<P> Ivory Coast is a republic with a strong executive power invested in its President . Through the production of coffee and cocoa, the country was an economic powerhouse in West Africa during the 1960s and 1970s . Ivory Coast went through an economic crisis in the 1980s, contributing to a period of political and social turmoil . Changing into the 21st - century Ivorian economy is largely market - based and still relies heavily on agriculture, with smallholder cash - crop production being dominant . </P> <P> The official language is French, with local indigenous languages also widely used, including Baoulé, Dioula, Dan, Anyin, and Cebaara Senufo . In total there are around 78 languages spoken in Ivory Coast . Popular religions include Christianity (primarily Roman Catholicism), Islam, and various indigenous religions . </P> <P> Originally, Portuguese and French merchant - explorers in the 15th and 16th centuries divided the west coast of Africa, very roughly, into five "coasts" reflecting local economies . The coast that the French named the Côte d'Ivoire and the Portuguese named the Costa do Marfim--both, literally, being "Ivory Coast"--lay between what was known as the Guiné de Cabo Verde, so - called "Upper Guinea" at Cap - Vert, and Lower Guinea . There was also a Pepper Coast also known as the "Grain Coast", a "Gold Coast", and a "Slave Coast". Like those, the name "Ivory Coast" reflected the major trade that occurred on that particular stretch of the coast, the export of ivory . </P> <P> Other names for the coast of ivory included the Côte de Dents, literally "Coast of Teeth", again reflecting the trade in ivory; the Côte de Quaqua, after the people whom the Dutch named the Quaqua (alternatively Kwa Kwa); the Coast of the Five and Six Stripes, after a type of cotton fabric also traded there; and the Côte du Vent, the Windward Coast, after perennial local off - shore weather conditions . One can find the name Cote de (s) Dents regularly used in older works . It was used in Duckett's Dictionnaire (Duckett 1853) and by Nicolas Villault de Bellefond, for examples, although Antoine François Prévost used Côte d'Ivoire . In the 19th century, usage switched to Côte d'Ivoire . </P>

Why did they call it the ivory coast