Dahomey (1960–1975)

Republic of Dahomey

Named for the precolonial kingdom of Dahomey, the republic took the name Benin in 1975 — after the Bight of Benin — as a neutral name for a country of many peoples.

Old Dahomey was guarded for two centuries by the Agojie — the all-female royal regiments the world came to call the Dahomey Amazons.