Virgin islands

Virgin Islands is the name of an archipelago that belongs to the Windward Islands group of the Lesser Antilles, in the Caribbean Sea. The Virgin Islands are the westernmost islands of the windward island arc, located to the east of the island of Puerto Rico. They have an area of approximately 670 square kilometers in total and, administratively, they are divided into three zones:

• The British Virgin Islands (British Virgin Islands, in English) that are a territory dependent on the United Kingdom organized as a British Overseas Territory and occupy an area of 153 square kilometres.

• The United States Virgin Islands (United States Virgin Islands in English) that are a territory dependent on the United States of America organized as a "Unincorporated territory", and occupy a surface of 352 square kilometers.

• In addition, other sources include a third group: Virgin Islands or Puerto Rico (Vieques, Culebra and other smaller islands) that were Spanish colonies until 1898, are currently part of the Puerto Rico Associated Free State, and occupy an area of 165.1 square kilometers.

Etymology

Christopher Columbus named the islands after Saint Ursula and the Eleven Thousand Virgins, abbreviated as the Virgins. The official name of the British territory is the Virgin Islands and the official name of the US territory is the United States Virgin Islands. In practice, the two island groups are almost universally known as the British Virgin Islands and the United States Virgin Islands.

History

The Virgin Islands were originally inhabited by the Arawaks and Caribs, many of whom are believed to have perished during the colonial period due to slavery, foreign disease, and warfare provoked by European settlers.

Later, European settlers settled here and established sugar plantations, at least one tobacco plantation, and bought slaves brought from Africa. The plantations have disappeared, but the descendants of slaves remain the majority of the population, sharing a common Afro-Caribbean heritage with the rest of the English-speaking Caribbean.

Like mainland Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands that belonged to Spain were ceded to the United States in 1898. The United States took possession of the islands after the signing of the armistice that ended military operations in the Spanish War -US.

A 1916 treaty between the United States and Denmark (not ratified by the United States until 1917) resulted in Denmark selling the Danish Virgin Islands to the United States for $25 million in gold.

Historical affiliations

The Virgin Islands have been under the sovereignty of various nations and groups throughout history. Below is a table representing the affiliation of the various islands:

*Mostly under pirate control

**Coexisting claim

***Leased/shared territory

Demographics

The total population of the Virgin Islands is 147,778: 104,901 in the US Virgin Islands, 31,758 in the British Virgin Islands, and 11,119 in the Spanish Virgin Islands. Approximately three-quarters of the islanders are black in the British and US Virgin Islands, while the majority of the inhabitants of Culebra and Vieques are Puerto Ricans of European descent, with a significant Afro-Puerto Rican community. The primary languages are English and Virgin Island Creole in the US and British Virgin Islands, and Spanish in the Puerto Rican territory. St. Thomas is the most populous island, closely followed by St. Croix (51,634 and 50,601, respectively).

Transportation

Motor vehicles drive on the left side of the road in both the British and US Virgin Islands, although the steering wheels of most cars are located on the left side (as is the norm in localities where you drive on the right). In the Spanish Virgin Islands, vehicles are driven on the right hand side of the road.