Caribbean
The Caribbean or Caribbean Area (Dutch: Cariben or Caraiben, French: Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Spanish: Caribe) is a region of the Americas. It includes the Caribbean Sea, its islands (more than 7,000 islands, small islands and cays, most of them surrounding the sea), and the coastal islands of north South America and east Central America.

Geography
The Caribbean is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to its east and north, the coast of South America to its south, the coast of Central America to its southwest, and by the Gulf of Mexico to its northwest.
The West Indies is the name for the group of the islands of the Bahamas and the Antilles. The Antilles are divided into two groups: the larger Greater Antilles, on the north limit of the Caribbean Sea, and the Lesser Antilles, on the east and south.
The Caribbean islands have many different types of land. Because of this, the islands have many different kinds of plants and animals, even uncommon ones.
Famous islands in the Caribbean include Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Hispaniola. The countries of Dominican Republic, and Haiti are on Hispaniola. There is also a lot of white sandy beaches and hot sun there.[1]
Groups of islands
Name | Area[2] (km2) | Population[3] | Density (inhab./km2) | Capital city | Oficial language |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bahamian Archipelago | |||||
![]() | 13,880 | 319,031 | 23 | Nassau | English |
![]() | 948 | 47,754 | 50 | Cockburn Town | English |
Greater Antilles | |||||
![]() | 110,860 | 11,061,886 | 100 | Havana | Spanish |
Hispaniola | 76,420 | 20,113,564 | 263 | ||
![]() | 27,750 | 9,893,934 | 357 | Port-au-Prince | French |
![]() | 48,670 | 10,219,630 | 210 | Santo Domingo | Spanish |
![]() | 10,991 | 2,909,714 | 265 | Kingston | English |
![]() | 13,790 | 3,674,209 | 266 | San Juan | Spanish |
![]() | 264 | 53,737 | 204 | George Town | English |
Lesser Antilles | |||||
Leeward Islands | |||||
![]() | 1,910 | 104,737 | 55 | Charlotte Amalie | English |
![]() | 151 | 31,912 | 211 | Road Town | English |
![]() | 91 | 15,754 | 173 | The Valley | English |
![]() | 443 | 90,156 | 204 | Saint John's | English |
Saint Martin | 88 | 70,953 | 806 | ||
![]() | 54 | 31,264 | 579 | Marigot | French |
![]() | 34 | 39,689 | 1167 | Philipsburg | Dutch |
![]() | 13 | 1,971 | 152 | The Bottom | Dutch |
![]() | 21 | 3,791 | 181 | Oranjestad | Dutch |
![]() | 22 | 7,298 | 332 | Gustavia | French |
![]() | 261 | 51,134 | 196 | Basseterre | English |
![]() | 102 | 5,189 | 51 | Plymouth | English |
![]() | 1,628 | 405,500 | 249 | Basse-Terre | French |
Windward Islands | |||||
![]() | 751 | 73,286 | 98 | Roseau | English |
![]() | 1,128 | 403,795 | 358 | Fort-de-France | French |
![]() | 616 | 162,781 | 264 | Castries | English |
![]() | 389 | 103,220 | 265 | Kingstown | English |
![]() | 344 | 109,590 | 319 | St. George's | English |
![]() | 430 | 288,725 | 671 | Bridgetown | English |
![]() | 5,128 | 1,225,225 | 239 | Port of Spain | English |
ABC Islands | |||||
![]() | 180 | 109,153 | 606 | Oranjestad | Dutch |
![]() | 294 | 16,541 | 56 | Kralendijk | Dutch |
![]() | 444 | 146,836 | 331 | Willemstad | Dutch |
Name
The name Caribbean comes from Carib, indigenous people living in the Lesser Antilles and north South America when the Europeans came to the Americas.
History
The 18th century saw many countries trying to colonize the islands.[4] Because of this, Caribbean culture is very similar to those of Africa, India, and many countries in Europe.
References
- Carribian Islands-Geography. Mongabay.com. Accessed 4-19-2011
- "Country Comparison :: Area". CIA World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- "Country Comparison :: Population". CIA World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- Caribbean History. IslandFlave.com. Accessed 4-19-2011