Lac de Guiers

The Lac de Guiers is a large freshwater lake in northern Senegal, south of the city of Richard-Toll[?]. It is a chief source of fresh water for the city of Dakar, hundreds of kilometers to the southeast, through underground pipes.

It is about 35 kilometers long and 8 kilometers wide, and is supplied by the Bounoum River[?] that flows north into its southern end, from Fouta[?]. Water used to flow out to the Senegal River north through the Portuguese River, but this has been replaced by a straight canal to Richard-Toll. The shores are mostly fertile. The north shore and surrouding area have been converted to a large irrigated sugar-growing region, with water from this lake.

The lake has a complicated history involving the kingdoms of Tekrur[?] and Waalo and the Empire of Jolof (Diolof)[?]. Notably, the settlement of Nder[?], the third and final capital of the former Kingdom of Waalo, was located on the west shores of the Lake. The royal compound or "keur[?]" is still there. Previously Lac de Guiers was called Lac du Panier Foule or Pania Fuli, referring to the Peulh people.