The Bahamas
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Forward, Upward, Onward Together"
Anthem: "March On, Bahamaland" Royal anthem: "God Save the Queen"
Capital		Nassau 25°4′N, 77°20′W
Official languages		English
Government		Parliamentary democracy (Constitutional monarchy)
-	Monarch	Queen Elizabeth II
-	Governor-General	Arthur Dion Hanna
-	Prime Minister	Hubert Ingraham
Independence		from the United Kingdom
-	Self-governing	1964
-	Full independence	July 10, 1973
Area
-	Total	13,878 km² (160th) 5,358 sq mi
-	Water (%)	28%
Population
-	2007 estimate	305,655[1] (177th)
-	1990 census	254,685
-	Density	23.27/km² (181st) 60/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2005 estimate
-	Total	$6.524 billion (145th)
-	Per capita	$17,8432 (38th)
HDI (2004)		0.845 (high) (52nd)
Currency		Dollar (BSD)
Time zone		EST (UTC−5)
-	Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC−4)
Internet TLD		.bs
Calling code		+1 242

The Commonwealth of The Bahamas is an English-speaking nation consisting of two thousand cays and seven hundred islands that form an archipelago. It is located in the Atlantic Ocean, east of Florida and the United States, north of Cuba and the Caribbean, and northwest of the British overseas territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands. Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Bahamas. ... Bahamian coat of arms with 125 px width and . ... National flag. ... Coat of arms of the Bahamas The coat of arms of the Bahamas contains a shield with the national symbols as its focal point, the shield is supported by a marlin and flamingo. ... For other uses, see Motto (disambiguation). ... A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a countrys government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people. ... March On, Bahamaland is the national anthem of the Bahamas. ... A royal anthem is a patriotic song, much like a national anthem that recognizes the nations monarch. ... Publication of an early version in The Gentlemans Magazine, 15 October 1745. ... Image File history File links LocationBahamas. ... Not to be confused with capitol. ... For other uses of Nassau, see Nassau (disambiguation). ... An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... A parliamentary system, or parliamentarism, is distinguished by the executive branch of government being dependent on the direct or indirect support of the parliament, often expressed through a vote of confidence. ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A constitutional monarchy is a form of government established under a constitutional system which acknowledges an elected or hereditary monarch as head of state, as opposed to an absolute monarchy, where the monarch is not bound by a... The countries of the Commonwealth Realm share the same monarch. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... Flag of the Governor-General of the Bahamas This page contains a list of Governors-General of the Bahamas. ... Arthur Dion Hanna (born March 7, 1928) is the current governor-general of the Bahamas. ... The accuracy of this list is disputed, since it was based on worldstatesmen. ... The Right Honourable Hubert Alexander Ingraham (born 1947) was the second prime minister of the Bahamas from 1992 until 2002. ... Also Nintendo emulator: 1964 (emulator). ... is the 191st day of the year (192nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... This article is about the physical quantity. ... To help compare orders of magnitude of different geographical regions, we list here areas between 10,000 km² and 100,000 km². See also areas of other orders of magnitude. ... This is a list of the countries of the world sorted by area. ... A square mile is an English unit of area equal to that of a square with sides each 1 statute mile (≈1,609 m) in length. ... Impact from a water drop causes an upward rebound jet surrounded by circular capillary waves. ... A percentage is a way of expressing a proportion, a ratio or a fraction as a whole number, by using 100 as the denominator. ... This is a list of countries ordered according to population. ... Population density per square kilometre by country, 2006 Population density map of the world in 1994. ... Population density by country, 2006 List of countries and dependencies by population density in inhabitants/km². The list includes sovereign states and self-governing dependent territories that are recognized by the United Nations. ... The purchasing power parity (PPP) theory uses the long-term equilibrium exchange rate of two currencies to equalize their purchasing power. ... There are three lists of countries of the world sorted by their gross domestic product (GDP) (the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year). ... Per capita is a Latin phrase meaning for each head. ... This article includes two lists of countries of the world[1] sorted by their gross domestic product (GDP) at purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita, the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year divided by the average population for the same year. ... This page talks about Human Developpment Index, for other HDIs see HDI (disambiguation) World map indicating Human Development Index (2007). ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... World map indicating Human Development Index (2007) (Colour-blind compliant map) For red-green color vision problems. ... The Bahamian dollar (B$; ISO 4217 code BSD) is the national currency of The Bahamas. ... ISO 4217 is the international standard describing three letter codes (also known as the currency code) to define the names of currencies established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). ... Timezone and TimeZone redirect here. ... Eastern Standard Time redirects here. ... UTC redirects here. ... Although DST is common in Europe and North America, most of the worlds people do not use it. ... Eastern Daylight Time or EDT is equal to: In North America, Eastern Standard Time + 1, or UTC − 4 hours. ... UTC redirects here. ... A country code top-level domain (ccTLD) is a top-level domain used and reserved for a country or a dependent territory. ... .bs is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for the Bahamas. ... This is a list of country calling codes defined by ITU-T recommendation E.164. ... The area code (242) is the local telephone area code of The Bahamas. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... A cay or key is a small, low island consisting mostly of sand or coral. ... The Mergui Archipelago The Archipelago Sea, situated between the Gulf of Bothnia and the Gulf of Finland, the largest archipelago in the world by the number of islands. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ... West Indies redirects here. ... A United Kingdom overseas territory (formerly known as a dependent territory or earlier as a crown colony) is a territory that is under the sovereignty and formal control of the United Kingdom but is not part of the United Kingdom proper (almost exclusively Great Britain and Northern Ireland). ...

History

Main article: History of Bahamas

Although the area may have been populated previously, the seafaring Taino people moved into the southern Bahamas around the 7th century from Hispaniola and Cuba. These people came to be known as the Lucayans. There were an estimated 40,000+ Lucayans at the time of Columbus' arrival in 1492. The verifiable History of the Bahamas can be traced back to Christopher Columbuss first voyage in 1492. ... The Taíno are the pre-Hispanic Amerindian inhabitants of the Greater Antilles, which includes Cuba, Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), Puerto Rico, Jamaica and the Bahamas. ... The Lucayan were those Arawak which inhabited the Bahamas at the time of Christopher Columbus landing. ...

Christopher Columbus's first landfall in the New World was on an island he named San Salvador (known to the Lucayans as Guanahahani) which may be Samana Cay or present-day San Salvador Island (also known as Watling's Island), in the central part of the Bahamas Archipelago. Here, Columbus made contact with the Lucayans and exchanged goods with them. Christopher Columbus (1451 – May 20, 1506) was a navigator, colonizer, and explorer and one of the first Europeans to explore the Americas after the Vikings. ... Frontispiece of Peter Martyr dAnghieras De orbe novo (On the New World). Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, 1722. ... Samana Cay is a small island in the central Bahamas, uninhabited most of the time, and believed by some researchers to have been the location of Columbuss first landfall, on October 12, 1492. ... San Salvador Island, also known as Watling Island, is an island and district of the Bahamas. ...

Parts of the Bahamas as seen from an airplane.

Bahamian Lucayans were later taken to Hispaniola as slaves; and within two decades, Lucayan societies ceased to exist due to forced labour, warfare, disease, emigration and outmarriage. After the Lucayan population was eliminated, the Bahamian islands were virtually unoccupied until English settlers came from Bermuda in 1647. The Eleutherian Adventurers established settlements on the island of Eleuthera. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1600x1200, 969 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): The Bahamas User:Chensiyuan Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1600x1200, 969 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): The Bahamas User:Chensiyuan Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner... Early map of Hispaniola Hispaniola (from Spanish, La Española) is the second-largest and most populous island of the Antilles, lying between the islands of Cuba to the west, and Puerto Rico to the east. ... New Providence Island and Eleuthera Island from space, April 1997 See also: Eleutherae Eleuthera is an island in the Bahamas, lying 50 miles (80 km) east of Nassau. ...

The Bahamas became a British crown colony in 1717. Some 8,000 American Loyalists and their slaves moved to the Bahamas after 1783 from New York, Florida and the Carolinas. Slavery was abolished in the British Empire on August 1, 1834. This led to many fugitive slaves from the US braving the perils of the Atlantic for the promise of a free life in the Bahamas. For the township in Canada, see Loyalist, Ontario In general, a loyalist is an individual who is loyal to the powers that be. ...

On May 8, 1782, during the American Revolutionary War, Count Bernardo de Gálvez, the Spanish governor of Louisiana, captured the British naval base at New Providence in the Bahamas. is the 128th day of the year (129th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1782 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... This article is about military actions only. ... Bernardo de Gálvez Bernardo de Gálvez, conde de Galvez (23 July 1746 born in Macharaviaya, a mountain village in the province of Málaga, Spain – 1786) was Spanish governor of Louisiana from 1777 to 1785, and Viceroy of New Spain 1785-1786. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... (This article is about the island in the Bahamas. ...

The British made the islands internally self-governing in 1964. In 1973, the Bahamas became fully independent, but retained membership in the Commonwealth of Nations. In 1967, Lynden Pindling became the first black premier of the colony, and in 1968 became prime minister. Another black Bahamian, Sir Milo Butler, was appointed governor-general upon Independence. Based on the pillars of tourism and offshore financial services, the Bahamian economy has prospered since the 1950s. Today, the country enjoys the third highest per capita income in the hemisphere, and the highest in the Caribbean, excluding the dependent territory of the Cayman Islands. Despite this, the country faces significant challenges in areas such as education, health care, international narcotics trafficking, correctional facilities and illegal immigration. The Commonwealth of Nations as of 2007 Headquarters Marlborough House, London, UK Official languages English Membership 53 sovereign states Leaders  -  Queen Elizabeth II  -  Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma Appointed 24 November 2007 Establishment  -  Balfour Declaration 18 November 1926   -  Statute of Westminster 11 December 1931   -  London Declaration 28 April 1949  Area  -  Total... Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, KCMG, OM, JP (22 March 1930 - 26 August 2000) served as the first black Premier of the Colony of the Bahama Islands, 1967-1973 and as Prime Minister of the Bahamas, 1973-1992, as leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP). ...

The origin of the name "Bahamas" is ambiguous. It is thought to derive from the Spanish baja mar, meaning "shallow seas";^{[citation needed]} others trace the name to the Lucayan word for Grand Bahama Island, ba-ha-ma "large upper middle land".^{[citation needed]}

Geography

Main article: Geography of the Bahamas

Map of the Bahamas

The closest island to the United States is Bimini, which is also known as the gateway to the Bahamas. The island of Abaco is to the east of Grand Bahama. The most southeastern island is Great Inagua. Other notable islands include the Bahamas' largest island, Andros Island, and Eleuthera, Cat Island, Long Island, San Salvador Island, Acklins, Crooked Island, Exuma and Mayaguana. Nassau, The Bahamas capital city, lies on the island of New Providence. The Bahamas from space The Bahamas are a group of about 700 atolls and cays in the western Atlantic Ocean, of which only between 30 and 40 are inhabited. ... Map of the Bahamas. ... Map of the Bahamas. ... Bimini Island from space, June 1998 Map of the Bahamas with the Biminis positioned center left (click to enlarge). ... The Commonwealth of The Bahamas is an independent English_speaking nation in the West Indies. ... Grand Bahama from space, June 1998 Grand Bahama is one of the northernmost of the islands of the Bahamas, and the closest major island to the United States, lying just 55 mi (90 km) off the coast of the state of Florida. ... Inagua is the southernmost district of the Bahamas comprising the islands of Great Inagua and Little Inagua. ... Andros Island is the largest island of the Spanish landed on Andros Island in 1550 in search of slaves they managed to destroy all of the local indigenous Lucayan people on the island with the warring and disease that they brought with them. ... New Providence Island and Eleuthera Island from space, April 1997 See also: Eleutherae Eleuthera is an island in the Bahamas, lying 50 miles (80 km) east of Nassau. ... Cat Island is one of the central Bahamas, and one of its districts, and boasts the nations highest point. ... Long Island is a sixty-mile (nearly 100km) long island in the Bahamas that is split by the Tropic of Cancer. ... San Salvador Island, also known as Watling Island, is an island and district of the Bahamas. ... Acklins is an island and district of the Bahamas. ... Crooked Island and Acklins Island from space, February 1984 Crooked Island is an island and district of the Bahamas. ... Exuma Exuma is a district of the Bahamas, consisting of over 360 islands (or cays). ... Mayaguana is the most easterly island and district of the Bahamas, and one of only two which retain their Arawak names. ... For other uses of Nassau, see Nassau (disambiguation). ... (This article is about the island in the Bahamas. ...

Andros Island, south side

To the southeast, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and three more extensive submarine features called Mouchoir Bank, Silver Bank, and Navidad Bank, are geographically a continuation of the Bahamas, but not part of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Andros Island is the largest island of the Spanish landed on Andros Island in 1550 in search of slaves they managed to destroy all of the local indigenous Lucayan people on the island with the warring and disease that they brought with them. ... Mouchoir Bank, in Spanish also called Banco de Pañuelo Blanco islocated southeast of the Turks islands at , and geographically a continuation of the Bahamas. ... Silver Bank This is an area in the Atlantic Ocean north of the Dominican Republic and southeast of the Territory of Turks & Caicos. ... Navidad Bank This is an area in the Atlantic Ocean north of the Dominican Republic and southeast of the Territory of Turks & Caicos. ...

The climate of the Bahamas is subtropical to tropical, and is moderated significantly by the waters of the Gulf Stream, particularly in winter. The islands are low lying with an average elevation of only 10m. ^[3] Conversely, this often proves very dangerous in the summer and autumn, when hurricanes pass near or through the islands. Hurricane Andrew hit the northern islands during the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season, and Hurricane Floyd hit most of the islands during the 1999 Atlantic hurricane season. Hurricane Frances hit in 2004; the Atlantic hurricane season of 2004 was expected to be the worst ever for the islands. Also in 2004, the northern Bahamas were hit by a less potent Hurricane Jeanne. In 2005 the northern islands were once again struck, this time by Hurricane Wilma. In Grand Bahama, tidal surges and high winds destroyed homes and schools, floated graves and made roughly 1,000 people homeless, most of whom lived on the west coast of the island. They are still recovering to this day. For the album by Ocean Colour Scene, see North Atlantic Drift (album) The Gulf Stream is orange and yellow in this representation of water temperatures of the Atlantic. ... Lowest pressure 922 mbar (hPa; 27. ... This article is about the Atlantic hurricane of 2004; for other storms of the same name, see Hurricane Frances (disambiguation) Lowest pressure 935 mbar (hPa; 27. ... This article deals with the 2004 Hurricane Jeanne. ... Lowest pressure 882 mbar (hPa; 26. ...

Districts

Main article: Districts of the Bahamas

The districts of the Bahamas provide a system of local government everywhere in The Bahamas except New Providence, whose affairs are handled directly by the central government. The districts are: The Districts of the Bahamas provide a system of local government everywhere in the Bahamas except New Providence, whose affairs are handled directly by the central government. ... (This article is about the island in the Bahamas. ...

Acklins Berry Islands Bimini Black Point, Exuma Cat Island Central Abaco Central Andros City of Freeport, Grand Bahama Crooked Island East Grand Bahama Exuma Grand Cay, Abaco Harbour Island, Eleuthera Hope Town, Abaco Inagua Long Island

Mangrove Cay, Andros Mayaguana Moore's Island, Abaco New Providence North Abaco North Andros North Eleuthera Ragged Island Rum Cay San Salvador South Abaco South Andros South Eleuthera Spanish Wells, Eleuthera West Grand Bahama

Districts of the Bahamas

Acklins is an island and district of the Bahamas. ... The Berry Islands or The Berries, are a chain of islands and a district of the Bahamas, covering about thirty square miles (78 km ) of the north western part of the Out Islands. ... Bimini Island from space, June 1998 Map of the Bahamas with the Biminis positioned center left (click to enlarge). ... Black Point is one of the districts of the Bahamas. ... Exuma Exuma is a district of the Bahamas, consisting of over 360 islands (or cays). ... Cat Island is one of the central Bahamas, and one of its districts, and boasts the nations highest point. ... Central Abaco is one of the districts of the Bahamas, in the Abaco islands. ... Central Andros is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on Andros Island. ... Categories: Stub | Bahamas | Districts of the Bahamas ... Grand Bahama from space, June 1998 Grand Bahama is one of the northernmost of the islands of the Bahamas, and the closest major island to the United States, lying just 55 mi (90 km) off the coast of the state of Florida. ... Categories: North Atlantic Islands | Bahamas | Districts of the Bahamas | Stub ... Local government in East Grand Bahama is centered in the settlement of High Rock, which is approximately 40 miles east of Freeport and 20 miles from the easternmost settlement of McLeans Town. ... Exuma Exuma is a district of the Bahamas, consisting of over 360 islands (or cays). ... Grand Cay is one of the districts of the Bahamas, in the Abaco islands. ... The Commonwealth of The Bahamas is an independent English_speaking nation in the West Indies. ... Harbour Island is an island and administrative district in the Bahamas. ... New Providence Island and Eleuthera Island from space, April 1997 See also: Eleutherae Eleuthera is an island in the Bahamas, lying 50 miles (80 km) east of Nassau. ... Hope Town is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on the Abaco islands. ... Inagua is the southernmost district of the Bahamas comprising the islands of Great Inagua and Little Inagua. ... Long Island is a sixty-mile (nearly 100km) long island in the Bahamas that is split by the Tropic of Cancer. ... Mangrove Cay is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on Andros Island. ... Andros Island is the largest island of the Bahamas and the fifth largest island in the West Indies at roughly 2300 square miles (6,000 km²) in area and 104 miles (167 km) long and 40 miles (64 km) wide at its widest point. ... Mayaguana is the most easterly island and district of the Bahamas, and one of only two which retain their Arawak names. ... Moores Island is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on the Abaco Islands. ... (This article is about the island in the Bahamas. ... North Abaco is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on the Abaco Islands. ... North Andros is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on Andros Island. ... North Eleuthera is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on the island of Eleuthera. ... Ragged Island is a small island (9 square miles) and district in the southern Bahamas. ... Rum Cay is an island and district of the Bahamas. ... San Salvador Island, also known as Watling Island, is an island and district of the Bahamas. ... South Abaco is one of the districts of the Bahamas, in the Abaco Islands. ... South Andros is a district of the nation of The Bahamas. ... South Eleuthera is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on the island of Eleuthera. ... Spanish Wells is one of the districts of the Bahamas, on the island of Eleuthera. ... New Providence Island and Eleuthera Island from space, April 1997 See also: Eleutherae Eleuthera is an island in the Bahamas, lying 50 miles (80 km) east of Nassau. ... West Grand Bahama comprises the Settlements of Eight Mile Rock, Pinders Point, Holmes Rock and the westernmost settlement of West End. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 578 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (825 × 856 pixel, file size: 23 KB, MIME type: image/png) Other versions Originally from en. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 578 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (825 × 856 pixel, file size: 23 KB, MIME type: image/png) Other versions Originally from en. ...

Government and politics

Club Med beach

Main article: Politics of The Bahamas

The Bahamas is an independent country and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Political and legal traditions closely follow those of the United Kingdom. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Politics of the Bahamas takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. ... The Commonwealth of Nations as of 2007 Headquarters Marlborough House, London, UK Official languages English Membership 53 sovereign states Leaders  -  Queen Elizabeth II  -  Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma Appointed 24 November 2007 Establishment  -  Balfour Declaration 18 November 1926   -  Statute of Westminster 11 December 1931   -  London Declaration 28 April 1949  Area  -  Total...

Queen Elizabeth II is the ceremonial head of state, represented by a Bahamian governor-general. The Prime Minister is the head of government and is the leader of the party with the most seats in the elected House of Assembly. The current Governor General is Arthur Dion Hanna and the current Prime Minister is Hubert Alexander Ingraham. The upper house (the Senate) is appointed. Executive power is exercised by the cabinet. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament. Elizabeth II in an official portrait as Queen of Canada (on the occasion of her Golden Jubilee in 2002, wearing the Sovereigns badges of the Order of Canada and the Order of Military Merit) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary) (born 21 April 1926), styled HM The... Flag of the Governor-General of the Bahamas This page contains a list of Governors-General of the Bahamas. ... The accuracy of this list is disputed, since it was based on worldstatesmen. ... The head of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... The Right Honourable Hubert Alexander Ingraham (born 1947) was the prime minister of the Bahamas from 1992 until 2002. ... Under the doctrine of the separation of powers, the executive is the branch of a government charged with implementing, or executing, the law. ... A legislature is a governmental deliberative body with the power to adopt laws. ... The Bahamian Parliament is a bicameral body that, in its organisation and functions, closely follows the canons of the Westminster system. ...

The party system is dominated by the centre-left Progressive Liberal Party and the centre-right Free National Movement. A handful of splinter parties have been unable to win election to parliament. These parties include the Bahamas Democratic Movement, the Coalition for Democratic Reform and the Bahamian Nationalist Party. The Progressive Liberal Party is a populist and liberal party, now the ruling party of the Bahamas. ... The Free National Movement is a political party in the Bahamas. ... The Bahamas Democratic Movement (BDM) is a liberal populist political party in the Bahamas without parliamentary representation. ... The Coalition for Democratic Reform is a liberal personalist party in The Bahamas. ...

Constitutional safeguards include freedom of speech, press, worship, movement, and association. Although The Bahamas is not geographically located in the Caribbean, it is a member of the Caribbean Community. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. Jurisprudence is based on English common law. Map showing CARICOM members, associates and observers Seat of Secretariat Georgetown, Guyana Official languages English4 Membership  15 full members1  5 associate members2  7 observers3 Leaders  -  Secretary-General Edwin W. Carrington (since 1992)  -  CARICOM Heads of Government   Establishment  -  August 1, 1973  Website http://www. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      In the law, the judiciary or judicial system is the system of courts which administer justice in the name of the sovereign or state, a mechanism for the resolution of disputes. ...

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of the Bahamas

Blacks 85%, Whites 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% according to the last census completed about the races on the island, which was recorded in 1953. Demographics of Bahamas, Data of FAO, year 2005 ; Number of inhabitants in thousands. ...

Source:

Population: 300,529 (July 2002 est.) Age structure: 0-14 years: 29% (male 43,964; female 43,250) 15-64 years: 64.7% (male 95,508; female 98,859) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 7,948; female 11,000) (2002 est.) Population growth rate: 0.86% (2002 est.) Birth rate: 18.69 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) Death rate: 7.49 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) Net migration rate: -2.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) Sex ratio: at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.) Infant mortality rate: 17.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 69.87 years female: 73.49 years (2002 est.) male: 66.32 years Total fertility rate: 2.28 children born/woman (2002 est.) Nationality: noun: Bahamian(s) adjective: Bahamian Ethnic groups: black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3% Religions: Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%, Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%, none or unknown 3%, other 2% Languages: English, Creole (among Haitian immigrants) Literacy (age 15+): total population: 98.2% male: 98.5% female: 98% (1995 est.)

Source: The Bahamas guide

Culture and Sports

Main article: Culture of the Bahamas

Junkanoo celebration in the Bahamas.

Bahamian culture is a hybrid of African and European influences. Perhaps its greatest expression is a rhythmic form of music called Junkanoo. Aside from Junkanoo, other indigenous forms of music include rake and scrape, calypso, and a unique form of hymnal, known internationally through the music of the late Joseph Spence. Marching bands are also an important part of life, playing at funerals, weddings and other ceremonial events. The country's first movie, Filthy Rich Gangster, was written and directed by a Bahamian named Jimmy Curry, who also wrote, produced and performed the regions first Hip Hop and Junkanoo Hip Hop records. Curry was also the first Bahamian signed to legendary American record label Sugar Hill Records. His firm is also re-releasing several of their movies including: Filthy Rich Gangster; Gun Lordz and others. In addition to movie and television productions, he has produced concerts, sporting events, and is the founder of the Bahamian American Arts Festival. Bahamian culture is a hybrid of African and European cultures. ... Image File history File links Junkanoo2. ... Image File history File links Junkanoo2. ... Junkanoo is a street parade with music, which occurs in many towns across the Bahamas every Boxing Day (December 26) and New Years Day. ... For other uses, see Culture (disambiguation). ... World map showing location of Africa A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second_largest continent in both area and population, after Asia. ... A European is primarily a person who was born into one of the countries within the continent of Europe. ... Junkanoo is a street parade with music, which occurs in many towns across the Bahamas every Boxing Day (December 26) and New Years Day. ... Ripsaw is a musical genre which originated in the Turks & Caicos Islands, specifically in the Middle and North Caicos. ... Calypso is a style of Afro-Caribbean music which originated in Trinidad at about the start of the 20th century. ... Joseph Spence (born August, 1910 in Andros, Bahamas - died March 18, 1984 in Nassau, Bahamas) was a Bahamian guitarist, singer and blues musician. ... For other uses, see Funeral (disambiguation). ... Nuptial is the adjective of wedding. It is used for example in zoology to denote plumage, coloration, behavior, etc related to or occurring in the mating season. ... Sugar Hill Records is the name given to two different record labels. ...

In the less developed outer islands - islands outside the capital Nassau, known as the "Out Islands" or "Family Islands" - crafts include basketry made from palm fronds. This material, commonly called "straw", is also plaited into hats and bags that are popular tourist items today.

Atlantic Spotted Dolphins

Regattas are important social events in many family island settlements. They usually feature one or more days of sailing by old-fashioned work boats, as well as an onshore festival. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,600 × 1,200 pixels, file size: 349 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,600 × 1,200 pixels, file size: 349 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... A regatta is a boat race or series of boat races. ...

Some settlements have festivals associated with the traditional crop or food of that area, such as the "Pineapple Fest" in Gregory Town, Eleuthera or the "Crab Fest" on Andros. Other significant traditions include story telling. New Providence Island and Eleuthera Island from space, April 1997 See also: Eleutherae Eleuthera is an island in the Bahamas, lying 50 miles (80 km) east of Nassau. ... “Storytelling is humanity’s oldest form of literacy. ...

A strongly religious country, there are more places of worship per person in the Bahamas than many other nations in the world. The islands are overwhelmingly Anglican Christian (over 80%). Baptists form the largest denomination (about one third), followed by the Roman Catholic churches. As of 2006, one out of every 191 Bahamian citizens in the population was a Jehovah's Witness.^[4] The term Anglican describes those people and churches following the religious traditions of the Church of England, especially following the Reformation. ... For other uses, see Christian (disambiguation). ... Baptist churches are part of a Christian movement often regarded as an Evangelical, Protestant denomination. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ...

A few people, especially in the southern and eastern islands, practice Obeah, a spiritistic religion similar to Voodoo. Voodoo is also practiced by the large number of people from Haiti, Cuba, Jamaica, and Dominican Republic. While well-known throughout the Bahamas, Obeah and Voodoo are shunned by many Bahamians. Obeah is a term used in the West Indies to refer to folk magic or sorcery. ... This article is about Kardecist spiritism. ... This article is about the syncretistic New World religions. ... This article is about the syncretistic New World religions. ... Obeah is a term used in the West Indies to refer to folk magic or sorcery. ... This article is about the syncretistic New World religions. ...

Officially, the national sport of the Bahamas is cricket^{[5] [6] [7]}. However, its popularity has declined and it lags in popularity behind a number of other sports. Sailing and Track and field athletics are currently the most popular sports in the country. Football and rugby also have strong followings while American sports such as basketball, softball, baseball and American football are gaining in popularity. This article is about the sport. ... For either of the songs named Sailing, see Sailing (song). ... A womens 400 m hurdles race on a typical outdoor red rubber track in the Helsinki Olympic Stadium in Finland. ... Soccer redirects here. ... For other uses, see Rugby (disambiguation). ... This article is about the sport. ... Soft ball is also a sugar stage Softball is a team sport popular around the world but especially in the United States. ... This article is about the sport. ... United States simply as football, is a competitive team sport that is both fast-paced and strategic. ...

Bahamians have won Olympic gold medals in sailing (Sir Durwood Knowles and Cecile Cooke in 1964) and track and field (Tonique Williams-Darling in the 400m in 2004 and the women's relay team in the 4×100m in 2000). Tonique Williams-Darling (born January 17, 1976) is a Bahamian sprint athlete. ...

Economy

Main article: Economy of the Bahamas

Tourism plays an important part in the economy of the Bahamas.

In the mid-1980s, the Bahamas was classified as an upper middle-income developing country and ranked among the wealthiest nations in the Caribbean region. In addition, the Bahamas is the third (3rd) wealthiest country in the western hemisphere. Tourism was the nation's primary economic activity. In 1986 the World Bank reported that tourism directly and indirectly accounted for approximately 50 percent of employment. Tourism's share of the gross domestic product (GDP) was estimated at 70 percent by the United States Department of Commerce. Overview The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (3072 × 2304 pixel, file size: 2. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (3072 × 2304 pixel, file size: 2. ... The World Bank logo The World Bank (the Bank) is a part of the World Bank Group (WBG), is a bank that makes loans to developing countries for development programs with the stated goal of reducing poverty. ... This article is about GDP in the context of economics. ... The United States Department of Commerce is a Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with promoting economic growth. ...

In order to lessen the economy's dependency on tourism, the government has followed a policy of diversification since the 1970s, emphasising development in the industrial and agricultural sectors. Success, however, has been limited. The nation experienced setbacks in the early 1980s with the closing of steel and cement plants and oil refineries. Because industries locating in the Bahamas tended to be capital intensive, the industrial sector's share of the labor force was estimated at just 6 percent in 1979. Industry's share of GDP was estimated at about 10 percent in the mid-1980s. The agricultural sector (including fishing) also employed only about 6 percent of the labour force in the early 1980s. Despite various programs to boost production, the World Bank estimated that agriculture in the Bahamas accounted for less than 5 percent of GDP in 1986. The nation's banking and finance sector experienced significant growth in the 1970s and 1980s. This sector contributed approximately 7 percent to GDP in the mid-1980s but employed only about 3,000 Bahamians.

Logo of the Bahamas

The overall performance of the economy during the past several decades has been positive. In the 1960s, the country recorded robust economic growth; growth rates averaged 9 percent annually as direct foreign investment spurred the development of tourism. Economic performance in the 1970s was not as successful. The international economic recession caused a reduction in investment, especially after the 1973 and 1979 oil price shocks. Bahamian independence in 1973 also caused a certain amount of uncertainty, contributing further to reduced foreign investment. Toward the end of the decade, however, economic performance improved, led by growth in tourism; investment soon followed suit, resulting in a boom in the construction sector and an increase in employment levels. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

The economy continued to perform well in the early and mid-1980s. Real GDP growth in the 1980-84 period averaged 3 percent. The only notable setback occurred in 1981, when recession in the United States resulted in a decline in stopover visitors (hotel occupants rather than cruise ship or day visitors) and the manufacturing sector was hurt by the closing of several plants; real GDP for that year fell by 9 percent. Tourism recovered quickly, however. In 1982 about 1.7 million foreign tourists visited the Bahamas, and by 1986 that figure had grown to 3 million. GDP was US$1.8 billion in 1985, and per capita GDP was estimated at US$7,822. A cruise ship or a cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ships amenities are considered an essential part of the experience. ...

The nation was not without economic problems. Growth and development were not uniform throughout the country. Most development occurred in New Providence and Grand Bahama, causing significant migration from the Family Islands to these two urban centres. This migration strained the infrastructure and social sectors of New Providence and Grand Bahama. The government also was faced with the heavy burden of spreading facilities and services throughout the Family Islands. A second problem of the Bahamian economy was its dependence on a single sector, tourism; that sector's well-being was in turn affected by the economy in the United States, the source of most tourists. To reduce this dependency, the government actively pursued a policy of diversification. Finally, the country was afflicted with the problem of structural unemployment; in 1986 unemployment levels were estimated in the 17- to 22-percent range. Industrial development tended to be capital intensive because of a high wage structure and a scarcity of technically skilled labour.

See also

Islands of the Bahamas. ... NASA image of the western Atlantic, showing the popular borders of the Bermuda Triangle. ... This is a list of topics related to The Bahamas. ... Bahamians speak an English creole or a dialect of English, known in the Bahamas as Bahamian Dialect. ... The Bahamas is becoming one of the most filmed locales in the world. ... Bahamian Americans are citizens or residents of the United States of Bahamian ancestry. ... The Bahamas has one of the largest register of celebrities who reside permanently or have legal residential status in a country not of their native birth, hometown or place of origin. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Compass Point Studios is located in The Bahamas. ... Telephones - main lines in use: 77,000 (1994) Telephones - mobile cellular: 2,400 (1993) Telephone system: domestic: totally automatic system; highly developed international: tropospheric scatter and submarine cable to Florida; 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) Area code: 242 Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM... Conception Island is an islet located in the Bahamas at coordinates 23°50N latitude and 75°08W longitude. ... The Tongue of the Ocean can be seen along the east coast of Andros Island. ... The Bahamas has strong bilateral relationships with the United States and the United Kingdom, represented by an ambassador in Washington and High Commissioner in London. ... Military branches: Royal Bahamas Defense Force (Coast Guard only), Royal Bahamas Police Force Military expenditures - dollar figure: $20 million (FY95/96) Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA% The United States Coast Guard are a common sight in the Bahamas primarily engaged in their war on illicit drugs from South America. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require rewriting and/or reformatting. ... The postal history of Bahamas begins in the 18th century, with the earliest known letters dating from the 1760s. ... The Scout Association of the Bahamas, the national Scouting organization of the Bahamas, was founded in 1913, and became a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement in 1974. ... Rum Cay is an island and district of the Bahamas. ...

References

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Further reading

General history

• Cash Philip et al. (Don Maples, Alison Packer). The Making of the Bahamas: A History for Schools. London: Collins, 1978.
• Albury, Paul. The Story of The Bahamas. London: MacMillan Caribbean, 1975.
• Miller, Hubert W. The Colonization of the Bahamas, 1647–1670, The William and Mary Quarterly 2 no.1 (Jan 1945): 33–46.
• Craton, Michael. A History of the Bahamas. London: Collins, 1962.
• Craton, Michael and Saunders, Gail. Islanders in the Stream: A History of the Bahamian People. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1992
• McCartney, Donald M., "Bahamian Culture And Factors Which Impact Upon It". Pittsburgh, PA: Dorrance Publishing,:) 2004

Economic history

• Johnson, Howard. The Bahamas in Slavery and Freedom. Kingston: Ian Randle Publishing, 1991.
• Johnson, Howard. The Bahamas from Slavery to Servitude, 1783–1933. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1996.
• Storr, Virgil H. Enterprising Slaves and Master Pirates: Understanding Economic Life in the Bahamaz. New York: Peter Lang, 2004.