Dutch Caribbean

Dutch Caribbean

Flag of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Location of the Dutch Caribbean islands:   Aruba   Curaçao   Sint Maarten   Caribbean Netherlands (from left to right): Bonaire Saba Sint Eustatius
Area	999 km2 (386 sq mi)
Population (2010)	304,759
Density	305 /km2 (790 /sq mi)
Languages	Dutch, English, Papiamento
Government	3 constituent countries 3 special municipalities

The term Dutch Caribbean refers to the islands of the Kingdom of the Netherlands that are located in the Caribbean and their inhabitants,^{[citation needed]} and in the past also to Dutch territory on the northern coast of South America.^{[citation needed]}

Three of the six main islands presently under Dutch sovereignty are constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands: Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten (which actually comprises only the southern half of the island of Saint Martin). The three remaining islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba are special municipalities of the Netherlands, which is the fourth constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (and mainly located in Europe). These are collectively known as the Caribbean Netherlands. There are also several smaller islands, like Klein Curaçao and Klein Bonaire, that belong to one of the island countries or special municipalities.

All the islands have formerly been part of the Netherlands Antilles. Aruba gained autonomy much earlier than the other islands, seceding as a separate country in 1986. Curaçao and Sint Maarten followed upon the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010, while Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba were integrated into the Netherlands proper instead.

Islands

Main articles: Kingdom of the Netherlands and Caribbean Netherlands

There are several acronyms that indicate groups of islands of the Dutch Caribbean:

• ABC islands, for Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao;
• BES islands, for Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba;
• SSS islands, for Saba, Saint Martin and Sint Eustatius.

Dutch Caribbean islands

	Name	Population (1 Jan 2010)	Area (km²)	Population density (inh. per km²)	Source
Countries	Aruba	107,138	193	555	[i]
	Curaçao	142,180	444	320	[ii]
	Sint Maarten	37,429	34	1,101	[ii]
Special municipalities (part of the Netherlands)	Bonaire	13,389	294	46	[ii]
	Sint Eustatius	2,886	21	137	[ii]
	Saba	1,737	13	134	[ii]
	Total:	304,759	999	305
^ Central Bureau of Statistics (Aruba) ^ a b c d e Central Bureau of Statistics - population and area (former Netherlands Antilles)

Map of the Dutch Caribbean islands.

See also

• Netherlands Antilles