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VIRGIN ISLANDS

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Originally appearing in Volume V28, Page 126 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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VIRGIN ISLANDS , a See also:

GROUP

group of small islands in the See also:

West Indies, about See also:

LOO (formerly called " Lanterloo," Fr. lanturlu, the refrain of a popular 17th-century song)

loo in number, for the most See also:

PART

part uninhabited. They extend E. from Puerto Rico, lying between 17° and 18° 50' N., and 64° 1o' and 65° 3o' W., their See also:

TOTAL

total See also:

AREA

area being about 465 sq. m. The islands are mostly rocky, or sandy and barren, but such portions as are under cultivation yield See also:

SUGAR

sugar, See also:

MAIZE, or INDIAN CORN

maize, See also:

COFFEE (Fr: cafe, Ger. Kaffee)

coffee, See also:

cotton and See also:

INDIGO (earlier indico, from Lat. indicum, the Indian sub-stance or dye; the Sans. name was niti, from nila, dark blue, and this through Arab. al-nil, annil, gives " aniline ")

indigo. See also:

GUINEA

Guinea grass grows abundantly on the hillsides, affording excellent pasturage; the forests,though few, include the See also:

MAHOGANY

mahogany and other useful trees. The coasts abound with See also:

fish. The See also:

CLIMATE

climate is more healthy than that of the other West See also:

INDIAN

Indian islands, and the See also:

HEAT (0. E. haktu, which like " hot," Old Eng. hat, is from the Teutonic type haita, hit, to be hot; cf. Ger. hitze, heiss; Dutch, hitte, heet, &c.)

heat is not so See also:

GREAT

great. Some of the islands belong to the See also:

UNITED

United States, some to See also:

Denmark and some to Great See also:

BRITAIN (Gr. Hperavuml vi7vot, Bperravia; Lat. Britannia, rarely Britannia)

Britain. The United States' possessions (once dependencies of Puerto Rico, but ceded by See also:

Spain in 1898) have an area of about 150 sq. m. and include See also:

CULEBRA

Culebra or Snake See also:

ISLAND (O.E. ieg =isle, +land')

Island, and Vieques or Crab Island. The See also:

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief Danish islands are St See also:

Thomas (q.v.), St Croix (q.v.) and St See also:

John (q.v.), the total area being about 240 sq. m. Of the See also:

BRITISH

British portion of the group the See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal are Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, See also:

JOST, ISAAK MARKUS (1793–1860)

Jost See also:

VAN

van Dyke, See also:

Peter's Island and See also:

Salt Island, in all numbering 32, with an area of 58 sq. m. With the exception of the island of See also:

SOMBRERO

Sombrero they See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form one of the five presidencies in the See also:

COLONY (Lat. colonia, from colonus, a cultivator)

colony of the Leeward Islands. The inhabitants are See also:

PEASANT (O. Fr. paysant, Mod. paysan; Lat. pagensis, belonging to the pagus or country; cf. " pagan ")

peasant proprietors, mainly engaged in raising See also:

CATTLE (Norman Fr. catel, from Late Lat. capitale, wealth or property, a word applied in the feudal system to movable property and particularly to live stock, and surviving in its wider meaning as " chattel " or " chattle ")

cattle and in burning See also:

CHARCOAL

charcoal, but some are fishermen and boatmen.

The chief See also:

TOWN

town is Roadtown (pop. 400) at the See also:

head of a splendid See also:

HARBOUR (from M.E. hereberge, here, an army; cf. Ger. Heer and -beorg, protection or shelter. Other early forms in English were herberwe and haiborow, as seen in various place names, such as Market Harborough.. The French auberge, an inn, derived through

harbour on the S. of Tortola, and what See also:

trade there is is mostly with St Thomas. Sombrero is maintained as a lighthouse by the British See also:

government. See also:

POPULATION (Lat. populus, people; populare, to populate)

Population of the See also:

PRESIDENCY

presidency, mostly negroes (1891) 4639; (1901) 4908. The Virgin Islands were discovered by See also:

Columbus in his second voyage, in 1494, and named See also:

LAS

Las VirgPnes, in See also:

HONOUR (Lat. honos or lwnor, honoris; in English the word was spelled with or without the u indifferently until the 17th century, but during the 18th century it became fashion-able to spell the word " honor "; Johnson's and Webster's Dictionaries stereoty

honour of St See also:

URSULA, ST

Ursula and her companions. In 1666 the British established them- selves on Tortola, which has ever since remained in their See also:

possession. In the 17th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century the Virgin Islands were favourite resorts of the See also:

BUCCANEERS

buccaneers. The Danish islands of St Thomas and St John were taken by the British in 18o1, but restored in the following See also:

YEAR

year. In 1807 they surrendered to the British, and continued in their hands till 1815, when they were again restored.

End of Article: VIRGIN ISLANDS

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