[lwptoc]
Port-au-Prince is the capital and biggest city of Haiti, which is located in the Caribbean.
In 2015, the city’s population was expected to be 987,310, with a metropolitan area (aire métropolitaine) population of 2,618,894.
The city of Port-au-Prince is located on the Gulf of Gonâve: the bay on which the city is located, which serves as a natural port, has maintained commercial activity since the Arawak civilizations. It was formed for the first time in 1749, under French colonial administration. The city is laid out like an amphitheatre, with business areas along the river and residential communities on the hills above.
Its population is difficult to quantify owing to the fast rise of slums on the slopes above the city; nonetheless, current estimates put the metropolitan area’s population at over 3.7 million, accounting for almost half of the country’s total population.
On January 12, 2010, an earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince, destroying or damaging a considerable number of buildings. The death toll in Haiti has been estimated at 230,000 people.