Country Profiles: The Bahamas

The Bahamas is located in the Caribbean Sea. The islands were inhabited by Lucayan Indians before British settlement began in 1647. The Bahamas gained independence from the U.K. in 1973. With an area of 13,880 sq km, it is slightly smaller than the U.S. State of Connecticut.

The islands are surrounded by the Caribbean Sea. They are long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills.





People who live in the Bahamas are called Bahamian, which is also the adjective used to describe items from this country. As of July 2011, there are 313,312 people in the Bahamas. The official language of the Bahamas is English, though Creole is also spoken among the Haitian immigrants. Protestants make up approximately 68% of the population, with Catholics (14%) and other Christians (15%) also residing on the islands.

The official name of the Bahamas is the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. The capital is Nassau, and the islands are made up of 31 districts. The constitution, which was drafted in 1973, can be located here. The current Prime Minister of The Bahamas is Hubert Ingraham. Information about the current leaders of The Bahamas can be found here. The currency of The Bahamas is the Bahamian dollar (abbreviated BSD), which stands at 1 BSD per USD as of 2009.





All of this information was gathered from the CIA World Factbook. For more information, check out these resources...

The Government of The Bahamas

The Bahamas, CIA World Factbook

Background Note: The Bahamas, U.S. Department of State

The Bahamas 2010 Country Report on Human Rights Practices, U.S. Department of State

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