27 Facts About Dominica

Dominica, officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is a Caribbean island country.

Roseau, the island's capital, is located on the western side of the island.

Dominica is an island country in North America's eastern Caribbean Sea.

Dominica was named Waitikubuli by the Caribs who settled there in the 14th century, which means 'Tall is her Body.'

Christopher Columbus named the island Dominica after the day of the week he discovered it in 1493: Sunday - or Domingo in Latin.

Dominica was the Caribbean island's final European colony. The fierce resistance of the native Kalinago people was largely responsible for this.

Dominica now has the East Caribbean's largest indigenous population. Dominica still has about 3,000 Kalinago (also known as "Caribs" by colonists).

Dominica's mountainous terrain provided a safe haven for the Kalinago people during attacks by early colonists.

Britain and France attempted to take control of Dominica several times during the 1600s, but eventually agreed to abandon the island in 1660.

However, following the end of the Seven Years' War in 1763, Britain took possession of Dominica.

Dominica's national symbol is a rare bird native to the island, the sisserou parrot.

Dominica's flag is green, representing the island's forests. A ring of ten stars in the centre represents the island's parishes. The yellow, white, and black cross represents the Carib, Caucasian, and African people, as well as the fruits, rivers, waterfalls, and fertile soil of the country. A sisserou parrot sits in the centre.

Dominica became the Caribbean's first and only British colony to have a black-controlled legislature in 1838. This was suspended in 1865, and Britain re-established Dominica as a crown colony government in 1896.

Dominica gained complete independence in 1978, with Patrick John as Prime Minister.

The Caribbean's first long-distance hiking trail is located on Dominica. The Waitukubuli National Trail (WNT) spans 183 kilometres (115 miles) and is divided into 14 sections.

In Dominica, you can see and even swim with the world's largest toothed predator, the sperm whale.

Dominica was hit by Hurricane David in 1979, which had winds of 150 mph. At least 37 people were killed, and 60,000 homes were destroyed, accounting for nearly 75% of the total population.

Dominica was devastated by Category 5 Hurricane Maria in 2017. 95% of the buildings were damaged or destroyed, 99% of the island's power was out, over 50,000 people were displaced, and at least 31 people were killed.

Dominica has nine active volcanoes, but there hasn't been a major eruption since 1997, and the last one was in 1880.

Dominica has the highest concentration of active volcanoes in the world.

Dominica is home to the world's second-largest boiling lake. It is actually a flooded crack in the earth that allows hot gases to vent from the molten lava below, and it was discovered in 1875.

Dominica is home to the "mountain chicken," an endangered species of frog. The frog, which was only found on Dominica and nearby Montserrat, was a delicacy among islanders because it tasted like chicken. However, after a fungus wiped out nearly 80% of the island's population in the early 2000s, the species is now protected.

Dominica's rain forest covers two-thirds of the island.

Dominica has a river for every day of the year, a total of 365.

Dominica is known as the "Nature Island" because of its diverse geographic features, which include rivers, waterfalls, mountains, forests, and volcanoes.

Dominica has the 15th highest murder rate in the world, with 25.7 intentional homicides per 100,000 people.

The Dominican economy has been reliant on banana exports for decades. It has recently shifted towards tourism as the government tries to promote Dominica as a "ecotourism" destination.