Faya

Faya, formerly Largeau, oasis town located in northern Chad, north-central Africa. It lies in the Sahara at the northern tip of the Bodélé geographic depression, 490 miles (790 km) northeast of the capital, N’Djamena.

Originally called Faya, the town was renamed Largeau following the capture in 1913 of Borkou by the French army officer Colonel Étienne Largeau; the original name was restored in the 1970s. Date palm production in Faya was the focus of a development project in the 1970s. The town has an airport as well as a small electric power plant. Pop. (2010 est.) 11,000.