Uvita Island, or Isla Uvita (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

: "little grape island"), officially Isla Quiribrí, is a small island offshore of the port at

Limón Limón (), commonly known as Puerto Limón, is a district, the capital city and main hub of Limón province, as well as of the Limón canton in Costa Rica. It is the seventh largest city in Costa Rica, with a population of over 55,000, and is ho ...

on the

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 ...

coast of

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

. The island is long from north to south and wide, northwest to southeast. It is currently uninhabited, but there is at least one structure on the island, and a small dock. It is possible to visit the island by renting a boat and a driver at one of the fishing docks on the Cieneguita River.

Island name

Uvita has had several names over the years; in English, these include Grape Cay, Grape Island, and Uvia Island; in Spanish, the names ''Isla Uvita'' and ''La Uvita'' are now most common. The Cariari Indians called the island ''Quiribrí''. In 1986 the ''Comisión Nacional de Nomenclatura'' (National Commission of Nomenclature) approved the restoration of the name ''Isla Quiribrí'', and the ''Academia de Geografía e Historia de Costa Rica'' (Academy of Geography and History of Costa Rica) asked that the ''Comisión'' and the Municipality of Limón publish the name change in 2002 during the 500th anniversary of the arrival of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

on the island. ''Isla Quiribrí'' is now the official name but is seldom used; locally, the island is still referred to as ''Isla Uvita'', even on official government maps.

History

Christopher Columbus anchored his ships on the island for repairs during his final voyage to America in 1502, and gave the island the name of La Huerta (Spanish: "the orchard"). The two-week visit allowed contact with the Indigenous people, who welcomed the Europeans dressed in clothing of gold, which was the reason that some mistakenly attributed to Columbus the naming of Costa Rica (Spanish: "rich coast"), a name which was actually first used by the

Royal Audiencia of Panama The Royal Audience and Chancery of Panama in Tierra Firme () was a governing body and superior court in the New World empire of Spain. The ''Audiencia'' of Panama was the third American '' audiencia'' after the ones of Santo Domingo and Mexico. I ...

in 1538.

References

{{Reflist Uninhabited islands of Costa Rica Caribbean islands of Costa Rica Geography of Limón Province