Geography of T&T

History
 The Greater Antilles
• The Greater Antilles are the four largest islands in the northwestern portion of
the Caribbean Sea.
 This includes Cuba, Hispaniola (the nations of Haiti and the Dominican Republic), Jamaica,
and Puerto Rico.
• In total, the Greater Antilles make up almost 90% of the land in the West Indies.
• Cuba is the largest single island in the Caribbean.
• During the colonial period, the island of Hispaniola was divided into 2.
• One half belonging to the Spanish (Santo Domingo)
• The other half belonging to the French (Haiti)
 The Lesser Antilles
• The Lesser Antilles include the smaller islands of the Caribbean to the south and east of the Great
Antilles.
• It begins just off the coast of Puerto Rico with the British and U.S. Virgin Islands and extends south to
Grenada.
 Trinidad and Tobago, just off the Venezuelan coast, are also included,
 As is the east-west chain of islands that stretches to Aruba.
• The Lesser Antilles are further divided into two groups:
• the Windward Islands
• the Leeward Islands.
• A number of the Lesser Antilles islands are dependent on (or territories of) larger countries, including
the United States, United Kingdom, Netherlands, and France.
• Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao are known as the 'ABC" islands and are territories of the Netherlands.
 Trinidad and Tobago
• Trinidad and Tobago are the southernmost islands of the Caribbean archipelago,
and are geologically an extension of the South American continent
• The climate of Trinidad and Tobago is tropical, so it is warm all year there.
 The average temperature ranges from 73 to 90 degrees.
• There are two seasons:
 a dry season from January to May
 a rainy season from June to December.
• Fortunately the islands are not in the usual path of Atlantic hurricanes
 Trinidad
• There are three low mountain ranges that run east to west across Trinidad with a large plain in between where
sugar cane was grown.
 Parts of the east and west coasts of the island are swamps.
• The highest point on the islands is El Cerro del Aripo, located in the northern mountain range on Trinidad.
 Much of the north of the island is covered in forests.
• Major Towns:
 Port of Spain (capital)
 San Fernando
 Arima
 Point Fortin
 Chaguanas
 Tobago
• Tobago has beautiful white sand beaches because of the coral located
around the island.
• The center of the island is hilly and the south and west coasts are flat.
• Major Towns:
 Scarborough
 Roxborough
 Charlotteville
 Research
• What are the French place names in Trinidad?

• What are the English place names in Trinidad?