The Flag and Shield of Gabon       Map of Gabon CIA   About Gabon A country on the west coast of Africa, Gabon straddles the Equator. It has a land area of 267,670 square kilometers, slightly smaller than Colorado and about half the size of France. The name Gabon comes from the Portuguese word for overcoat (gabaou), which is what the coast looked like to settlers arriving from Portugal in the 1470s. They established a slave trade that flourished in Gabon until the 1880's. By the late 18th century the French were the dominant European power, and French is the official language of Gabon's educated class. The French founded Libreville, the capital, in 1849 as a settlement for freed slaves. The Republic of Gabon gained independence from France on August 17, 1960.      1 of 5        The estimated 1997 population of Gabon is 1,155,749 which is slightly less than that of the state of New Hampshire. The literacy rate is 70-77%, about twice the literacy rate of India (36-53%) and much lower than that of the United States (95-99%).