Caribbean

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Central America and the Caribbean

The Caribbean or the West Indies is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. These islands curve southward from the bottom tip of Florida to the Northwest of Venezuela in South America. There are at least 7000 islands, islets, reefs and cayes in the region. They are organized into twenty-five territories including sovereign states, overseas departments and dependencies.

The name "West Indies" originates from Christopher Columbus' idea that he had landed in India when he had in fact reached the Americas. The Caribbean consists of the Greater and Lesser Antilles and is part of North America.

At one time there was a short-lived country called the Federation of the West Indies composed of the English-speaking Caribbean islands of the region.

The Caribbean area is also famous for its sea pirates. See the article piracy in the Caribbean.

Contents

1 Historical groupings

2 Present-day territories of the Caribbean

3 Indigenous Tribes

4 See also

Historical groupings

Most islands at some point were, or still are, colonies of European nations:

British West Indies - Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and the Turks and Caicos Islands
Danish West Indies - present-day United States Virgin Islands
Dutch West Indies - present-day Netherlands Antilles and Aruba
French West Indies - the French overseas departements of Guadeloupe and Martinique
Spain - Cuba, Hispaniola (present-day Dominican Republic and Haiti), Puerto Rico

The British West Indies, formerly united in the West Indies Federation, still make up a composite cricket team that successfully competes in test matches and one-day internationals. The West Indian cricket team also includes the South American nation of Guyana, a former British colony.

Present-day territories of the Caribbean

Anguilla (British dependency)
Antigua and Barbuda
- Antigua
- Barbuda
Aruba (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
Bahamas
- Andros
- Cat Island
- Eleuthera
- Grand Bahama
- New Providence, with the capital Nassau.
Barbados
British Virgin Islands (British dependency, shares the Virgin Islands with the U.S. Virgin Islands.)
Cayman Islands (British dependency)
- Cayman Brac
- Grand Cayman, with the capital George Town
- Little Cayman
Cuba
Dominica
Grenada (shares the Grenadines group with Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)
- Petite Martinique
- Carriacou
Guadeloupe (overseas department of France)
- Basse-Terre
- Grande-Terre
- Iles des Saintes
  - Terre de Haut
  - Terre de Bas
- Marie-Galante
- Iles de la Petite Terre
- La Désirade
- Saint-Barthélemy, also Saint Barts
- Saint-Martin (part of the island Saint Martin shared with the Netherlands Antilles; note the dash)
Hispaniola
- Dominican Republic
- Haiti
Jamaica
Martinique (overseas department of France)
Mexico is not a Caribbean country, but has some islands in the Caribbean sea:
- Cancún
- Isla Mujeres
- Isla Cozumel
Montserrat (British dependency)
Navassa Island (US insular area)
Netherlands Antilles (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
- Bonaire
- Curaçao
- Saba
- Sint Eustatius
- Sint Maarten (part of the island Saint Martin shared with Guadeloupe)
Puerto Rico (commonwealth associated with US)
Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Kitts
- Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (shares the Grenadines group with Grenada)
- Bequia
- Canouan Island
- Mustique
- Palm Island
- Saint Vincent
- Union Island
- Young Island
Suriname
Trinidad and Tobago
- Tobago
- Trinidad
Turks and Caicos Islands (British dependency)
- Grand Turk
- Providenciales
U.S. Virgin Islands (territory of the USA, shares the Virgin Islands with the British Virgin Islands)

The nations of Belize and Guyana, although on the mainland of Central America and South America respectively, were former British colonies and maintain many cultural ties to the Caribbean and are members of CARICOM. The Turneffe islands (and many other islands and reefs) are part of Belize and lie in the Caribbean Sea.