M'banza-Kongo (, ,
or , known as
São Salvador in
Portuguese from 1570 to 1975), is the capital of
Angola's northwestern
Zaire Province. M'banza Kongo (properly Mbanza Koongo or Kôngo in most acceptable orthographies) was founded some time before the arrival of the
Portuguese in 1483 and was the capital of the
KiLukeni dynasty ruling at that time. The site was temporarily abandoned during civil wars in the 17th century. It lies close to Angola's border with the
Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located at around and sits on top of an impressive flat-topped mountain, sometimes called Mongo a Kaila (mountain of division) because recent legends recall that the king created the clans of the kingdom and sent them out from there. In the valley to the south runs the Luezi River.