Back St. Lucia Afrikaans St. Lucia ALS ሰይንት ሉሻ Amharic Saint Lucia AMI Santa Lucia (Antillas) AN Sancte Lucia ANG सेंट लूसिया ANP سانت لوسيا Arabic سانط لوسيا ARY سانت لوسيا ARZ
Saint Lucia Sent Lisi (Saint Lucian Creole French) | |
|---|---|
| Motto: "The Land, The People, The Light" | |
| Anthem: "Sons and Daughters of Saint Lucia" | |
.svg) Location of Saint Lucia (circled in red) in the Caribbean | |
 | |
| Capital and largest city | Castries 13°53′00″N 60°58′00″W / 13.88333°N 60.96667°W[1] |
| Official languages | English |
| Vernacular languages | Saint Lucian Creole French[2] |
| Ethnic groups (2020[3]) | |
| Religion (2020)[4] |
|
| Demonym(s) | Saint Lucian |
| Government | Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
• Monarch | Charles III |
| Errol Charles (acting) | |
| Philip J. Pierre | |
| Legislature | Parliament |
| Senate | |
| House of Assembly | |
| Independence | |
| 1 March 1967 | |
• Independence from the United Kingdom | 22 February 1979 |
| Area | |
• Total | 617 km2 (238 sq mi) (178th) |
• Water (%) | 1.6 |
| Population | |
• 2018 estimate |  178,696[5] (177th) |
• 2010 census | 165,595 |
• Density | 299.4/km2 (775.4/sq mi) (29th) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2023 estimate |
• Total |  $3.452 billion[6] (182nd) |
• Per capita | $18,972[6] (90th) |
| GDP (nominal) | 2023 estimate |
• Total | $2.469 billion[6] (186th) |
• Per capita | $13,572[6] (70th) |
| Gini (2016) | 51.2[7] high |
| HDI (2021) |  0.715[8]high (106th) |
| Currency | E.C Dollar (XCD) |
| Time zone | UTC−4 (AST) |
| Driving side | left |
| Calling code | +1 758 |
| ISO 3166 code | LC |
| Internet TLD | .lc |
Saint Lucia (/ˈluːʃə/ LOO-shə; Saint Lucian Creole French: Sent Lisi) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean.[9] The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs (respectively), two Amerindian peoples.[10] Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 617 km2 (238 square miles) with an estimated population of over 180,000 people as of 2018. The nation's capital and largest city is Castries.
The first proven inhabitants of the island, the Arawaks, are believed to have first settled in 200–400 AD. Around 800 AD, the island would be taken over by the Kalinago. The French were the first Europeans to settle on the island, and they signed a treaty with the native Caribs in 1660. England took control of the island in 1663. In ensuing years, England and France fought 14 times for control of the island, and the rule of the island changed frequently. Eventually, the British took full control in 1814, after the fall of Emperor Napoleon.[11] Because the island switched so often between British and French control, Saint Lucia was also known as the "Helen of the West" after the Greek mythological character, Helen of Troy.[12]
Representative government was introduced in 1924 with universal suffrage being established in 1951.[13] From 1958 to 1962, the island was a member of the West Indies Federation. On 22 February 1979, Saint Lucia became an independent state, while remaining as a Commonwealth realm.[9]
Saint Lucia is a member of the United Nations, the Organisation of American States, the World Trade Organization, CARICOM and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). It is also a member of Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.[14]
- ^ Saint Lucia in Geonames.org (cc-by)
- ^ "About St. Lucia". Castries, St. Lucia: St. Lucia Tourist Board. Archived from the original on 5 June 2013.
The official language spoken in Saint Lucia is English although many Saint Lucians also speak a French dialect, Creole (Kwéyòl).
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
CIAStLuciawas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Religions in St Lucia | PEW-GRF". Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- ^ "Home". The Central Statistical Office of Saint Lucia. Archived from the original on 26 September 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
- ^ a b c d "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2023 Edition. (Saint Lucia)". IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. 10 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ "Gini Index coefficient". CIA World Factbook. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
- ^ "Human Development Report 2021/2022" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
- ^ a b "The Saint Lucia Constitution" (1978-December-20 effective 1979-February-22), Government of St. Lucia, December 2008.
- ^ Hyacinth-Gideon, C. (29 July 2014). Saint Lucia. Author House. ISBN 978-1-4969-8483-8.
- ^ "Saint Lucia". CARICOM. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
- ^ "History of Saint Lucia". embassyofsaintlucia. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
- ^ "Election Timeline of Saint Lucia". 13 September 2023.
- ^ "Human development indices" (PDF). Undp.org. 2008. Archived from the original on 12 January 2012.
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