British Virgin Islands (GPS: 18 30 N, 64 30 W) located in the Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico. The country’s area measurements are total: 151 sq km; land: 151 sq km, water: 0 sq km. This sovereign state is about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC.
One of the British Virgin Islands’ important features: Strong ties to the nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
It’s significant, and at the same time, the principal city, Road Town’s GPS coordinates are 18 25 N 64 37 W. Road Town’s local time is 1 hour ahead of Washington DC during Standard Time. The capital’s time difference: UTC-4.
Google Maps British Virgin Islands and Road Town, Central America and the Caribbean
About the British Virgin Islands in detail
Flag of British Virgin Islands
Map of the British Virgin Islands
First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the Leeward Islands’ British colony from 1872-1960; They were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; The US dollar is the legal currency. On 6 September 2017, Hurricane Irma devastated the island of Tortola. An estimated 80% of residential and business structures were destroyed or damaged, communications disrupted, and local roads rendered impassable.
British Virgin Islands’s names conventional long form: none, conventional short form: British VirIslands abbreviation: BVI, etymology: the myriad islets, cays, and rocks surrounding the major islands reminded explorer Christopher COLUMBUS in 1493 of Saint Ursula and her 11,000 virgin followers (Santa Ursula y las Once Mil Virgenes), which over time shortened to the Virgins (las Virgenes). The myriad islets, cays, and rocks surrounding the major islands reminded explorer Christopher COLUMBUS in 1493 of Saint Ursula and her 11,000 virgin followers (Santa Ursula y las Once Mil Virgenes), which over time shortened to the Virgins (las Virgenes).
British Virgin Islands’s terrain is typically coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly. The country’s mean elevation: N/A, elevation extremes; lowest point: the Caribbean Sea 0 m, highest point: Mount Sage 521 m.
The general climate in the country; subtropical: humid: temperatures moderated by trade winds.
The total number of border countries is 0; none are the neighboring nations with the indicated border lengths. British Virgin Islands’s coastline is 80 km, while its marital claims are: territorial sea: 3 nautical miles, exclusive fishing zone: 200 nautical miles. Waterways: N/A. Land use: agricultural land: 46.7%; arable land 6.7%; permanent crops 6.7%; permanent pasture 33.3%; forest: 24.3%; other: 29% (2011 estimate).
The population in British Virgin Islands 35,802 (July 2018 estimate), urban population: 46.2% of total population (2015), major urban area’s population: ROAD TOWN (capital) 13,000 (2014), while the British Virgin Islands has a fairly even distribution throughout the inhabited islands, with the largest islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, and Jost Van Dyke having the largest populations. Their spoken languages are English (official language). Main religions in British Virgin Islands are Protestant 70.2% (Methodist 17.6%, Church of God 10.4%, Anglican 9.5%, Seventh Day Adventist 9.0%, Pentecostal 8.2%, Baptist 7.4%, New Testament Church of God 6.9%, other Protestant 1.2%), Roman Catholic 8.9%, Jehovah’s Witness 2.5%, Hindu 1.9%, other 6.2%, none 7.9%, unspecified 2.4% (2010 estimate). The nation uses English common law. It is a(n) parliamentary democracy (House of Assembly); self-governing overseas territory of the UK, National holiday(s) Territory Day, 1 July (1956).
Economic overview for the country: The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, which generates an estimated 45% of the national income. More than 934,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2008. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar since 1959. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands’ ability to meet domestic food requirements. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business.
Natural resources of British Virgin Islands: NEGL; pleasant climate, beaches foster tourism.
Main export partners for the British Virgin Islands, Central America, and the Caribbean are N/A for rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals, gravel, sand, while the country’s main import partners are: N/A for building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery.
When you visit this country in Central America and the Caribbean, consider the natural hazards in the British Virgin Islands: Hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October), while infectious diseases are N/A. Also, note that the British Virgin Islands faces the following environmental issues: Limited natural fresh water resources except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, Most of the islands’ water supply comes from desalination plants, Sewage and mining/industry waste contribute to water pollution, threatening coral reefs.
You may also be interested in the countries next to the British Virgin Islands around its 0 km border – No border countries.
