Nantes School Renamed for Cesária Évora – Bottière Primary School

A school in Nantes, France, is giving itself a makeover—and letting its students choose the new name. On January 7, the 191 students at the 50-year-old Bottière school voted to rename their institution after Cesária Évora, the Cape Verdean singer who brought the sounds of her homeland to a global audience.

<h2>A New Generation Honors Musical Legacy</h2>
<p><em>The decision reflects a broader effort to recognize influential women in Nantes’ public spaces.</em></p>

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        <li>The Bottière school, previously named only for its district, sought a new identity for its 50th anniversary.</li>
        <li>Students chose Cesária Évora from a shortlist of seven notable figures.</li>
        <li>The renaming is part of a larger initiative to honor women through naming streets and public facilities.</li>
        <li>Robert Badinter, a politician known for abolishing the death penalty, will also have a road named after him.</li>
    </ul>
</div>

<p>The school, which has operated for half a century without a name beyond its location, presented students with a list of seven potential honorees. After discussions and debates, three women emerged as frontrunners, with Évora ultimately receiving the most votes during a student-led count. The proposal will go before the municipal council for a vote on Friday, January 30.</p>

<h2>Honoring Local Heroes</h2>
<p>The renaming initiative extends beyond the school. Approximately fifteen other names for streets, facilities, and public gardens are also slated for consideration by the council on January 30. In the Breil-Barberie district, Émilie Oberkampf, a pioneer in early childhood education in France, is proposed for the future multi-childcare center. Cécile Garreau-Prampart, a Nantes-based political and community activist who founded a secular association, is in line to have the associative space on rue Jules-Noël named in her honor.  Renée Goilot, a dedicated neighborhood volunteer who passed away in 2025, is being recognized with the naming of the festive room at 38, rue du Breil.</p>

<p><strong>What was Cesária Évora known for?</strong> Cesária Évora was a Cape Verdean singer who achieved international fame for popularizing the music of her country, particularly the genre known as *morna*.</p>

<h2>A Legacy of Justice and Equality</h2>
<p>On the island of Nantes, the name of Robert Badinter, the politician and former Minister of Justice who championed the abolition of the death penalty, will be proposed for a new road extending Boulevard Bénoni-Goulin, between Boulevards Gustave-Roch and Simone-Veil. Badinter, who was a schoolboy in Nantes in 1939, is remembered for his commitment to justice and human rights.  Notably, eleven of the fifteen proposed names are those of women, a deliberate effort, according to Olivier Château, an elected official in charge of heritage, “to plow the furrow in the fight against the invisibility of women.”</p>