Barbados is a Portuguese word for bearded-ones, situated just east of the Caribbean Sea, is an independent Continental Island-nation in the western Atlantic Ocean, 13° North of the equator and 59° West of Greenwich, the prime meridian. It is considered a part of the Lesser Antilles. Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados now shares a fixed official maritime boundary. Barbados's total land area is about 430 square kilometres (166 square miles), and is primarily low-lying, with some higher regions in the country's interior. The geological composition of Barbados is of non-volcanic origin and is predominantly composed of limestone-coral formed by subduction of the South American plate colliding with the Caribbean plate. The island's climate is tropical, with constant trade winds off the Atlantic Ocean serving to keep temperatures mild. Some less developed areas of the country contain tropical woodland and mangroves. Other parts of the interior which contribute to the agriculture industry are dotted with large sugarcane estates and wide, gently sloping pastures, with panoramic views down to the coast also. Barbados's human development index ranking is consistently among the top 75 countries in the world. For example, in 2006, it was ranked 31st in the world, and third in the Americas, behind Canada and the US.

Etymology. According to accounts by descendants of the aboriginal Arawak tribes on other local islands, the original name for Barbados was Ichirouganaim (I‘m so pleased it changed). The origin of the name "Barbados" is controversial. The Portuguese, en route to Brazil are credited as the first Europeans to discover and name the island. It is a matter of conjecture whether the word "bearded" refers to the long, hanging roots of the bearded fig-tree (Ficus citrifolia), indigenous to the island, to bearded Caribs inhabiting the island, or to the foam spraying over the outlying reefs giving the impression of a beard. In 1519, a map produced by the Genoese mapmaker Vesconte de Maggiola showed and named Barbados in its correct position southeast of the island of Dominica.

Early history

The first indigenous people are thought to be Amerindians who arrived from Venezuela around approximately 350-400 B.C. The Arawak people were the second wave of migrants, arriving from South America around 800. In the thirteenth century, the Caribs arrived from South America in the third wave, displacing both the Arawak and the Salodoid-Barrancoid culture. For the next few centuries, the Caribs - like the Arawak and the Salodoid-Barrancoid - lived in isolation on the island. The Portuguese then briefly claimed Barbados from the mid-1500s to the 1600s; and may have seized the indigenous Caribs on Barbados and used them as slave labour. Other Caribs are believed to have fled the island to neighbouring islands. Apart from possibly displacing the Caribs, the Portuguese left little impact and by the 1610s, they left for South America, leaving the island uninhabited.

British sailors who landed on Barbados in 1625 arrived at the site of present-day Holetown. At the time it was inhabited only by natives who descended from those left behind by the Portuguese. From the arrival of the first British settlers in 1627–1628 until independence in 1966, Barbados was under uninterrupted British control. Nevertheless, Barbados always enjoyed a large measure of local autonomy. Its House of Assembly began meeting in 1639. Among the initial important British figures was Sir William Courten. With the increased implementation of slave codes, which created differential treatment between Africans and the white workers and planters, the island became increasingly unattractive to poor whites. Black or slave codes were implemented in 1661, 1676, 1682, and 1688. In response to these codes, several slave rebellions were attempted or planned during this time, but none succeeded. However, an increasingly repressive legal system caused the gap between the treatment of typically white indentured servants and black slaves to widen. Imported slaves became much more attractive for the rich planters who would increasingly dominate the island not only economically but also politically. Some have speculated that, because the Africans could withstand tropical diseases and the climate much better than the white slave population, the white population decreased. This is inconsistent with the fact that many poor whites simply migrated to neighbouring islands and remained in tropical climates. Nevertheless, poor whites who had or acquired the means to emigrate often did so. Planters expanded their importation of African slaves to cultivate sugar cane. The Barbados turned from mainly English and Scots-Irish in the seventeenth century to overwhelmingly black by the end of the 18th century.

Barbados eventually had one of the world's biggest sugar industries after Jews from Brazil introduced the sugarcane to the island in the mid 1600s. This quickly replaced tobacco plantations on the islands which were previously the main export. As the sugar industry developed into its main commercial enterprise, Barbados was divided into large plantation estates that replaced the smallholdings of the early British settlers. Some of the displaced farmers moved to other British colonies in the Americas, most notably North and South Carolina, and British Guiana, as well as Panama. To work the plantations, planters imported enslaved West Africans to Barbados and other Caribbean islands. The British abolished the slave trade in 1807 but not the institution itself. In 1816, slaves arose in the largest major slave rebellion in the island's history. Twenty thousand slaves from over seventy plantations rebelled. They drove whites off the plantations, but widespread killings did not take place. This was later termed “Bussa's Rebellion” after the slave ranger Bussa, who with his assistants hated slavery, found the treatment of slaves on Barbados to be “intolerable,” and believed the political climate in the UK made the time ripe to peacefully negotiate with planters for freedom. Bussa's Rebellion failed. One hundred and twenty slaves died in combat or were immediately executed; another 144 were brought to trial and executed; remaining rebels were shipped off the island.

Slavery was finally abolished in the British Empire eighteen years later in 1834. In Barbados and the rest of the British West Indian colonies, full emancipation from slavery was preceded by an apprenticeship period that lasted four years.

In 1884, the Barbados Agricultural Society sent a letter to Sir Francis Hincks requesting his private and public views on whether the Dominion of Canada would favourably entertain having the then colony of Barbados admitted as a member of the Canadian Confederation. Asked of Canada were the terms of the Canadian side to initiate discussions, and whether or not the island of Barbados could depend on the full influence of Canada in getting the change agreed to by the UK. Then in 1952 the Barbados Advocate newspaper polled several prominent Barbadian politicians, lawyers, businessmen, the Speaker of the Barbados House of Assembly and later as first President of the Senate, Sir Theodore Branker, Q.C. and found them to be in favour of immediate federation of Barbados along with the rest of the British Caribbean with complete Dominion Status within five years from the date of inauguration of the West Indies Federation with Canada. However, plantation owners and merchants of British descent still dominated local politics, owing to the high income qualification required for voting. More than 70% of the population, many of them disenfranchised women, were excluded from the democratic process. It was not until the 1930s that the descendants of emancipated slaves began a movement for political rights. One of the leaders of this movement, Sir Grantley Adams, founded the Barbados Labour Party in 1938, then known as the Barbados Progressive League. A staunch supporter of the monarchy, Adams and his party demanded more rights for the poor and for the people. Progress toward a more democratic government in Barbados was made in 1942, when the exclusive income qualification was lowered and women were given the right to vote. By 1949 governmental control was wrested from the planters and, in 1958, Adams became Premier of Barbados. From 1958 to 1962, Barbados was one of the ten members of the West Indies Federation, an organisation doomed by nationalistic attitudes and by the fact that its members, as British colonies, held limited legislative power. Adams served as its first and only "Premier", but his leadership failed in attempts to form similar unions, and his continued defence of the monarchy was used by his opponents as evidence that he was no longer in touch with the needs of his country. Errol Walton Barrow, a fervent reformer, became the new people's advocate. Barrow had left the BLP and formed the Democratic Labour Party as a liberal alternative to Adams' conservative government. Barrow instituted many progressive social programmes, such as free education for all Barbadians, and the School Meals system. By 1961, Barrow had replaced Adams as Premier and the DLP controlled the government. With the Federation dissolved, Barbados had reverted to its former status, that of a self-governing colony. The island negotiated its own independence at a constitutional conference with the United Kingdom in June 1966. After years of peaceful and democratic progress, Barbados finally became an independent state on the 30th November 1966, with Errol Barrow its first Prime Minister. Upon independence Barbados maintained historical linkages with Britain by establishing membership to the Commonwealth of Nations grouping, a year later Barbados' International linkages were expanded by obtaining membership to the United Nations and the Organisation of American States.

Government and politics. Barbados has been an independent country since 30 November 1966. It functions as a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, modelled on the British Westminster system, with Elizabeth II, Queen of Barbados, as head of state represented locally by the Governor-General, Clifford Husbands and the Prime Minister as the head of the government. Its Parliament comprises thirty seats. It has been proposed that Barbados become a republic; this issue is still being debated, as the island has been stable and governmentally autonomous for decades.

Barbados is extremely small for a Caribbean island. Relatively flat, it rises gently to the central highland region, the highest point being Mount Hillaby, in the Scotland District, at 340 meters (1,100 ft) above sea level. Barbados is often spared the worst effects of the region's tropical storms and hurricanes during the rainy season as its far eastern location in the Atlantic Ocean puts it just outside the principal hurricane strike zone, and a hurricane hits about every 26 years. The last significant hit from a hurricane to cause severe damage to Barbados was Hurricane Janet in 1955. In the parish of Saint Michael lies Barbados' capital and main city, Bridgetown. Locally Bridgetown is sometimes referred to as "The City", but the most common reference is simply "Town". Other towns scattered across the island include Holetown, in the parish of Saint James; Oistins, in the parish of Christ Church, and Speightstown, in the parish of Saint Peter.

It is geologically composed of coral (90 m/300 ft thick). The land falls in a series of "terraces" in the west and goes into an incline in the east. Most of Barbados is circled by coral reefs. The climate is moderate tropical with two seasons: dry and wet. The dry season (December–May) and wet season (June–November) gives an annual rainfall of 40-90 inches (1,000–2,300 mm).

Economy. Historically, the economy of Barbados had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but in recent years it has diversified into the manufacturing and tourism sectors. Offshore finance and information services have become important foreign exchange earners, and there is a healthy light manufacturing sector. In recent years the Government has been seen as business-friendly and economically sound. Since the late 1990s the island has seen a construction boom, with the development and redevelopment of hotels, office complexes, and homes. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, encourage direct foreign investment, and privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. Unemployment has been reduced from around 14 percent in the past to under 10 percent. The economy contracted in 2001 and 2002 due to slowdowns in tourism, consumer spending and the impact of the September 11^th 2001 attacks, but rebounded in 2003 and has shown growth since 2004. Traditional trading partners include Canada, the Caribbean Community (especially Trinidad and Tobago), the United Kingdom and the United States. Business links and investment flows have become substantial: as of 2003 the island saw from Canada C$25 billion in investment holdings, placing it as one of Canada's top five destinations for Canadian Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Businessman Eugene Melnyk of Toronto, Canada, is said to be Barbados' richest permanent resident. It was thought by key Barbadian industry sources that the year 2006 would have been one of the busiest years for building construction ever in Barbados, as the building-boom on the island entered the final stages for several multi-million dollar projects.

Transport on the island is good, with 'route taxis', called "ZR's" (pronounced "Zed-Rs" not "Zee-Rs"), travelling to most points on the island. These small buses can at times be crowded, as passengers are generally never turned down, regardless of the their amount. However, they will usually take the more scenic routes to destinations. They generally depart from the capital Bridgetown or from Speightstown in the northern part of the island. The island of Barbados's lone airport is the Sir Grantley Adams International Airport (IATA identifier BGI). It receives daily flights by several major airlines from points around the globe, as well as several smaller regional commercial airlines and charters. The airport serves as the main air-transportation hub for the Eastern Caribbean. It is undergoing a US$100 million upgrade and expansion. There are three bus systems running seven days a week (though less frequently on Sundays), and a ride on any of them costs $1.50 BBD. The smaller buses from the two privately-owned systems ("ZRs" and "minibuses") can give change; the larger blue and yellow buses from the government-operated Barbados Transport Board system cannot. Most routes require a connection in Bridgetown. Some drivers within the competitive privately owned systems are reluctant to advise persons to use competing services, even if those would be more suitable. You know where you are going as they have a sign saying “To the City” or “Away from the City”. Some hotels also provide visitors with shuttles to points of interest on the island from outside the hotel lobby. There are several locally-owned and operated vehicle rental agencies in Barbados but there are no multi-national car-rental agencies such as Avis, Eurocar or Hertz. You need a permit to drive here but, you can arrange one to be delivered with the car or pop into a police station. There is also a helicopter shuttle service, which offers air taxi services to a number of sites around the island, mainly on the West Coast tourist belt. Air and water traffic is regulated by the Barbados Port Authority.

Barbados has a total population of 281,968 (2008 estimate). The population density of 654 persons per sq km (1,694 per sq mi) is one of the highest in the world, and unusually so given that more than 47 per cent live in rural areas. The main focus of settlement is the capital, Bridgetown, which has a population of 140,000 (2003 estimate). The island’s second city is Speightstown (population 3,500; 1990). About 80 per cent of the population is black, the descendants of slaves brought from Africa to work the sugar plantations. Another 16 per cent of the population is of mixed ethnic origin, and 4 per cent is white, many descended from prisoners transported from England. There are no Native Americans. Life expectancy is 71.2 years for males and 75.2 years for females (2008). The infant mortality rate is 11 deaths per 1,000 live births (2008). Unemployment is about 10%, we saw only one beggar and interestingly we only saw three people smoking the whole time we have been here. Cigarettes are not on display much, shops that sell them have a small stock and unlike our last few stops you never see them sold in ones and twos on street corners.

Tourist information. The island is well developed, and there are internationally known hotels offering world-class accommodation. Time-shares are available, and many of the smaller local hotels and private villas which dot the island have space available if booked in advance. The southern and western coasts of Barbados are popular, with the calm light blue Atlantic Ocean and their fine white and pinkish sandy beaches. Along the island's east coast the Atlantic Ocean side are tumbling waves which are perfect for light surfing, but a little bit risky due to under-tow currents. Shopping districts are popular in Barbados, with ample duty-free shopping. There is also a festive night-life in mainly tourist areas such as the Saint Lawrence Gap. Other attractions include wildlife reserves, jewellery stores (especially diamond merchants), scuba diving, helicopter rides, golf, festivals (the largest being the annual crop over festival July/Aug), sightseeing, cave exploration, fine clothes shopping and exotic drinks - that of course we have forced ourselves to try.

The thing that has amazed us most is the genuine friendliness of everybody you meet. EVERYONE says “hello“ “how you do‘in“. “Welcome“. Huge grins and off they go about their business.

Yes, some things are expensive. A big bar of Cadbury's Fruit and Nut was just shy of £5.00. We got a weeks shopping including a big bottle of rum, fruit and veg for £78, anchoring fees for 9 days £25. Add those together and it was cheaper here than Portugal. The local say "Buy what you need, not what you fancy".

There is NO colour prejudice for tourists to see, but if they work side by side they do not interact outside.

You don’t see anyone racing around, everyone walks at a similar - slow - pace.