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Caribbean

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Image
Map of the 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

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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, Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico. The countries of Dominican Republic, and Haiti are on Hispaniola. There is also a lot of white sandy beaches and hot sun there.[1]

Countries and territories by island group

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NameArea[2]
(km2)		Population[3]Density
(inhab./km2)		Capital cityOficial
language
Greater Antilles
Image Cayman Islands26453,737204George TownEnglish
Image Cuba110,86011,061,886100HavanaSpanish
Hispaniola76,42020,113,564263
  Image Dominican Republic48,67010,219,630210Santo DomingoSpanish
  Image Haiti27,7509,893,934357Port-au-PrinceFrench
Image Jamaica10,9912,909,714265KingstonEnglish
Image Puerto Rico13,7903,674,209266San JuanSpanish
Lesser Antilles
Leeward Antilles
Kingdom of the Netherlands ABC Islands76,42020,113,564263
  Image Aruba180109,153606OranjestadDutch
  Image Bonaire29416,54156KralendijkDutch
  Image Curaçao444146,836331WillemstadDutch
Venezuela Federal DependenciesSpanish
Venezuela Nueva EspartaSpanish
Leeward Islands
Image Anguilla9115,754173The ValleyEnglish
Image Antigua and Barbuda44390,156204Saint John'sEnglish
Image British Virgin Islands15131,912211Road TownEnglish
Image Guadeloupe1,628405,500249Basse-TerreFrench
Image Montserrat1025,18951PlymouthEnglish
Image Saba131,971152The BottomDutch
Image Saint Barthélemy227,298332GustaviaFrench
Image Saint Kitts and Nevis26151,134196BasseterreEnglish
Saint Martin8870,953806
  Image Saint Martin5431,264579MarigotFrench
  Image Sint Maarten3439,6891167PhilipsburgDutch
Image Sint Eustatius213,791181OranjestadDutch
Image United States Virgin Islands1,910104,73755Charlotte AmalieEnglish
Windward Islands
Image Barbados430288,725671BridgetownEnglish
Image Dominica75173,28698RoseauEnglish
Image Grenada344109,590319St. George'sEnglish
Image Martinique1,128403,795358Fort-de-FranceFrench
Image Saint Lucia616162,781264CastriesEnglish
Image Saint Vincent and the Grenadines389103,220265KingstownEnglish
Image Trinidad and Tobago5,1281,225,225239Port of SpainEnglish
Lucayan Archipelago
Image Bahamas13,880319,03123NassauEnglish
Image Turks and Caicos Islands94847,75450Grand Turk (Cockburn Town)English


Name

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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

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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

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  1. ↑ Carribian Islands-Geography. Mongabay.com. Accessed 4-19-2011
  2. ↑ "Country Comparison :: Area". CIA World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  3. ↑ "Country Comparison :: Population". CIA World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  4. ↑ "Caribbean History. IslandFlave.com. Accessed 4-19-2011". Archived from the original on 2011-05-13. Retrieved 2011-04-20.
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