Did you Know?

1. The Bahamas is an archipelago of 700 islands that extends southeast of Florida, and northeast of Cuba in the Atlantic Ocean in the West Indies.

2. The population stands at approx. 300,000 people. 85% are of African ancestry.

3.When Christopher Columbus set sail for the new world in 1492, he arrived on San Salvador island in the Bahamas. He thought he had discovered India, but he later realized that he had found a new land, he referred to it as India of the West, known today as the West Indies.

4.The Bahamas has the 3rd largest barrier reef in the world behind Australia and Belize.

5.The official dish is anything made with conch ie. stew conch, crack conch (deep fried and battered conch), conch salad etc.

6.The major religous denominations are Baptists, Anglican, and Church of God.

7.Sidney Poitier the famous actor is Bahamian. His first 14 years were spent on the island of Cat Island in the eastern Bahamas.

8. We gained independance from Great Britain in 1973.

9.Our major cultural festival is called Junkanoo, a festival drawn from the days of slavery, when slaves were given a day off for Christmas.

10.Nassau, the capital is situated on the island of New Providence in the central Bahamas.