Réunion

Réunion is a territory in the Africa card group. Overseas department and region of France.

Find Réunion

● Administrative center · Gold highlights this card’s area.
Map: Natural Earth. Boundaries show geographic context, not a position on sovereignty. Small islands may use enlarged markers.

At a glance

Administrative center: Saint-Denis
Languages: French
Currency: Euro (EUR)
Population: 911,0001 January 2026 · provisional INSEE estimate
Area: 2,511 km²970 square miles
Status: Overseas department and region of France.

Réunion in context

Africa and its surrounding islands. The dot marks Saint-Denis; the mapped territory is highlighted in gold.

Natural Earth · locator map

Geography & languages

Physical geography

A mountainous volcanic island in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, with deep cirques and the active Piton de la Fournaise volcano.

Languages

Languages used in public life include French.

Location

A mountainous volcanic island in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, with deep cirques and the active Piton de la Fournaise volcano.

Flag

The French tricolor is the official national flag: vertical bands of blue, white and red.

Sources: Réunion tourism board · history · INSEE · demographic report

History & status

French settlement developed on Réunion in the seventeenth century. Plantation production relied on enslaved labor until slavery was abolished on the island in 1848. Réunion became an overseas department of France in 1946.

1600s
Permanent French settlement develops
1848
Slavery is abolished
1946
Réunion becomes an overseas department

Sources: Réunion tourism board · history · INSEE · demographic report

Economy

Main activities

Services, public administration, commerce, construction and tourism are important activities. Sugarcane remains an important crop. The island is integrated into the French economy and uses the euro.

Sources: Réunion tourism board · history · INSEE · demographic report

Population

911,000 · 1 January 2026 · provisional INSEE estimate

Sources: Réunion tourism board · history · INSEE · demographic report

Government

Overseas department and region of France. Elected departmental and regional councils have local responsibilities; a prefect represents the French state. Réunion is an outermost region of the European Union.

Sources: Réunion tourism board · history · INSEE · demographic report

Knowledge check

Three questions about Réunion.

QUESTION 1 OF 3

In which year did this event occur in Réunion: Réunion becomes an overseas department?

Sources & notes

Sources: Réunion tourism board · history · INSEE · demographic report

Prepared 24 September 2026. World Bank series: SP.POP.TOTL (persons) and NY.GDP.MKTP.KD (constant 2015 US dollars); downloaded 24 September 2026, provider update 13 July 2026. UNDP values use the 2025 report and 2023 observation year. These are dated statistical snapshots, not live population or economic counters.

Maps use Natural Earth geographic data. Background geography, flag descriptions and selected historical facts use archived public-domain CIA World Factbook profiles, supplemented by the sources linked above. The Factbook is no longer updated; dated statistics here come from the separately named providers.