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Saint-Barthélemy
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Saint Barthélemy (; ), officially the Collectivity of Saint Barthélemy (French: Collectivité de Saint-Barthélemy), is an overseas collectivity of France. To the northwest lies St. Martin, to the southwest Saba, to the south St. Eustatius and St. Kitts, and ultimately to the southeast Barbuda. It has an area of 21 km² and a population of 8,398 (census 2006). Its capital is Gustavia. Also known as Saint Barth in French, or St.
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Encyclopedia
Saint Barthélemy (; ), officially the Collectivity of Saint Barthélemy (French: Collectivité de Saint-Barthélemy), is an overseas collectivity of France. To the northwest lies St. Martin, to the southwest Saba, to the south St. Eustatius and St. Kitts, and ultimately to the southeast Barbuda. It has an area of 21 km² and a population of 8,398 (census 2006). Its capital is Gustavia. Also known as Saint Barth in French, or St. Barts in English, the collectivity is one of the four territories among the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean that comprise the French West Indies, along with Guadeloupe, Martinique and St. Martin. It is the only one to have historically been a Swedish colony.
Economy
The official currency of Saint Barthélemy is the euro.
INSEE estimated that the total GDP of Saint Barthélemy amounted to 179 million euros in 1999 (US$191 million at 1999 exchanges rates; US$255 million at Oct. 2007 exchange rates). In that same year the GDP per capita of Saint Barthélemy was 26,000 euros (US$27,700 at 1999 exchanges rates; US$37,000 at Oct. 2007 exchange rates), which was 10% higher than the average GDP per capita of metropolitan France in 1999. Tourism explains in a large measure the very high standard of living on the island.
Tourism
St. Barth has long been considered a playground of the rich and famous and is known for its beautiful pristine beaches, gourmet dining in chic bistros and high-end designer shopping.
St. Barth has about 25 hotels, most of them with 15 rooms or fewer, and the largest, the Hotel Guanahani has just 70 rooms. Hotels are classified in the traditional French manner 3 Star, 4 Star and 4 Star Luxe. Other leading hotels are Isle de France, Eden Rock, Carl Gustaf, Le Sereno and Le Toiny.
Villa vacations are extremely popular and there are hundreds of villas terraced into the hillsides throughout the island as well as many beachfront locations. Villas here can range from one-bedroom bungalows to large luxurious homes. Leading villa rental firms are [Wimco Villas] and St Barth Properties.
This island is also home to the rare scorpion Centruroides barbudensis, characterized by an overly large tail.
History
Saint Barthélemy was first claimed by France, in 1648. It was sold to Sweden in 1784, which sold it back to France in 1878. Slavery was practiced in Saint-Barthélemy under the "Ordinance concerning the Police of Slaves and free Coloured People" of 1787. The last legally owned slaves in the Swedish colony of Saint-Barthélemy were bought free by the state on October 9, 1847. The Swedish period left its mark in the names of many of the streets and the town (in honor of King Gustav III), and the presence of Sweden's national arms, the Three Crowns in the island's coat of arms, along with the Maltese cross, the Fleur-de-lis, the mural crown, two pelicans, and the island's supposed Amerindian name "OUANALAO".
Geography
Located approximately 250 km east of Puerto Rico, Saint-Barthélemy lies near the islands of Saint Martin, Saba and Anguilla. Some small satellite islets also belong to Saint Barthélemy:
- Île Chevreau (Île Bonhomme)
- Île Frégate
- Île Toc Vers
- Île Tortue
- Gros Îlets (Îlots Syndare)
Gustavia, which is the main town of the island, was named after King Gustav III of Sweden, and remains as a reflection of the Swedish period.
The oldest settlement still remaining is the village of Lorient (or L'Orient), although scattered in every cemetery on the island can be found Swedish grave markers. Lorient's sister village on the French mainland is the city of Lorient on the southern coast of Brittany. A list of settlements is
- Anse des Cayes
- Grand Cul-de-Sac
- Petit Cul-de-Sac
- Quartier de Colombier
- Quartier de la Grande Saline
- Quartier de Public
- Quartier de Toiny
- Quartier des Flamands
- Quartier du Corossol
- Quartier du Marigot
- Quartier du Roi
- Quartier Lorient (oldest settlement)
- Quartier Saint-Jean
Beaches
Of the 21 beaches on the small island, several are considered especially inviting. On the southern side of the island, Saline is a pristine beach with no development. On the western edge of the island is Colombier beach, which is only reachable by boat or a hike. St. Jean, Flamands and Grand-Cul-de-Sac beaches are also popular and attractive beaches which have hotels and other establishments on them. Shell Beach is popular for families with kids as it has little surf.
St. Barths has a tidal difference of only 8–15 cm. The beaches vary according to ocean currents — the weather travels onto the island following the sun from the East. One of the main surfing beaches (Toiny) is known for its riptide, while Grand Fond is one of the island's only non-swimming beaches. Although tourism doesn't allude to it, there are a small variety of warm water sharks in the Caribbean. So, swimming at dusk and dawn or in murky waters is not recommended. Otherwise, scuba and snorkling are a great way to see the nurse sharks, lobsters, conch and green sea turtles that abound in the waters surrounding St. Barth.
The beach of Grand Cul-de-Sac is the easiest beach in the Caribbean for learning sailing, windsurfing and kitesurfing as it has a reef which closes off the entire bay. The current that passes outside the reef here also carries the migrating whales and dolphins.
Demographics
According to the January 2007 census, the population of Saint Barthélemy is 8,450 inhabitants, with a population density of 402 inh. per km² in 2007, white people in a large majority. Most of the population are French-speaking descendants of the first settlers.
Many of the full time residents are French citizens who work at the various establishments on the island. French is the primary language spoken, the natives' languages (patois and creole) are still surviving, but many residents also speak English, particularly at hotels and restaurants. The French Patois is spoken in the leeward portion of the island and is closely related to Quebec French whereas a French Creole related to Antillean Creole is spoken in the windward portion. Both varieties of language are spoken exclusively by a white population of European descent.
style="font-weight: bold; font-size: 1.1em; margin-bottom: 0.5em"| Historical population| 1766 | 1785 | 1812 | 1885 | 1961 | 1967 | 1974 | 1982 | 1990 | 1999 | 2007 | | 327 | 950 | 5,482 | 2,600 | 2,176 | 2,351 | 2,491 | 3,059 | 5,038 | 6,852 | 8,450 | | Official figures from French and Swedish censuses. |
Politics and government
Until 2007, administratively, the whole island of Saint-Barthélemy was a French commune (commune de Saint-Barthélemy) part of Guadeloupe, which is an overseas région and overseas département of France, and therefore part of the European Union. In 2003, the population voted in favour of secession from Guadeloupe in order to form a separate overseas collectivity (COM) of France. On 7 February 2007, the French Parliament passed a bill granting COM status to both Saint Barthélemy and neighbouring Saint Martin. The new status took effect on 22 February 2007, when the law was published in the Journal Officiel. Saint Barthélemy remains part of the European Union.
Transportation
Saint Barth has a small airport known as Gustaf III Airport that is served by small regional commercial aircraft and charters. Most visiting aircraft carry fewer than twenty passengers, such as the Twin Otter, a common sight around Saint Barth and throughout the northern West Indies. The short airstrip is at the base of a gentle slope ending directly on the beach at St Jean. The arrival descent is over the hilltop traffic circle and departing planes fly right over the heads of sunbathers on St. Jean Beach (although small signs advise sunbathers not to lie directly at the end of the runway). Due to the close proximity of arriving and departing planes, either location is ideal for viewing by aircraft enthusiasts.
The nearest commercial jet airport is on the neighboring island of Sint Maarten. The current mayor's airline, called St Barth Commuter, offers non-prohibitive cost one-way/round trip travel between St. Barth and both of St. Martin's airports: Princess Juliana International Airport and the smaller L'Espérance Airport . WinAir also services SBH, usually originating in St. Martin (SXM). There are also charters to St. Barth from San Juan, Puerto Rico, available through Tradewind Aviation.
Ferries to and from Saint Maarten are the only other real option (although the passage from St. Martin to St. Barth is often rough), unless one is arriving by private charter boats/yachts.
Sports
The junior national French surf champion from Lorient, was named recently in the winner of 2006.
St. Barths is home to the St. Barths Bucket, an annual sailing race around the island.
Modeling
The tropical location and natural beauty of St. Bart's makes it a prime location for modeling photo shoots, particulary for swimwear publications such as the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, which featured the island in its 1991 edition. St. Bart's was also the location of Brande Roderick's 2001 Playmate of the Year pictorial for Playboy.
Bibliography
External links
Government
Historical and botanical information
General information*
See also
External links
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