Bahamas
OFFICIAL NAME: The Bahamas
CAPITAL CITY: Nassau
POPULATION: 353,700 (2010)
AREA: 13,864 km²
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE (S): English, Creole-English
RELIGION: Baptists 32%, Anglicans 20%, Catholics 19%, Methodists 6%, Church of God 6%,
other Protestants 12%, others 5%
COIN: bahamian dollar
CURRENCY CODE: BSD
ENGLISH NAME: Commonwealth of the Bahamas
INDEPENDENCE: 1973
POPULATION COMPOSITION: afrocaribiere 85%, white 12%, others 3%
GDP PER residents: $ 22,832 (2012)
LIFE EXPECTANCY: men 67 years, women 74 years (2007)
INDEX OF LIVING CONDITIONS, HDI: 0.794
INDEX OF LIVING CONDITIONS, POSITION: 49
INTERNET DOMAIN NAME: .bs
Bahamas, archipelago and independent state in the Atlantic SE of Florida.
Geography
From the area east of Florida, the islands extend over 1,200 km in an arc in
a southeasterly direction along Cuba down towards Hispaniola. Only a dozen of
the over 700 islands (as well as several thousand cliffs, keys) are
inhabited. A large part of the Bahamas rests on an underwater bank, the Great
Bahama Bank, which is made up of limestone. The islands thus appear as the
upper flat portions of an underwater mountain range.
The terrain is flat, the highest point is on Cat Island and is only 63 masl
There are no streams and the vegetation is limited. The climate is tropical and
characterized by the northeast trade winds that blow most of the year.
Northern Bahamas includes the largest of the islands, Andros, as well as the
two most populous, New Providence and Grand Bahama. In the southern part are
Long Island, Acklins and Great Inagua. To the east is San Salvador (or Watling),
where Columbus reportedly went ashore.
The vast majority of the population is black or of mixed black and white
descent, and English is the main language. The culture mixes African, European
and North American features and is characterized by the international tourism
that has become the backbone of the Bahamas economy. During World War II, the
Duke of Windsor (former King Edward VIII) was governor of the island. In
particular, North American tourists largely choose the islands as excursion
destinations. Paradise Island off the capital Nassau, a half-hour flight from
Miami, is an example of a large resort with a yacht club, discos, gaming casino
and golf courses.
Flexible tax rules and registry laws have made Nassau an international
financial center with numerous banks, real estate firms and shipping
companies; Thus, 5% of the world merchant fleet is based in Nassau. Economic
activity is concentrated in New Providence (with Nassau) and the Grand
Bahama; here is also a lot of light industry and an oil refinery. Only a very
small part of the area can be cultivated; vegetables and citrus fruits are
modestly exported to the US market. In addition, there is a lot of fishing,
after crustaceans.
Bahamas - national flag
The flag was created in 1973. The yellow stripe surrounded by two blue
stripes reflects the sea around the islands' sandy beaches. The black triangle
must symbolize the unity and power of the people.
Bahamas - language
The official language is (standard) English, but 85% of the population speak
as their mother tongue the English based Creole language Bahamian Creole
English. Minorities speak standard English (mixed British and American) and
Haitian (French Creole language).
Bahamian Creole English is closely related to gullah, an English Creole
language off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia in the United States, and
it differs from standard English in pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary.
- Countryaah:
Do you know how many people there are in Bahamas? Check this site to see
population pyramid and resident density about this country.
The pronunciation differs from English in the absence of the final
consonants [-t] and [-d] in eg [fag] for English fact or [pɑwn] for
English pound; [ð] pronunciation [d-] in fx the, them, this.
Grammatical differences are, for example, that the plural inflection is often
missing as in two dog; genitive is unmarked as in Mark bone,
where standard English is Mark's bone; a verb to connect subject and
predicative with, kopula, stands last in question as in where ma room is? ,
where standard English is where is my room? ; the pronoun yinna,
the majority of you are derived from the African language.
The vocabulary includes bret for speak one's mind, biggity for self-important and malavu for whiskey.
Bahamas - Constitution
The Bahamas Constitution came into force upon the country's independence in
1973. The Head of State is the English monarch, represented by a Governor -
General who is to be a citizen of the country. Parliament rests on the English
system with two legislatures: a Senate of 16 members, appointed according to
various rather ingenious rules, as well as an elected National Assembly of 49
members. The election period is five years and there is universal suffrage. The
National Assembly appoints the Prime Minister, who together with at least eight
other ministers make up the government. The Governor-General appoints the leader
of the opposition.
Bahamas - Economy
The Bahamas is a small and fairly prosperous community that is highly
dependent on economic relations (trade, tourist visits) with the United States,
and the Bahamian dollar is pegged to the dollar in a 1: 1 ratio. The
Bahamas' position as an offshore center provides the country with significant
revenue; However, after the OECD pressured the country to take action against
shady capital activities, a number of companies have left the country. The
transport of drugs to the American market has long been on a large scale, but it
is limited by intensive patrolling in the great archipelago by both
countries. The Bahamas is also one of the world's most important
flagship flags for convenience. By far the most important sector, however, is
tourism, which accounts for more than half of national income and has
contributed to a 10% fall in unemployment (2005); however, growth has created
social and geographical inequality.
In the early 1990's, the Bahamas' economic downturn had been caused by a
decline in tourism, particularly from the United States. The economic downturn
resulted in a deficit in the state budget, which the government stopped through
fiscal tightening from 2000. The attacks in the United States on September 11,
2001 led to a short-term decline in tourist visits. To reduce public debt, a
number of hotels and other properties have been privatized. The number of
tourists has increased again and in 2004 reached over 5 million. It is expected
that construction in the hotel area will boost the country's economy. Public
revenues come mainly from import duties, while the tax exemption for individuals
and companies is unchallenged.
In 2005, Denmark's exports to the Bahamas were DKK 42 million. DKK, and
imports were 3 mill. kr.
Bahamas - History
On October 12, 1942, Columbus landed in the Bahamas and entered American soil
for the first time; he declared the territory Spanish possession. The Bahamas
was then inhabited by Arawak Indians. The Spaniards never settled in the
Bahamas, but the population was moved as slaves to other islands. In 1629, due
to its strategic location, the Bahamas was included under the English crown by
Charles I, but only 20 years later did the actual colonization begin. As a
result of religious strife, members of Puritan sects emigrated from Bermudaand
England and settled in the Bahamas. In 1670, the Bahamas came into private
ownership; in the 1700's. it was repeatedly attacked by Spanish and French
forces with instability and extensive piracy as a result. The king intervened,
and in 1717 the Bahamas gained the status of a crown colony. Captain W. Roger
was appointed governor, and the pirates were defeated. During the American
Revolution, Nassau was occupied several times, in 1776 by American and in 1782
by American, Spanish and French units. The Spaniards occupied and kept the
Bahamas occupied until the country again at the Treaty of Versailles 1783 passed
to Britain. Following the English ban on slavery, the Bahamas became the illegal
center of the slave trade. Slavery was abolished in 1834.
The Bahamas has repeatedly played a role in US domestic policy. Only during
the Civil War of 1861-65, when the Bahamas was the base for ships that broke the
blockade of the Unionists (Northern States) by the ports of the Federalists
(Southern States). Second time in the "Prohibition era" in the 1920's and early
1930's, when liquor manufacturing and smuggling became the Bahamas' primary
industry.
In the 1950's, the first political party formations took place. The
Progressive Liberal Party was formed by blacks, who in turn formed the Bahamas
Unity Party, and a period of racial power struggles began. In 1964, internal
self-government was introduced. After the 1967 election, a black majority
government came to power for the first time in the history of the Bahamas.
Lynden O. Pinding became Prime Minister and led the Bahamas to independence on
July 10, 1973.
In the 1997 parliamentary elections, the Free National Movement (FNM) party
strengthened its leading position with Hubert A. Ingraham (b. 1947) as Prime
Minister; he had held the post since 1992. The political life after independence
has been marked by widespread corruption and drug smuggling. In the 2002
election, the Progressive Liberal Party won and Perry Christie became Prime
Minister. His program includes urban renewal and development in the local areas.
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