Barbados

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Barbados
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Pride and Industry"
Anthem: "National Anthem of Barbados"
Royal anthem: "God Save the Queen"
Capital
(and largest city)		 Bridgetown
13°06′N 59°37′W / 13.1°N 59.617°W / 13.1; -59.617
Official language(s) English
Recognised regional languages Bajan
Ethnic groups (2000) 80% Afro-Bajan
16% Asian
and Multiracial
4% European
Demonym Barbadian, Bajan (colloquial)
Government Parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy
 -  Monarch Elizabeth II
 -  Acting Governor-General Elliot Belgrave[1]
 -  Prime Minister Freundel Stuart
Legislature Parliament
 -  Upper House Senate
 -  Lower House House of Assembly
Independence
 -  from the United Kingdom 30 November 1966 
Area
 -  Total 431 km2 (200th)
166 sq mi 
 -  Water (%) negligible
Population
 -  2009 estimate 284,589[2] (180th)
 -  2001 census 250,012 
 -  Density 660/km2 (15th)
1,704/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2011 estimate
 -  Total $6.421 billion[3] (148th)
 -  Per capita $23,156[3] (40th)
GDP (nominal) 2011 estimate
 -  Total $4.224 billion[3] 
 -  Per capita $15,234[3] 
HDI (2011) ▲ 0.793[4] (Very High) (47nd)
Currency Barbadian dollar ($) (BBD)
Time zone Eastern Caribbean (UTC-4)
 -  Summer (DST) not observed (UTC-4)
Drives on the left[5]
Internet TLD .bb
Calling code +1 (spec. +1-246)

Barbados is an island country in the Caribbean Sea. The island has an area of about 430 km². Its capital and largest city is Bridgetown. The official language of Barbados is English. Barbados is a popular tourist destination. In 2008, the island had a population of about 284,000 people.[6] About 80,000 live in or around Bridgetown.[7]

The island is in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres (62 mi) east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea.[8] It is about 168 kilometres (104 mi) east of the islands of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and 400 kilometres (250 mi) north-east of Trinidad and Tobago. Barbados is outside of the main Atlantic hurricane belt.

The island's only airport is the Grantley Adams International Airport.

Contents

[change] History

Barbados was first visited by the Spanish around the late 1400s to early 1500s. It first was on a Spanish map in 1511.[9] The Spanish explorers may have taken then people to become slaves.[9] The Portuguese visited in 1536. They brought wild hogs for a good supply of meat whenever the island was visited. The first English ship, the Olive Blossom, came in 1624. They said the island belonged to the British king James I. Two years later in 1627 the first permanent settlers arrived from England.[10]

[change] Government and politics

Barbados has been an independent country since 30 November 1966. Elizabeth II, Queen of Barbados is the head of state.[11] The Queen is represented locally by the Governor-General. The Prime Minister is the local head of the government.

[change] Military

The Barbados Defence Force has roughly 600 members.

[change] Geography and climate

Barbados is the easternmost island in the Lesser Antilles. It is flat in comparison to its island neighbours to the west. The highest point of the nation is Mount Hillaby.

The country usually has two seasons. The "wet season" is from June to November. The "dry season" is from December to May.

[change] Divisions

Map of the parishes of Barbados

Barbados is divided into 11 parishes:

  1. Christ Church
  2. Saint Andrew
  3. Saint George
  4. Saint James
  5. Saint John
  6. Saint Joseph
  7. Saint Lucy
  8. Saint Michael
  9. Saint Peter
  10. Saint Philip
  11. Saint Thomas

St. George and St. Thomas located in the middle of the country are the only two parishes without coastlines.

[change] Demographics

The population of Barbados is about 300,000 people, nearly 80% of that is predominatley of African descent, 16% are mulatto and 4% other. There is also a East Indian minority on the island and chinese and other ethnic groups.

[change] Religion

Most Barbadians are Christians (95%). The most common Christian church is Anglicans (40%). Other Christian churces in Barbados are the Catholic Church, Pentecostals (Evangelicals) Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist and Spiritual Baptists. The Church of England was the official state religion. It was ended by the Parliament of Barbados after independence.[12] Other religions include Hindus, Muslims, the Baha'i Faith,[13] Jews and Wiccans.

[change] Culture

The influence of the English on Barbados is more noticeable than on other islands in the West Indies. A good example of this is the island's national sport: cricket. Barbados has had several great cricketers, including Sir Garfield Sobers and Sir Frank Worrell.

Citizens are officially called Barbadians.

In the music business, Rihanna (born Robyn Fenty) is one of Barbados' best-known Grammy winning artists.

[change] Sports

Cricket is very popular on the island. Barbadians play on the West Indies cricket team. The country hosted the final of the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

Obadele Thompson is a world class sprinter from Barbados. Ryan Brathwaite, a hurdler, reached the 2008 Olympic semi-finals in Beijing.

Polo is very popular with the rich on the island.

In golf, the Barbados Open is an annual stop on the European Seniors Tour.


[change] Other pages

[change] Other websites

[change] References

  1. ↑ Elliot Belgrave is acting GG, 1 Nov 2011, Barbados Daily Nation newspaper
  2. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named cia
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Barbados". International Monetary Fund. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=76&pr.y=15&sy=2008&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=316&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=. Retrieved 20 April 2011. 
  4. ↑ "International Human Development Indicators 2011". United Nations. 2011. http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/BRB.html. Retrieved 10 December 2011. 
  5. ↑ Barbados. fco.gov.uk. Updated: 5 June 2006
  6. ↑ Staff (2008). "Latest Socio-Economic Indicators". Barbados Statistical Service. http://www.barstats.gov.bb/. 
  7. ↑ Staff (2008). "Places of interest – BRIDGETOWN". Government of Barbados. http://web.archive.org/web/20100913224142/http://www.barbados.gov.bb/places0.htm. 
  8. ↑ Chapter 4 – The Windward Islands and Barbados – U.S. Library of Congress
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Sauer, Carl Ortwin (1969) [1966]. Early Spanish Main, The. University of California Press. pp. 192–197. ISBN 0-520-01415-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=ayCi1EAaIWQC&pg=PA193. Retrieved 15 November 2011. 
  10. ↑ Secretariat. "Barbados – History". Commonwealth of Nations. http://web.archive.org/web/20110718113748/http://www.thecommonwealth.org/YearbookInternal/145147/history/. 
  11. ↑ HRM Queen Elizabeth II (2010). "History and present government – Barbados". The Royal Household. http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchAndCommonwealth/TheQueenandBarbados/Historyandpresentgovernment.aspx. Retrieved 10 May 2010. 
  12. ↑ www.redspider.biz, Rajkumar Singh (20 January 2006). "Parliament: Act of Parliament concerning the Anglican church". Caricomlaw.org. http://www.caricomlaw.org/doc.php?id=179Barbados. Retrieved 4 July 2010. [dead link]
  13. ↑ "Baha'u'llah". Bci.org. http://www.bahai.org/dir/bahaullah. Retrieved 4 July 2010. 
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