abstract:Cap-Haïtien (Okap or Kapayisyen in Kréyòl) is a city of about 190,000 people on the north coast of Haiti and capital of the Department of Nord. Previously named as Cap-Français, Cap-Henri, and le Cap, it was an important city during the colonial period, serving as the capital of the French Colony of Saint-Domingue from the city`s formal foundation in 1711 until 1770 when the capital was moved to Port-au-Prince.