'Antigua and Barbuda' is an
island nation located in the eastern
Caribbean Sea, on its boundary with the
Atlantic Ocean. This country has two major islands:
Antigua () and
Barbuda (), which are close neighbours within the middle of the
Leeward Islands, roughly 17 degrees north of the equator. Antigua and Barbuda are part of the
Lesser Antilles archipelago with the islands of
Guadeloupe,
Dominica,
Martinique,
Saint Lucia,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Barbados,
Grenada,
Trinidad and Tobago to the south,
Montserrat to the southwest,
Saint Kitts and Nevis to the west and
Saint Barthélemy,
Saint Martin and
Anguilla to the northwest.
History
Main articles: History of Antigua and Barbuda
Pre-ceramic
Amerindians were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in
2400 BC. Later
Arawak and
Carib Amerindian tribes populated the islands. The island of Antigua was named Waladli by these natives and is today called 'Wadadli' by locals.
Christopher Columbus landed on his second voyage in
1493 and named the island Santa Maria de la Antigua after a church in
Seville, Spain. Early settlement by the Spanish was replaced by English rule from
1632, with a
French interlude in
1666.
Slavery, established to run the
sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in
1834.
The islands became an independent state within the Commonwealth of Nations on
1 November,
1981, with
Elizabeth II as the first
Queen of Antigua and Barbuda, and
the Right Honourable Vere Cornwall Bird Sr. became the first
prime minister.
Politics
Main articles: Politics of Antigua and Barbuda
The politics of Antigua and Barbuda takes place in a framework of a
federal parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, whereby the
Head of State is the Queen, who appoints the
Governor-General, since 2007
Louise Lake-Tack, the first female Governor-General in the history of Antigua and Barbuda, as vice-regal representative. A Council of Ministers is appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the
Prime Minister, currently Baldwin Spencer, who is the
head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system.
Executive power is exercised by the government.
Legislative power is vested in both the
government and the two chambers of the
Parliament. The
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (seventeen-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (seventeen seats; members are elected by
first past the post to serve five-year terms). The last elections held were on
23 March 2004 for the House of Representatives; the next are due in 2009. The
Antigua Labour Party won four seats, while the
United Progressive Party won thirteen.
Since 1949, the party system had been dominated by the
personalist Antigua Labour Party. However the
Antigua and Barbuda legislative election, 2004, saw the defeat of the longest-serving elected government in the Caribbean. The Prime Minister, Lester Bryant Bird and deputy Robin Yearwood, had been in office since 1994, when he succeeded his father, Vere Bird. The elder Bird had been Prime Minister from independence in 1981, and before independence had been Chief Minister of Antigua from 1960, except for the period 1971-76 when the Progressive Labour Movement (PLM) defeated them in those elections.
The Judicial Branch is the
Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the
Court of Summary Jurisdiction). Antigua is also a member of the
Caribbean Court of Justice. The
Supreme Court of Appeal was the British
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, up until 2001, when the nations of the Caribbean Community voted to abolish the right of appeal to the Privy Council in favour of a Caribbean Court of Justice. Some debate between member countries had repeatedly delayed the court's date of inauguration. As of March, 2005, only Barbados was set to replace appeals to the Privy Council with appeals the Caribbean Court of Justice, which then had come into operation.
Military
The
Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force, is the country's military. It has 170 members.
Parishes and dependencies
Main articles: Parishes and dependencies of Antigua and Barbuda
The island of Antigua is divided into six
parishes:
|  The Parishes of Antigua |
The island of Barbuda (1,241) and the uninhabited island of
Redonda each enjoy dependency status.
The capital is the city of
St. John's (population 21,514).
Geography
Main articles: Geography of Antigua and Barbuda
The country consists of a number of islands, of which Antigua is the largest and most populous. Barbuda, just north of Antigua, is the other main island. The islands have a warm, tropical climate, with fairly constant temperatures throughout the year. Redonda, another nearby island which was annexed in the 1860s when its phosphate resources were discovered, and is also the territory of Antigua and Barbuda, although it has been unoccupied since 1930.
The islands are mostly low-lying, with the highest point being
Boggy Peak, at 402
metres (1,319 ft). The small country's main town is the capital, Saint John's, on Antigua; Barbuda's largest town is
Codrington. Antigua & Barbuda combined have 365 beaches
Economy
Main articles: Economy of Antigua and Barbuda
Tourism dominates its economy, accounting for more than half of its
GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy, however, and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's
agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited
water supply and a
labour shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction work.
Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for
economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialised world, especially in the
United States, which accounts for about one-third of all tourist arrivals.
Demographics
St. John's Cathedral
The majority of the population are of people of African or mixed African and European (predominately British) ancestry. There is a minority of people of Portuguese and mixed Portuguese and African ancestry, due to Portuguese indentured servants brought to the West Indies after the abolition of slavery. The remainder of the population are Europeans, notably
Irish and British, and Christian Levantine Arabs (primarily of Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian descent). There is also a small population of Sephardic Jews.
An increasingly large percent of the population live abroad, most notably in the United States, Canada, and England. A minority of the Antiguan residents are immigrants from other countries, particularly Dominica, Guyana and Jamaica with an increasing number of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Nigeria. There is also a significant population of American citizens estimated at 4500 people which would make it one of the largest American citizen populations in the English speaking Eastern Caribbean.
[2]
Almost all Antiguans are
Christians (74%
[3]), with the
Anglican Church (about 44%) being the largest denomination.
Catholicism is the other significant denomination, with the remainder being other Protestants: including Methodists, Moravians, Pentecostals and Seventh-Day Adventists. There are also
Jehovah's Witnesses. Non-Christian religions practiced on the islands include
Rastafari,
Islam, Judaism, and
Baha'i.
Language
The official language of Antigua and Barbuda is English, but many of the locals speak
Antiguan Creole. The
Barbudan accent is slightly different from the
Antiguan one. Spanish is also widely spoken in certain communities in Antigua where immigrants from the Dominican Republic make up large numbers.
[4]
In the years before Antigua and Barbuda's independence, Standard English was widely spoken in preference to Antiguan Creole, but afterwards Antiguans began treating Antiguan Creole as a respectable aspect of their culture. Generally, the upper and middle classes shun
Antiguan Creole. The educational system dissuades use of Antiguan Creole and instruction is done in Standard (British) English. The higher up one goes on the socio economic ladder, the less prevalent Antiguan Creole becomes, to the extent that some Antiguans will even deny that they speak or understand Antiguan Creole
Many of the words used in the
Antiguan dialect are derived from English and also
African origins. The dialect was formed when
enslaved Africans owned by English planters imitated the 18th century English spoken by their masters; utilizing traditional African language structures they created an African English hybrid or
pidgin. This can be easily seen in some phrases like: "Me nah go" meaning "I am not going". Another example is: "Ent it?" meaning "Ain't it?" which is in itself dialect and means "Isn't it?". Common island
proverbs often can be traced to Africa.
Culture
An independent scientific study ranked Antiugua and Barbuda as the 16th happiest country in the world.
[5] The culture is predominantly British which is evident throughout many aspects of the society. American popular culture also has a heavy influence. Family and religion play an important role in the lives of Antiguans. There is a national Carnival celebration during the month of August each year: historically Carnival commemorates the abolition of slavery in the British West Indies. The annual Carnival includes pageants, shows, contests and festive activities, and is a notable tourist attraction.
Calypso and
soca music are important in Antigua and Barbuda, and
Burning Flames is a popular band.
Media
There are two daily newspapers:
Daily Observer, and
Antigua Sun which also publishes newspapers on other Caribbean islands. Most American television networks are available in addition to the local television stations. There are several local and regional radio stations.
Sport
thumb
is very popular in Antigua and Barbuda, along with most Commonwealth nations. The
2007 Cricket World Cup was hosted in the West Indies from
11 March to
28 April 2007. Antigua hosted eight matches at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, which was handed over by the Chinese Government on 11 February 2007, and holds 20,000 people at full capacity.
Antigua is also the Host of 20/20 Cricket created by Allen Stanford in 2006 a regional cricket game with almost all Caribbean islands taking part. Next 20/20 will be in November 07.
Football (soccer) is also a very popular sport. Antigua has a national football team, albeit inexperienced.
Athletics is also big in Antigua. Talented athletes identified in schools are trained from a young age and Antigua has produced one or two fairly adept athletes.
Janill Williams, a young athlete with much promise hails from
Gray's Farm, Antigua. Also, there is
Sonia Williams and
Heather Samuel who have represented Antigua at the
Olympic Games. Others to watch are
Brendan Christian (100 m, 200 m),
Daniel Bailey (100 m, 200 m) and
James Grayman (High Jump).
Education
The people of Antigua & Barbuda have a high level of education with over 90% of the people being literate. In 1998, Antigua adopted a national mandate to become the preeminent provider of medical services in the Caribbean. As part of this mission, Antigua is building the most technologically advanced hospital in the Caribbean, the
Mt. St. John Medical Centre. The island of Antigua currently has two medical schools:
American University of Antigua, College of Medicine (AUA)
[6], founded in 2004 and The
University of Health Sciences Antigua (UHSA)
[7], founded in 1982.
There is also a government owned state college in Antigua as well as the Antigua and Barbuda Institute of
Information Technology (ABIIT).
The University of the West Indies has a branch in Antigua for locals to continue University studies.
With the onset of the Internet, more Antiguans are completing online degrees.
Facts
★ The
Antigua Racer Snake is the rarest snake in the world, with only about two hundred living. It is found on
Bird Island, an island off the coast of Antigua.
★
Vere Cornwall Bird, Antigua and Barbuda's first Prime Minister, is accredited to have brought Antigua and Barbuda and the Caribbean into a new era of independence.
★
Harvard Law School was endowed by money its founder earned selling slaves for the
sugar cane fields of Antigua.
Foreign relations
Main articles: Foreign relations of Antigua and Barbuda
Antigua and Barbuda is a member of the
United Nations, the
Commonwealth of Nations,
Caribbean Community,
Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States,
Organization of American States,
World Trade Organization and the Eastern Caribbean's Regional Security System.
Antigua and Barbuda is also a member of the
International Criminal Court (with a Bilateral Immunity Agreement of protection for the US-military as covered under
Article 98).
See also
References
1. CIA - The World Factbook: Antigua and Barbuda
2. Background Note: Antigua and Barbuda
3. Antigua and Barbuda: International Religious Freedom Report 2006
4. The Spanish Language in Antigua and Barbuda: Implications for Language Planning and Language Research
5. Human Development Report
6. American University of Antigua, College of Medicine
7. University of Health Sciences Antigua
External links
★
The Official Website of the Government of Antigua and Barbuda
★
Antigua & Barbuda, its Department of Tourism website
★
Antigua and Barbuda, United States Library of Congress Portals on the World
★
Governments on the WWW: Antigua and Barbuda
★
The High Commission of Antigua and Barbuda. Tourism, business, history and culture, politics - an up to date website.
★
Antigua Carnival - with photo galleries.
★
American University of Antigua - a hospital integrated medical scool in Caribbean.
★
Health Sciences library - Library of American University of Antigua
★
Recipes to many Antiguan dishes
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