Area Code 236 – Tarrafal de São Nicolau, São Nicolau

Overview of Area Code 236 (Tarrafal de São Nicolau)

Area code 236 is a geographic destination code within the Cape Verdean national numbering plan, specifically assigned to the municipality of Tarrafal de São Nicolau, located on the island of São Nicolau. This code is part of the country's fixed-line telephony infrastructure and is used for routing calls to landline subscribers in this region.

Geographic and Administrative Context

Tarrafal de São Nicolau is one of the two municipalities on São Nicolau Island, which is part of the Barlavento island group. The municipality encompasses the town of Tarrafal and its surrounding settlements. The area code 236 is allocated to the local exchange serving this region, distinguishing it from the other municipality on the island, Ribeira Brava, which uses a different code (231).

Dialing Formats

When calling a fixed-line number in Tarrafal de São Nicolau, the national significant number (NSN) is 7 digits long, beginning with the area code '236'. The international format for Cape Verde is defined by the country calling code +238, followed by the NSN. Thus, a typical number would be formatted as:

• International format: +238 236 XXXX (where XXXX is the subscriber number)
• National format (domestic calls): 236 XXXX

For example, if a subscriber number is 1234, the full international dialing string would be +238 236 1234.

Caller Instructions

Callers from outside Cape Verde: Dial the international access prefix (00 or +), then the country code 238, followed by the area code 236 and the subscriber number. For instance, from the United States, you would dial 011 238 236 1234.

Callers from within Cape Verde: If you are calling from another island or region, you only need to dial the 7-digit national number: 236 1234. However, if you are calling from a mobile phone, you may need to include the area code even if you are in the same region, depending on your operator's dialing plan. Always check with your service provider for exact dialing procedures.

Overlay and Numbering Considerations

Currently, there is no overlay code for Tarrafal de São Nicolau; the 236 code is exclusively used for this geographic area. The numbering plan is closed, meaning that all national numbers are 7 digits long. The country code +238 is used for all international calls to Cape Verde.

Usage and Services

Numbers with the 236 prefix are primarily used for fixed-line services, including residential and business telephony. As with other geographic codes in Cape Verde, these numbers are associated with the local PSTN and are not typically used for mobile services, which have their own non-geographic prefixes (e.g., 9X).