What did the British call the Caribbean?
What did the British call the Caribbean? Along with a number of colonies in North America, the Caribbean formed the heart of England's first overseas empire. The region was also known as the 'West Indies' because when the explorer Christopher Columbus first arrived there in 1492, he believed that he had sailed to the 'Indies', as Asia was then known.
Why do they call it Caribbean?
Caribbean means “of or pertaining to the Caribs” and comes from the Spanish word for Caribbean: Caribe. Caribs or Island Caribs are names used to refer to the Indigenous people of the Lesser Antilles.
What was the Caribbean called before?
Along with a number of colonies in North America, the Caribbean formed the heart of England's first overseas empire. The region was also known as the 'West Indies' because when the explorer Christopher Columbus first arrived there in 1492, he believed that he had sailed to the 'Indies', as Asia was then known.
Why is Caribbean English so different?
English is the official language of the island, with a distinctive Creole or Caribbean English spoken widely. The English and creole spoken on the island contain elements of Carib, African, English, French, Spanish and Portuguese languages, and reflect the diverse ethnic and linguistic origins of the people.
Which countries are called caribbeans?
The Caribbean is home to thirteen sovereign island nations: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago (on the continental shelf of South America).