Barbados. History. People and economy

Of all the islands in the West Indies, Barbados is the most British in character. Like London itself, the capital city of Bridgetown has a Trafalgar Square, as well as a Nelson's Column even older than its better-known counterpart across the sea. The distinct British flavor of Barbados, along with its beautiful landscape, gives the island a unique and special charm.

Passengers keep cool in an open-sided bus in Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados. Many of the graceful buildings in this busy port date from the time the British ruled the island.

Most of Barbados is flat, with a high, rugged region lying in the middle of the northeast coast. The land descends from this region to a lowland plateau that stretches to the coast all around the island. Fine sandy beaches extend along the west and southwest coasts.

Little of the island's original vegetation remains, and most of Barbados' land is covered by vast fields of sugar cane. But at Turner's Hall Woods and Welchman Hall Gully, in the interior of the island, small patches of the tropical rain forest that once covered Barbados still survive. Many vine-covered trees, including locust, mastic, Spanish oak, and kapok, tower over the land and the rain forest provides shelter for such introduced animals as wild green monkeys, hares, mongooses, and colorful tropical birds.

History. British settlers arrived in Barbados in 1625, and the first permanent British settlement was established in 1627. In 1639, the landowners of Barbados elected a House of Assembly. The new colony prospered, and many British families settled on the island in the 1700's and 1800's.

In 1958, Barbados joined the West Indies Federation, a union of British islands in the West Indies. But the federation broke up in 1962, when Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago became independent.

Barbados itself became an independent nation in 1966. Over the next 1 years, the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) held the majority of the seats in the House of Assembly, but in 1976, the Labor Party won a majority of seats. It was not until 1986 that parliamentary elections returned the DLP to power. In 1994 and 1999, Owen Arthur of the Labor Party was elected prime minister.

People and economy. Barbados is one of the most densely populated islands in the world. About 80 per cent of the people arc descended from slaves brought to the island from Africa between 1636 and 1833, when slavery was abolished there. More than 15 per cent of the people are of mixed African and British ancestry. About 4 per cent are of European—chiefly British—descent.

A Barbadian farmer inspects his sugar-cane crop as Caribbean waves break on a reef in the background. More than half the nation's farmland is used to grow sugar. Processing plants on the island produce refined sugar, molasses, and rum from the sugar cane.

Barbados' economy is based on manufacturing and processing, tourism, and agriculture. Sugar cane, introduced to the island about 1640, is the country's chief agricultural product. In May, at the peak of the sugar-harvesting season, most of the island's farmers work on the sugar plantations. The islanders also raise carrots, corn, sweet potatoes, and yams.