Lesser Antilles

—  Region of the Caribbean  —
Location within the Caribbean.
Region Caribbean
Island States
Area
 • Total 13,012 km2 (5,024 sq mi)
Population (2009)
 • Total 3,735,636
 • Density 287.09/km2 (743.6/sq mi)
Demonym Lesser Antillean
Time zone AST (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) ADT (UTC−4)

The Lesser Antilles (also known as the Caribbees) are a long, partly volcanic island arc in the Western Hemisphere.[1] Most of its islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, with the remainder located in the southern Caribbean just north of South America. The Lesser Antilles and the Greater Antilles compose the Antilles, which are in turn part of the West Indies along with the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Contents

Regional terminology

The islands of the Lesser Antilles are divided into three groups. The two main groups are the Windward Islands in the south and the Leeward Islands in the north. The Windward Islands are called such because they were more windward to sailing ships arriving in the New World than the Leeward Islands, given that the prevailing trade winds blow east to west. The trans-Atlantic currents and winds that provided the fastest route across the ocean brought these ships to the rough dividing line between the Windward and Leeward Islands.

The third group is the Leeward Antilles in the west. These consist of the Dutch ABC islands just off the coast of Venezuela, plus a group of Venezuelan islands.

Geology

The Lesser Antilles more or less coincide with the outer edge of the Caribbean Plate. Many of the islands were formed as a result of the subduction of oceanic crust of the North American Plate under the Caribbean Plate in the Lesser Antilles subduction zone. This process is ongoing and is responsible not only for many of the islands, but also for volcanic and earthquake activity in the region. The islands along the South American coast are largely the result of the interaction of the South American Plate and the Caribbean Plate which is mainly strike-slip, but includes a component of compression.

Political divisions

Sovereign states

Name Subdivisions Area
(km²)		 Population
(1 July 2005 est.)		 Population density
(per km²)		 Capital
 Antigua and Barbuda Parishes &10000000000000440000000440 &1000000000008563200000085,632 195 St. John's
 Antigua and Barbuda Barbuda &10000000000000161000000161 &100000000000013700000001,370 9.65 Codrington
 Antigua and Barbuda Redonda &100000000000000020000002 &100000000000000000000000 0 n/a
 Barbados Parishes &10000000000000431000000431 &10000000000284589000000284,589 660 Bridgetown
 Dominica Parishes &10000000000000754000000754 &1000000000007266000000072,660 96.3 Roseau
 Grenada Parishes &10000000000000344000000344 &10000000000110000000000110,000 319.8 St. George’s
 Saint Kitts and Nevis Parishes &10000000000000261000000261 &1000000000004269600000042,696 163.5 Basseterre
 Saint Kitts and Nevis  Nevis &1000000000000009300000093 &1000000000001210600000012,106 130.1 Charlestown
 Saint Lucia Quarters &10000000000000616000000616 &10000000000173765000000173,765 282 Castries
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Parishes &10000000000000389000000389 &10000000000120000000000120,000 308.4 Kingstown
 Trinidad and Tobago Regional corporations &100000000000051310000005,131 &100000000012999530000001,299,953 253.3 Port of Spain
 Trinidad and Tobago Tobago &10000000000000300000000300 &1000000000005400000000054,000 180 Scarborough

Non-sovereign territories

Name Subdivisions Area
(km²)		 Population
(1 July 2005 est.)		 Population density
(per km²)		 Capital
 Aruba null &10000000000000193000000193 &10000000000103065000000103,065 534 Oranjestad
 Anguilla &1000000000000009100000091 &1000000000001360000000013,600 132 The Valley
 Bonaire null &10000000000000288000000288 &1000000000001400600000014,006 246.3 Kralendijk
 British Virgin Islands Districts &10000000000000153000000153 &1000000000002700000000027,000 260 Road Town
 Curaçao null &10000000000000444000000444 &10000000000180592000000180,592 406.7 Willemstad
 Guadeloupe Arrondissements &100000000000016280000001,628 &10000000000405500000000405,500 249.1 Basse-Terre
 Martinique Arrondissements &100000000000011280000001,128 &10000000000400000000000400,000 &10000000000000132000000132 Fort-de-France
 Montserrat &10000000000000120000000120 &100000000000046550000004,655 Brades
 Saba null &1000000000000001300000013 &100000000000014240000001,424 109.5 The Bottom
 Saint Barthélemy null &1000000000000002100000021 &100000000000074480000007,448 354.6 Gustavia
 Saint Martin null &1000000000000005300000053 &1000000000003500000000035,000 675 Marigot
 Sint Eustatius null &1000000000000003400000034 &100000000000031000000003,100 147.6 Oranjestad
 Sint Maarten null &1000000000000003400000034 &1000000000004091700000040,917 1,704 Philipsburg
 United States Virgin Islands Districts &10000000000000346000000346 &10000000000108448000000108,448 313.1 Charlotte Amalie

Islands

The main Lesser Antilles are (from north to south to west):

Leeward Islands:

Windward Islands:

Leeward Antilles – islands north of the Venezuelan coast (from west to east):

See also


References

  1. ^ a b "West Indies." Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary, 3rd ed. 2001. (ISBN 0-87779-546-0) Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster Inc., p. 1298.
  2. ^ Encyclopædia Britannica: The Windward Islands
  3. ^ United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) | The Scotland District of Barbados
  4. ^ CountryStudies.us | The Windward Islands and Barbados
  5. ^ Cohen, Saul B., ed. "West Indies" The Columbia Gazetteer of North America. New York: Columbia University Press – Bartleby. Accessed: 19 September 2006
  6. ^ ARBITRAL TRIBUNAL CONSTITUTED PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 287, AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH ANNEX VII, OF THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA IN THE MATTER OF AN ARBITRATION BETWEEN: BARBADOS - AND - THE REPUBLIC OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO - The Hague, 11 April 2006 (Pages 15-16)