The Virgin Islands are an archipelago, part of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean Sea. The Leeward Islands are the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles, where the Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean.
The Virgin Islands are divided into two political entities. In the east, Anegada, Jost Van Dyke, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, and over fifty other smaller islands constitute the British Virgin Islands, an overseas territory of the United Ki...
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The Virgin Islands are an archipelago, part of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean Sea. The Leeward Islands are the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles, where the Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean.
The Virgin Islands are divided into two political entities. In the east, Anegada, Jost Van Dyke, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, and over fifty other smaller islands constitute the British Virgin Islands, an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. In the west, St. Croix, St. John, St. Thomas, and Water Island form the United States Virgin Islands, an unincorporated territory of the United States.
Christopher Columbus named the islands Santa Ursula y las Once Mil Vírgenes, shortened to Las Vírgenes, after Saint Ursula and her 11,000 virgins. They were inhabited by the Arawak, Carib and Cermic, all of whom died out during the colonial period from disease, harsh labor conditions, and murder.
Later, the islands were re-populated by European colonists, who established sugar...
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