São Tomé city was a Portuguese territory from the first occupations until independence in 1975; during that time, its growth was in line with Portuguese principles of urbanism. Outside of the city, which was planned and built during the colonial occupation, another type of structure developed without any planning. Like other African cities of Portuguese origin, this new structure is located on the outskirts of the urban center. This article presents two arguments. First, like other African cities of Portuguese origin the city of Sao Tome is believed to have a dual structure: a planned central area built during the colonial occupation (pre-independence), and another of essentially peri-urban dwellings resulting from the spread of housing from the urban center and with semi-rural characteristics: houses together with spaces for family agricultural production. Secondly, both the central planned structure of the colonial period and the peripheral structure developed later strive to relate with the territory and the urban structures are therefore adapted to local conditions in both cases.
São Tomé; African cities; Cities of Portuguese origin; Formal and informal