole.
Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France. Like the other four overseas departments, it is also one of the 18 regions of France, with the modified status of overseas region, and an integral part of the Republic with the same status as Metropolitan France. Réunion is an outermost region of the European Union and, as an overseas department of France, part of the Eurozone.
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