<Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (July 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (July 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> The islands of São Tomé and Príncipe were uninhabited when the Portuguese arrived sometime around 1470 . The islands were discovered by João de Santarém and Pêro Escobar . Portuguese navigators explored the islands and decided that they would be good locations for bases to trade with the mainland . </P> <P> The dates of discovery are sometimes given as 21 December (St Thomas's Day) 1471, for São Tomé; and 17 January (St Anthony's Day) 1472, for Príncipe, though other sources cite different years around that time . Príncipe was initially named Santo Antão ("Saint Anthony"), changing its name in 1502 to Ilha do Príncipe ("Prince's Island"), in reference to the Prince of Portugal to whom duties on the island's sugar crop were paid . </P>

What islands off the coast of northern gabon were uninhabited until the portuguese arrived in 1470