The following
outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the
United States Virgin Islands:
The
Territory of the United States Virgin Islands is an
unincorporated organized territory of the
United States of America located in the western portion of the
Virgin Islands Archipelago in the
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
.
The Virgin Islands are part of the
Leeward Islands
french: Îles-Sous-le-Vent
, image_name =
, image_caption = ''Political'' Leeward Islands. Clockwise: Antigua and Barbuda, Guadeloupe, Saint kitts and Nevis.
, image_alt =
, locator_map =
, location = Caribbean Sea North Atlantic Ocean
, coo ...
of the
Lesser Antilles. The
British Virgin Islands
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = Territorial song
, song = "Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands"
, image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg
, map_caption =
, mapsize = 290px
, image_map2 = Brit ...
comprises the eastern portion of the
archipelago.
The U.S. Virgin Islands consist of the main islands of
Saint Croix,
Saint John and
Saint Thomas, along with the much smaller but historically distinct
Water Island, and many other surrounding
minor islands. The total land area of the territory is 346.36 km
2 (133.73 sq mi). As of the
2000 census the population was 108,612.
Three of the main islands have nicknames often used by locals: "Rock City" (St. Thomas), "Love City" (St. John), and "Twin City" (St. Croix).
General reference
*
Pronunciation:
* Common English country names: The
United States Virgin Islands or the
U.S. Virgin Islands
* Official English country name: The
Territory of the United States Virgin Islands
* Common
endonym(s):
* Official endonym(s):
*
Adjectival(s):
Virgin Island
*
Demonym
A demonym (; ) or gentilic () is a word that identifies a group of people (inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place (hamlet, village, town, city, region, province, ...
(s): Virgin Islander
*
Etymology:
Name of the United States Virgin Islands
*
ISO country codes: VI, VIR, 850
*
ISO region codes: See
ISO 3166-2:VI
*
Internet country code top-level domain:
.vi
Geography of the United States Virgin Islands
Geography of the United States Virgin Islands
* The United States Virgin Islands are: an
insular area
In the law of the United States, an insular area is a U.S.-associated jurisdiction that is not part of the 50 states or the District of Columbia. This includes fourteen U.S. territories administered under U.S. sovereignty, as well as three sove ...
of the United States
* Location:
**
Northern Hemisphere and
Western Hemisphere
The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the term W ...
***
North America (though not on the
mainland)
**
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Afr ...
***
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean S ...
(West Indies)
****
Antilles
The Antilles (; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy; es, Antillas; french: Antilles; nl, Antillen; ht, Antiy; pap, Antias; Jamaican Patois: ''Antiliiz'') is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mex ...
*****
Lesser Antilles
******
Leeward Islands
french: Îles-Sous-le-Vent
, image_name =
, image_caption = ''Political'' Leeward Islands. Clockwise: Antigua and Barbuda, Guadeloupe, Saint kitts and Nevis.
, image_alt =
, locator_map =
, location = Caribbean Sea North Atlantic Ocean
, coo ...
*******
Virgin Islands archipelago
**
Time zone:
Eastern Caribbean Time
The Atlantic Time Zone is a geographical region that keeps standard time—called Atlantic Standard Time (AST)—by subtracting four hours from Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC), resulting in UTC−04:00. AST is observed in parts of North America ...
(
UTC-04)
** Extreme points of the United States Virgin Islands
*** High:
Crown Mountain
*** Low:
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
0 m
** Land boundaries: ''none''
** Coastline: 188 km
*
Population of the United States Virgin Islands:
*
*
Area of the United States Virgin Islands:
*
Atlas of the United States Virgin Islands
Environment of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Climate of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Renewable energy in the United States Virgin Islands
*
Geology of the United States Virgin Islands
The geology of the U.S. Virgin Islands includes mafic volcanic rocks, with complex mineralogy that first began to erupt in the Mesozoic overlain and interspersed with carbonate and conglomerate units.
Geologic history, stratigraphy, and tectonics
...
*
Protected areas of the United States Virgin Islands
Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...
**
Biosphere reserves in the United States Virgin Islands
**
National parks of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Superfund sites in the United States Virgin Islands
*
Wildlife of the United States Virgin Islands
**
Fauna of the United States Virgin Islands
***
Birds of the United States Virgin Islands
***
Mammals of the United States Virgin Islands
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
Natural geographic features of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Fjords of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Islands of the United States Virgin Islands
Almost all of the Caribbean islands are in the Caribbean Sea, with only a few in inland lakes. The largest island is Cuba. Other sizable islands include Hispaniola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Trinidad and Tobago. Some of the smaller islands are re ...
*
Lakes of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Mountains of the United States Virgin Islands
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher th ...
**
Volcanoes in the United States Virgin Islands
*
Rivers of the United States Virgin Islands
This is a list of rivers and streams of the United States Virgin Islands (U.S. territory), grouped by island.
Saint Croix
* Salt River
Saint John
From east to west, all flowing to the south coast:
*Carolina Gut
* Cob Gut
*Lameshur Bay Gut
...
**
Waterfalls of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Valleys of the United States Virgin Islands
* World Heritage Sites in the United States Virgin Islands: None
Regions of the United States Virgin Islands
Regions of the United States Virgin Islands
Ecoregions of the United States Virgin Islands
List of ecoregions in the United States Virgin Islands
*
Ecoregions in the United States Virgin Islands
Administrative divisions of the United States Virgin Islands
Administrative divisions of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Provinces of the United States Virgin Islands
**
Districts of the United States Virgin Islands
***
Municipalities of the United States Virgin Islands
=Provinces of the United States Virgin Islands
=
Provinces of the United States Virgin Islands
=Districts of the United States Virgin Islands
=
Districts of the United States Virgin Islands
=Municipalities of the United States Virgin Islands
=
Municipalities of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
of the United States Virgin Islands:
Charlotte Amalie
*
Cities of the United States Virgin Islands
Demography of the United States Virgin Islands
Demographics of the United States Virgin Islands
Government and politics of the United States Virgin Islands
Politics of the United States Virgin Islands
Politics of the United States Virgin Islands takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic dependency, whereby the Governor is the head of the local government, and of a multi-party system. United States Virgin Islands ...
*
Form of government:
presidential representative democratic
Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy, is a type of democracy where elected people represent a group of people, in contrast to direct democracy. Nearly all modern Western-style democracies function as some type of represe ...
dependency
*
Capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
of the United States Virgin Islands:
Charlotte Amalie
*
Elections in the United States Virgin Islands
*
Political parties in the United States Virgin Islands
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...
Branches of the government of the United States Virgin Islands
Government of the United States Virgin Islands
Politics of the United States Virgin Islands takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic dependency, whereby the Governor is the head of the local government, and of a multi-party system. United States Virgin Islan ...
Legislative branch of the government of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Parliament of the United States Virgin Islands (
bicameral)
**
Upper house:
Senate of the United States Virgin Islands
**
Lower house:
House of Commons of the United States Virgin Islands
Judicial branch of the government of the United States Virgin Islands
Court system of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Supreme Court of the United States Virgin Islands
Foreign relations of the United States Virgin Islands
Foreign relations of the United States Virgin Islands
*
Diplomatic missions in the United States Virgin Islands
*
Diplomatic missions of the United States Virgin Islands
International organization membership
The Territory of the United States Virgin Islands is a member of:
[
* International Olympic Committee (IOC)
*]Universal Postal Union
The Universal Postal Union (UPU, french: link=no, Union postale universelle), established by the Treaty of Bern of 1874, is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to t ...
(UPU)
* World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU)
Law and order in the United States Virgin Islands
Law of the United States Virgin Islands
* Cannabis in the United States Virgin Islands
* Constitution of the United States Virgin Islands
* Crime in the United States Virgin Islands
* Human rights in the United States Virgin Islands
** LGBT rights in the United States Virgin Islands
** Freedom of religion in the United States Virgin Islands
* Law enforcement in the United States Virgin Islands
Military of the United States Virgin Islands
Military of the United States Virgin Islands
* Command
** Commander-in-chief:
*** Ministry of Defence of the United States Virgin Islands
* Forces
** Army of the United States Virgin Islands
** Navy of the United States Virgin Islands
** Air Force of the United States Virgin Islands
** Special forces of the United States Virgin Islands
* Military history of the United States Virgin Islands
* Military ranks of the United States Virgin Islands
Local government in the United States Virgin Islands
Local government in the United States Virgin Islands
History of the United States Virgin Islands
History of the United States Virgin Islands
* Timeline of the history of the United States Virgin Islands
* Current events of the United States Virgin Islands
History of the United States Virgin Islands, by period
* Indigenous peoples of the Virgin Islands
**Ciboney
The Ciboney, or Siboney, were a Taíno people of western Cuba, Jamaica, and the Tiburon Peninsula of Haiti. A Western Taíno group living in central Cuba during the 15th and 16th centuries, they had a dialect and culture distinct from the Classi ...
**Arawaks
The Arawak are a group of indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. Specifically, the term "Arawak" has been applied at various times to the Lokono of South America and the Taíno, who historically lived in the Greater ...
**Caribs
“Carib” may refer to:
People and languages
*Kalina people, or Caribs, an indigenous people of South America
**Carib language, also known as Kalina, the language of the South American Caribs
*Kalinago people, or Island Caribs, an indigenous pe ...
* First European contact, 1493–1519
*:On November 14, 1493, a Spanish fleet under the command of '' Christoffa Corombo'' (Christopher Columbus) lands on a large inhabited island which he names '' Santa Cruz'' (Holy Cross, now Saint Croix). Corombo then visits and names '' San Tomas'' (Saint Thomas) and ''San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to:
Places Argentina
* San Juan Province, Argentina
* San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province
* San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province
* San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...
'' (Saint John). Corombo names the archipelago '' Santa Ursula y las Once Mil Vírgenes'' (Saint Ursula and her 11,000 virgins, now the Virgin Islands).
*Viceroyalty of New Spain
New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Amer ...
, (1519–1650)-1821
* French West Indies, 1650–1733
** France wrests Saint Croix from Spain, 1650
** Knights Hospitaller acquire Saint Croix from France, 1660
** France reacquires Saint Croix from Knights Hospitaller, 1665
** Denmark purchases Saint Croix from France, 1733
*Danish West Indies
The Danish West Indies ( da, Dansk Vestindien) or Danish Antilles or Danish Virgin Islands were a Danish colony in the Caribbean, consisting of the islands of Saint Thomas with ; Saint John ( da, St. Jan) with ; and Saint Croix with . The i ...
, 1657–1917
** British occupation, 1801–1802
** British occupation, 1807–1815
** World War I, June 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918
*** United States purchases Danish West Indies from Denmark on January 17, 1917
* Unorganized U.S. territory of the Virgin Islands, March 31, 1917 – June 22, 1936
** United States enters World War I on April 6, 1917
* Territory of the Virgin Islands of the United States since June 22, 1936
** Organic Act of the Virgin Islands of the United States of June 22, 1936
** World War II, September 1, 1939 – September 2, 1945
*** United States enters Second World War on December 8, 1941
** Cold War, March 5, 1946 – December 25, 1991
** Korean War, June 25, 1950 – July 27, 1953
** Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands of the United States of July 22, 1954
** Virgin Islands National Park established on August 2, 1956
** Vietnam War, September 26, 1959 – April 30, 1975
** Persian Gulf War, August 2, 1990 – February 28, 1991
**Hurricane Marilyn
Hurricane Marilyn was the most powerful hurricane to strike the Virgin Islands since Hurricane Hugo of 1989, and the third such tropical cyclone in roughly a two-week time span to strike or impact the Leeward Islands, the others being Hurricane ...
, 1995
** Attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001
**Afghanistan War
War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to:
*Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC)
* Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709)
*Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see al ...
, since October 7, 2001
** Iraq War, since March 20, 2003
Culture of the United States Virgin Islands
Culture of the United States Virgin Islands
* Architecture of the United States Virgin Islands
* Cuisine of the United States Virgin Islands
* Festivals in the United States Virgin Islands
* Languages of the United States Virgin Islands
This is a demography of the population of the United States Virgin Islands including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
Populati ...
* Media in the United States Virgin Islands
* National symbols of the United States Virgin Islands
** Coat of arms of the United States Virgin Islands
** Flag of the United States Virgin Islands
The flag of the United States Virgin Islands was adopted on May 17, 1921. It consists of a simplified version of the Great Seal of the United States, coat of arms of the United States between the letters V and I (for 'Virgin Islands'). The yellow ...
** National anthem of the United States Virgin Islands
* People of the United States Virgin Islands
* Public holidays in the United States Virgin Islands
Holidays in the United States Virgin Islands include all official holidays of the United States as well as religious and secular holidays designated by the Government of the Virgin Islands.
Public holidays
Carnival
In addition to these holidays, ...
* Records of the United States Virgin Islands
* Religion in the United States Virgin Islands
** Christianity in the United States Virgin Islands
** Hinduism in the United States Virgin Islands
** Islam in the United States Virgin Islands
** Judaism in the United States Virgin Islands
** Sikhism in the United States Virgin Islands
* World Heritage Sites in the United States Virgin Islands: None
Art in the United States Virgin Islands
* Art in the United States Virgin Islands
* Cinema of the United States Virgin Islands
* Literature of the United States Virgin Islands
* Music of the United States Virgin Islands
* Television in the United States Virgin Islands
* Theatre in the United States Virgin Islands
Sports in the United States Virgin Islands
Sports in the United States Virgin Islands
* Football in the United States Virgin Islands
Economy and infrastructure of the United States Virgin Islands
Economy of the United States Virgin Islands
The economy of the United States Virgin Islands is primarily dependent upon tourism, trade, and other services, accounting for nearly 60% of the Virgin Island's GDP and about half of total civilian employment. Close to two million tourists per yea ...
* Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007):
* Agriculture in the United States Virgin Islands
* Banking in the United States Virgin Islands
** National Bank of the United States Virgin Islands
* Communications in the United States Virgin Islands
** Internet in the United States Virgin Islands
* Companies of the United States Virgin Islands
* Currency of the United States Virgin Islands: Dollar
**ISO 4217
ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) that defines alpha codes and numeric codes for the representation of currencies and provides information about the relationships between individual cu ...
: USD
* Energy in the United States Virgin Islands
** Energy policy of the United States Virgin Islands
** Oil industry in the United States Virgin Islands
* Mining in the United States Virgin Islands
* Tourism in the United States Virgin Islands
* Transport in the United States Virgin Islands
* the United States Virgin Islands Stock Exchange
Education in the United States Virgin Islands
Education in the United States Virgin Islands
Infrastructure of the United States Virgin Islands
* Health care in the United States Virgin Islands
* Transportation in the United States Virgin Islands
** Airports in the United States Virgin Islands
** Rail transport in the United States Virgin Islands
** Roads in the United States Virgin Islands
* Water supply and sanitation in the United States Virgin Islands
See also
*Topic overview:
** United States Virgin Islands
** Index of United States Virgin Islands-related articles
** Bibliography of the United States Virgin Islands
*
*
*
*
References
External links
; Official sites
Convention between the United States and Denmark for cession of the Danish West Indies
- Document signed in New York, August 4, 1916
* ttp://www.dkconsulateusvi.com/TRANSFER/transfer.html Transfer Day- Denmark's consulate in the U.S. Virgin Islands
- The World Factbook, CIA Publications
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20150216044116/http://www.governordejongh.com/ USVI Governor's Website- Governor John P. deJongh's Website
USGS real-time, geographic, and other scientific resources of Virgin Islands
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
- Office of Lt. Governor Gregory R. Francis
; News and media
The Virgin Islands Daily News
- Daily newspaper in St. Thomas covering the entire USVI
Virgin Islands Source
- Daily online news source from St. Croix, St. John & St. Thomas
St. John Tradewinds
- Weekly newspaper in St. John
{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands
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