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The ABC islands[1] are Aruba, Bonaire and Cura ao. They are the three western-most islands of the Leeward Antilles in the Caribbean, north of Falc n State, Venezuela. From west to east they are, in order: Aruba, Cura ao, Bonaire. All three islands are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, although they remain outside the European Union. Aruba and Cura ao are autonomous, self-governing constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, while Bonaire is a special municipality of the Netherlands.
History Some think that the ABC islands were first discovered by one of Christopher Columbus' captains, Alonso de Ojeda, who landed on Cura ao in May of 1499. He is said to have called the islands Las islas de los Gigantes or Islands of the Giants due to the native inhabitants, the Caiquetio Indians. Officially they were discovered by Amerigo Vespucci, whose cartographer Juan de la Cosa first described the islands. The first Spanish colonists, unable to find any gold or silver, kidnapped most of the natives to work on plantation on Hispaniola. By 1527 the Spanish had formed a government and established Catholicism on the islands. In 1634 the Netherlands fought Spain over control of the islands. They won, and the islands became administered by the Netherlands. The Dutch West India Company developed the areas, establishing a major port on Cura ao. The abolition of the slave trade in 1863 had a devastating impact on their economies, although the economy revived when oil was discovered in Venezuela during the early 1900's, and the islands became major oil refineries. The islands became part of the Netherlands Antilles in 1954, granting them political autonomy within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In 1986 Aruba withdrew from the Netherlands Antilles, becoming a separate country within the kingdom.[2] Upon the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles on 10 October 2010, Cura ao gained a similar status to Aruba. Bonaire became a special municipality of the Netherlands proper, although it currently maintains its status of an overseas territory of the European Union. Geography The Lesser Antilles: the Leeward Islands in the North; the Windward Islands in the south; and the Leeward Antilles in the west The ABC islands are part of the Leeward Antilles, which is the westernmost area of the Lesser Antilles. They lie immediately to the north of Falc n State, Venezuela. Due to their political history, they are sometimes considered to be part of North America along with the other Caribbean islands, although they lie on South America's geographical plate. ABC does not indicate the geographical order to each other, from west to east the islands are Aruba, Cura ao, Bonaire. Aruba is a flat island, exposed to the ocean currents. Bonaire and Cura ao are surrounded by reefs, and so are much more sheltered from the weather. Both Bonaire and Cura ao's reefs form popular tourist destinations. Environment Bonaire is known for being a "Diving Paradise", with ecotourism playing a large part in its economy. The islands have a huge variety of wildlife, famously including flamingoes and 4 species of sea turtle.[2] Demographics Mestizos and Afro-Caribbeans make up a large proportion of the islands populations. Recently there has been substantial immigration from Latin America. Language Dutch has been the official language of the islands for most of their history. A unique creole language has developed there known as Papiamento.[3] Unlike other creole languages, Papiamento is not decreasing in usage, and was made an official language on 7 March 2007.[4] Papiamento's origins are debated, a dispute arising on whether it originates from Portuguese or Spanish. Today it is heavily influenced by Spanish and English. Politics Aruba and Cura ao are autonomous countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which have their own parliament and prime minister. Bonaire is a "special municipality" of the Netherlands proper, and subject to Netherlands law. See also References External links af:ABC-eilande ca:Illes ABC cy:Ynysoedd ABC da:ABC- erne de:ABC-Inseln es:Islas ABC eo:ABC-insuloj fo:ABC-oyggjarnar fr: les ABC (Antilles) fy:ABC-eilannen hr:ABC-otoci it:Isole ABC (Antille) hu:ABC-szigetek (Kis-Antill k) nl:ABC-eilanden (Antillen) ja:ABC frr:ABC-eilunen no:ABC- yene (De sm Antiller) nn:ABC- yane i Dei sm Antillane pap:Islanan ABC pl:Wyspy ABC pt:Ilhas ABC ru: ABC fi:ABC-saaret (Alankomaat) sv:ABC- arna tr:ABC Adalar uk: ABC zh-yue:ABC
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