Wikipedia

West Indies

This article is about the island region in the Caribbean and North Atlantic Ocean. For other uses, seeWest Indies (disambiguation).

TheWest Indiesis asubregionofNorth America,surrounded by theNorth Atlantic Oceanand theCaribbean Sea,which comprises 13 independentisland countriesand 19dependenciesin threearchipelagos:theGreater Antilles,theLesser Antilles,and theLucayan Archipelago.[5]

West Indies
Area239,681 km2(92,541 sq mi)
Population44,182,048[1][2]
Population density151.5/km2(392/sq mi)
Ethnic groupsIndigenous,Afro-Caribbean,Euro-Caribbean,Indo-Caribbean,LatinoorHispanic(Spanish,Portuguese,Mestizo,Mulatto,Pardo,andZambo),Chinese,Jewish,Arab,Javanese,[3]Hmong,Multiracial
Religions
  • 20.6%no religion
  • 2.5%folk religions
  • 2.1%Hinduism
  • 1.3% others[4]
DemonymWest Indian,Caribbean
Countries
Dependencies
LanguagesSpanish,Caribbean English,French,Dutch,French Creoles,English Creoles,Dutch Creoles,Papiamento,Caribbean Hindustani,Chinese,andothers
Time zonesUTC−05:00toUTC−04:00
InternetTLDMultiple
Calling codeMultiple
Largest citiesList of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean
Santo Domingo
Havana
Port-au-Prince
San Juan
Kingston
Santiago de Cuba
Santiago de los Caballeros
Nassau
Camagüey
Cap-Haïtien
UN M49code029–Caribbean
419–Latin America
019–Americas
001–World

The subregion includes all the islands in theAntilles,in addition toThe Bahamasand theTurks and Caicos Islands,which are in theNorth Atlantic Ocean.Nowadays, the term West Indies is often interchangeable with the termCaribbean,although the latter may also include coastal regions ofCentralandSouth Americanmainland nations, includingMexico,Belize,Honduras,Panama,Colombia,Venezuela,French Guiana,Guyana,andSuriname,as well as theAtlanticisland nation ofBermuda,all of which are geographically distinct from the three main island groups, but culturally related.

Origin and use of the term

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The English termIndieis derived from theClassical LatinIndia,a reference to the territories inSouth Asiaadjacent and east to theIndus River.Indiaitself derived successively fromHellenistic GreekIndia(Ἰνδία),ancient GreekIndos(Ἰνδός),Old PersianHindush(an eastern province of theAchaemenid Empire), and ultimately itscognate,theSanskritSindhu,or "river", specifically theIndus Riverand its well-settled southern basin.[6][7]Theancient Greeksreferred to the Indians asIndoi(Ἰνδοί), which translates as "The people of the Indus".[8]

The current composition of the Indies is as follows:
East Indies(IndochinaandInsulindia)
Indies(Indian subcontinentandMyanmar)
West Papua(part of East Indies)
West Indies(present-day; historically included theAmericasentirely)
West Indies(region at times included)

In 1492,Christopher Columbusand hisSpanishfleet leftSpainseeking a western sea passage to theEastern world,hoping to profit from the lucrativespice tradeemanating fromHindustan,Indochina,andInsulindia,the regions currently found within theIndian SubcontinentandSoutheast Asia,which were first simply referred to bySpanishandPortugueseexplorers as theIndias (Indies).

Thinking he had landed on the easternmost part of theIndiesin theEastern worldwhen he came upon theNew World,Columbusused the termIndiasto refer to theAmericas,calling itsnative peopleIndios (Indians).To avoid confusion between the knownIndiesof theEastern Hemisphereand the newly discoveredIndiesof theWestern Hemisphere,theSpanishnamed the territories in the EastIndias Orientales (East Indies)and the territories in the WestIndias Occidentales (West Indies).Originally, the termWest Indiesapplied to all of theAmericas.[9][10][11]

The Indies from both regions were further distinguished depending on theEuropean world powerto which they belong. In theEast Indies,there were theSpanish East Indiesand theDutch East Indies.In the West Indies, theSpanish West Indies,theDutch West Indies,theFrench West Indies,theBritish West Indies,and theDanish West Indies.

The term was used to name theSpanishCouncil of the Indies,theBritishEast India Company,theDutchEast IndiaandWest Indiacompanies, theFrenchEast India Company,and theDanishEast India Company.

History

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Main article:History of the Caribbean

Many cultureswere indigenous to these islands, with evidence dating some of them back to the mid-6th millennium BCE.

In the late 16th century, French, English and Dutch merchants and privateers began operations in theCaribbean Sea,attacking Spanish and Portuguese shipping and coastal areas. They often took refuge and refitted their ships in the areas the Spanish could not conquer, including the islands of the Lesser Antilles, the northern coast of South America, including the mouth of theOrinoco,and the Atlantic Coast of Central America. In the Lesser Antilles, they managed to establish a foothold following the colonisation ofSaint Kittsin 1624 andBarbadosin 1626, and when theSugar Revolutiontook off in the mid-17th century, they brought in thousands of enslaved Africans to work the fields and mills as labourers. These enslaved Africans wrought a demographic revolution, replacing or joining with either the indigenous Caribs or the European settlers who were there asindentured servants.

The struggle between the northern Europeans and the Spanish spread southward in the mid to late seventeenth century, as English, Dutch, French and Spanish colonists, and in many cases, enslaved Africans first entered and then occupied the coast ofThe Guianas(which fell to the French, English and Dutch) and the Orinoco valley, which fell to the Spanish. The Dutch, allied with the Caribs of the Orinoco, would eventually carry the struggles deep into South America, first along the Orinoco and then along the northern reaches of theAmazon.

Island groups of the West Indies, in relation to the continentalAmericas

Since no European country had occupied much of Central America, gradually, the English of Jamaica established alliances with theMiskito Kingdomof modern-dayNicaraguaandHondurasand then began logging on the coast of modern-dayBelize.These interconnected commercial and diplomatic relations comprised theWestern Caribbean Zonein place in the early-18th century. In the Miskito Kingdom, the rise to power of theMiskito-Zambos,who originated in the survivors of a rebellion aboard a slave ship in the 1640s and the introduction of enslaved Africans by British settlers within the Miskito area and in Belize, also transformed this area into one with a high percentage of persons of African descent as was found in most of the rest of the Caribbean.

From the 17th through the 19th century, the European colonial territories of the West Indies were theFrench West Indies,British West Indies,theDanish West Indies,theNetherlands Antilles(Dutch West Indies), and theSpanish West Indies.

In 1916,Denmarksold the Danish West Indies to the United States[12]for US$25 million in gold, per theTreaty of the Danish West Indies.The Danish West Indies became aninsular areaof the U.S., called theUnited States Virgin Islands.

Between 1958 and 1962, the United Kingdom re-organised all their West Indies island territories (except theBritish Virgin Islandsandthe Bahamas) into theWest Indies Federation.They hoped that the Federation would coalesce into a single, independent nation. However, the Federation had limited powers, numerous practical problems, and a lack of popular support; consequently, it was dissolved by the British in 1963, with nine provinces eventually becoming independent sovereign states and four becoming currentBritish Overseas Territories.

"West Indies" or "West India" was a part of the names of severalcompaniesof the 17th and 18th centuries, including theDanish West India Company,theDutch West India Company,theFrench West India Company,and theSwedish West India Company.[13]

West Indianis the official term used by the U.S. government to refer to people of the West Indies.[14]

The term survives today mainly through theWest Indies cricket team,representing all of the nations in the West Indian islands.

Geology

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Caribbean Basincountries
The subduction of theSouth American Plateand part of theNorth American Platebeneath theCaribbean Plateproduces both thePuerto Rico Trench,the deepest part of theAtlantic Ocean,as well as the active volcanoes of theLesser Antilles(bottom left of the image, south of theVirgin Islands)

The West Indies are a geologically complex island system consisting of 7,000 islands andisletsstretching over 3,000 km (2000 miles) from theFloridapeninsula ofNorth Americasouth-southeast to the northern coast ofVenezuela.[15]These islands include activevolcanoes,low-lyingatolls,raisedlimestoneislands, and large fragments ofcontinental crustcontaining tall mountains and insular rivers.[16]Each of the threearchipelagosof the West Indies has a unique origin and geologic composition.

Greater Antilles

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TheGreater Antillesis geologically the oldest of the threearchipelagosand includes both the largest islands (Cuba,Jamaica,Hispaniola,andPuerto Rico) and the tallest mountains (Pico Duarte,Blue Mountain,Pic la Selle,Pico Turquino) in the Caribbean.[17]The islands of the Greater Antilles are composed ofstrataof different geological ages includingPrecambrianfragmented remains of theNorth American Plate(older than 539 million years),Jurassicaged limestone (201.3-145 million years ago), as well asisland arcdeposits andoceanic crustfrom theCretaceous(145-66 million years ago).[18]

The Greater Antilles originated near the Isthmian region of present dayCentral Americain theLate Cretaceous(commonly referred to as the Proto-Antilles), then drifted eastward arriving in their current location when colliding with the Bahama Platform of the North American Plate ca. 56 million years ago in the latePaleocene.[19]This collision caused subduction and volcanism in the Proto-Antillean area and likely resulted in continental uplift of the Bahama Platform and changes in sea level.[20]The Greater Antilles have continuously been exposed since the start of thePaleoceneor at least since the MiddleEocene(66-40 million years ago), but which areas were above sea level throughout the history of the islands remains unresolved.[21][19]

The oldest rocks in the Greater Antilles are located in Cuba. They consist ofmetamorphosedgraywacke,argillite,tuff,maficigneousextrusive flows, andcarbonate rock.[22]It is estimated that nearly 70% of Cuba consists of karstlimestone.[23]The Blue Mountains of Jamaica are agraniteoutcrop rising over 2,000 meters (6000'), while the rest of the island to the west consists mainly ofkarstlimestone.[23]Much of Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands were formed by the collision of the Caribbean Plate with the North American Plate and consist of 12island arcterranes.[24]These terranes consist ofoceanic crust,volcanic andplutonic rock.[24]

Lesser Antilles

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TheLesser Antillesis a volcanicisland arcrising along the leading edge of theCaribbean Platedue to the subduction of the Atlantic seafloor of the North American andSouth American plates.Major islands of the Lesser Antilles likely emerged less than 20 Ma, during theMiocene.[17]The volcanic activity that formed these islands began in the Paleogene, after a period ofvolcanismin the Greater Antilles ended, and continues today.[25]The main arc of the Lesser Antilles runs north from the coast ofVenezuelato theAnegada Passage,astraitseparating them from the Greater Antilles, and includes 19 active volcanoes.[26]

Lucayan Archipelago

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TheLucayan ArchipelagoincludesThe Bahamasand theTurks and Caicos Islands,a chain ofbarrier reefsand low islands atop the Bahama Platform. The Bahama Platform is a carbonate block formed of marine sediments and fixed to the North American Plate.[16]The emergent islands of the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos likely formed from accumulated deposits of wind-blown sediments duringPleistoceneglacial periods of lower sea level.[16]

Countries and territories by subregion and archipelago

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Political map of the West Indies
Life expectancyin the West Indies in 2019 and 2021

Caribbean (core area)

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Main article:Caribbean

Antilles

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Main article:Antilles
Greater Antilles
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Main article:Greater Antilles
Lesser Antilles
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Main article:Lesser Antilles
Leeward Antilles
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Main article:Leeward Antilles
Leeward Islands
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Main article:Leeward Islands
Windward Islands
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Main article:Windward Islands
Isolated islands in the Lesser Antilles
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Lucayan Archipelago

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Main article:Lucayan Archipelago

Isolated island in the Caribbean

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See also:List of Caribbean islands

Central America

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Main article:Central America
See also:Western Caribbean zone

Northern America

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Main article:Northern America

South America

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Main article:South America
See also:Caribbean South America

N.B.:Territories initalicsare parts of transregional sovereign states or non-sovereign dependencies.

*These threeDutch Caribbeanterritories form theBES islands.

†Physiographically,these arecontinental islandsnot part of the volcanic Windward Islands arc. However, based on proximity, these islands are sometimes grouped with theWindward Islandsculturally and politically.

~Disputed territoriesadministered byColombia.

^TheUnited Nations geoschemeincludesMexicoinCentral America.[27]

See also

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References

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  1. ^"World Population Prospects 2022".United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs,Population Division.RetrievedJuly 17,2022.
  2. ^"World Population Prospects 2022: Demographic indicators by region, subregion and country, annually for 1950-2100"(XSLX)( "Total Population, as of 1 July (thousands)" ).United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs,Population Division.RetrievedJuly 17,2022.
  3. ^McWhorter, John H. (2005).Defining Creole.Oxford University Press US. p. 379.ISBN978-0-19-516670-5.
  4. ^Johnson, Todd M.; Crossing, Peter F. (14 October 2022)."Religions by Continent".Journal of Religion and Demography.9(1–2): 91–110.doi:10.1163/2589742x-bja10013.
  5. ^Caldecott, Alfred (1898).The Church in the West Indies.London:Frank Cass and Co.p.11.Retrieved12 December2013.
  6. ^"India (noun)",Oxford English Dictionary(3rd ed.), 2009(subscription required)
  7. ^Thieme 1970,pp. 447–450.
  8. ^Kuiper 2010,p. 86.
  9. ^"History of the Caribbean (West Indies)".www.historyworld.net.
  10. ^"west+indies | Origin and meaning of phrase west+indies".Online Etymology Dictionary.
  11. ^"East Indies".Encyclopedia.com.
  12. ^"Two telegrams about the sale – The Danish West-Indies".The Danish West-Indies.Retrieved13 October2017.
  13. ^Garrison, William L.; Levinson, David M. (2014).The Transportation Experience: Policy, Planning, and Deployment.OUP USA.ISBN9780199862719.
  14. ^"Info Please U.S. Social Statistics".Retrieved1 October2015.
  15. ^"West Indies | History, Maps, Facts, & Geography".Encyclopedia Britannica.Retrieved12 March2019.
  16. ^abcRicklefs Robert; Bermingham Eldredge (27 July 2008)."The West Indies as a laboratory of biogeography and evolution".Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.363(1502): 2393–2413.doi:10.1098/rstb.2007.2068.PMC2606802.PMID17446164.
  17. ^abWoods, Charles Arthur; Sergile, Florence Etienne, eds. (2001).Biogeography of the West Indies: patterns and perspectives(2nd ed.). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.ISBN978-0849320019.OCLC46240352.
  18. ^"Flora of the West Indies / Department of Botany, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution".naturalhistory2.si.edu.Retrieved14 April2019.
  19. ^abGraham, Alan (2003). "Geohistory Models and Cenozoic Paleoenvironments of the Caribbean Region".Systematic Botany.28(2): 378–386.doi:10.1043/0363-6445-28.2.378(inactive 2024-09-12).ISSN0363-6445.JSTOR3094007.{{cite journal}}:CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of September 2024 (link)
  20. ^Santiago–Valentin, Eugenio; Olmstead, Richard G. (2004)."Historical biogeography of Caribbean plants: introduction to current knowledge and possibilities from a phylogenetic perspective"(PDF).Taxon.53(2): 299–319.doi:10.2307/4135610.ISSN1996-8175.JSTOR4135610.S2CID16369341.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 17 June 2020.
  21. ^Iturralde-Vinent, Manuel A. (1 September 2006). "Meso-Cenozoic Caribbean Paleogeography: Implications for the Historical Biogeography of the Region".International Geology Review.48(9): 791–827.Bibcode:2006IGRv...48..791I.doi:10.2747/0020-6814.48.9.791.ISSN0020-6814.S2CID55392113.
  22. ^Khudoley, K. M.; Meyerhoff, A. A. (1971), "Paleogeography and Geological History of Greater Antilles",Geological Society of America Memoirs,Geological Society of America, pp. 1–192,doi:10.1130/mem129-p1,ISBN978-0813711294
  23. ^abgeolounge (8 January 2012)."Caribbean Islands: the Greater Antilles".GeoLounge: All Things Geography.Retrieved14 April2019.
  24. ^abMann, Paul; Draper, Grenville; Lewis, John F. (1991), "An overview of the geologic and tectonic development of Hispaniola",Geological Society of America Special Papers,Geological Society of America, pp. 1–28,doi:10.1130/spe262-p1,ISBN978-0813722627
  25. ^Santiago-Valentin, Eugenio; Olmstead, Richard G. (2004). "Historical Biogeography of Caribbean Plants: Introduction to Current Knowledge and Possibilities from a Phylogenetic Perspective".Taxon.53(2): 299–319.doi:10.2307/4135610.ISSN0040-0262.JSTOR4135610.
  26. ^"The University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre".uwiseismic.com.Archived fromthe originalon 30 March 2019.Retrieved14 April2019.
  27. ^"UNSD Methodology – Standard country or area codes for statistical use (M49)".Archivedfrom the original on 2017-08-30.Retrieved2020-05-04.

Further reading

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Wikimedia Commons has media related toWest Indies.
  • Cave, Roderick, and R. Cave. 1978. "Early Printing and the Book Trade in the West Indies".Library Quarterly48 (April): 163–92.
  • Cromwell, Jesse. "More than Slaves and Sugar: Recent Historiography of the Trans-imperial Caribbean and Its Sinew Populations".History Compass(2014) 12#10 pp 770–783.
  • Higman, Barry W.A Concise History of the Caribbean.(2011)
  • Jones, Alfred Lewis(1905)."The West Indies".The Empire and the century.London: John Murray. pp. 877–882.
  • Martin, Tony,Caribbean History: From Pre-colonial Origins to the Present(2011)

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