Islands of the Lesser Antilles, within the West Indies
The
Windward Islands
are the southern, generally larger islands of the
Lesser Antilles
. Part of the
West Indies
, they lie south of the
Leeward Islands
, approximately between latitudes
10°
and
16° N
and longitudes
60°
and
62° W
.
The name was also used to refer to a
British colony
which existed between 1833 and 1960 and originally consisted of the islands of
Grenada
,
Saint Lucia
, and
Saint Vincent
. Today these islands constitute three sovereign states, with the latter now known as
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
.
The island of
Dominica
was traditionally considered a part of the
Leeward Islands
until 1940 when it was transferred from the
British Leeward Islands
colony to the British Windward Islands. It now composes the fourth sovereign state in the group.
Barbados
(until 1885) and
Tobago
(until 1889) were also part of the
British Windward Islands
colony, but are not today regarded as being part of the Windward Islands grouping.
Name and geography
[
edit
]
The prevailing
trade winds
in the
West Indies
blow east to west. The combination of trans-Atlantic
currents
and winds that provided the fastest route across the ocean brought
sailing ships
heading to the
New World
to the rough dividing line between two groups of islands. Those that fell to
windward
became the Windward Islands, to
leeward
the
Leeward Islands
.
Sailing vessels departing from Africa would first encounter the southeasternmost "Windward" islands of the Lesser Antilles in their west-northwesterly heading to the final destinations in the
Caribbean
,
Central America
, and
Northern America
. The chain of Windward Islands forms a part of the easternmost boundary of the
Caribbean Sea
.
[1]
[2]
However, even in modern usage in languages other than English, notably, Dutch, French, and Spanish, all of the Lesser Antilles from the
Virgin Islands
to
Trinidad and Tobago
are known as the 'Windward Islands' (
Bovenwindse Eilanden
in Dutch,
Iles du Vent
in French, and
Islas de Barlovento
in Spanish). The
ABC Islands
and the other islands along the Venezuelan coast, known in English as the
Leeward Antilles
, are known in languages other than English as the 'Leeward Islands'.
Countries and territories
[
edit
]
There are four countries and one territory in the Windward Islands:
[1]
[3]
[4]
Politics
[
edit
]
| This section is empty.
You can help by
adding to it
.
(
November 2021
)
|
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
"Windward Islands"
. Encyclopædia Britannica.
[A] line of West Indian islands constituting the southern arc of the Lesser Antilles, at the eastern end of the Caribbean Sea, between latitudes 12° and 16° N and longitudes 60° and 62° W. They include, from north to south, the English-speaking islands of Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent, and Grenada; and, between Saint Vincent and Grenada, the chain of 32 islands known as the Grenadines. Though near the general area, Trinidad and Tobago (at the south end of the group) and Barbados (just east) are usually not considered part of the Windward Islands.
- ^
Chapter 4 - The Windward Islands and Barbados
- U.S. Library of Congress
- ^
"Windward Islands"
. Footprint Travel Guides
. Retrieved
23 March
2013
.
- ^
"Windward Islands"
. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc
. Retrieved
7 July
2018
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
International
| |
---|
National
| |
---|
Other
| |
---|