+1 is the dialing code for Bahamas.
When Christopher Columbus landed in the “New World” in 1492 it was on one of the Bahamas he stepped ashore. Then the archipelago was considered barren and uninteresting. Nowadays, the Bahamas is a popular tourist destination and has developed into one of the richest countries in the Caribbean. The standard of living is high, but the Bahamas has problems with increasing crime and illegal immigration.
- Abbreviationfinder: Brief profiles of Bahamas, including geography, history, politics, economics as well as common acronyms about this country.
Geography and climate
The Bahamas, located between Cuba and the Atlantic, consists of 15 larger and nearly 700 smaller coral islands. The islands extend into a nearly 80-mile-long band between Florida in the northwest and Haiti in the southeast.
The Bahamas together with the British territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands island chain Lucaya. The Greater Antilles, which includes Cuba, separates Lucaya from the Caribbean and some sources therefore do not count the Bahamas to the Caribbean, but to the Caribbean. However, the Caribbean and the Caribbean are usually used as synonyms.
The Bahamas have an area that corresponds to Hälsingland. The largest island of Andros – sometimes considered as several islands connected by the delta and swamps – occupies almost half the land area. Other major islands are Great Inagua, Great Abaco and Grand Bahama. The capital of Nassau is located on the island of New Providence. Only about 30 of the hundreds of islands are populated.
- BagLib: General information about Bahamas, covering geography, climate, travel tips and popular sights.
On the larger islands in the north there are forests of Caribbean pine, but most of the islands are barren and flat. There are no watercourses and fresh water is a scarcity, especially in the south. Andros is the world’s third largest barrier reef.
Country Facts
Geography
| Cultivated land | 1.4 % |
| Land area | 13880 km 2 |
Population and health
| Population development | 0.85 ‰ |
| Urban population (Urbanization) | 82.9 % |
| Death rate | 7.05 per 1000 residents |
| Life expectancy: Women | 74.7 years |
| Life expectancy: Men | 69.77 years |
| Birth rate | 15.5 births per 1000 residents |
| HDI index | 0.790 |
| Population | 324597 |
| Infant mortality | 11.92 deaths / 1000 births |
Population Graph Source: Countryaah.com
Energy
| Electricity, production | 1845 million kWh |
| Energy consumption per resident | 2071.5 kg. oil per resident |
| Natural gas, production | million cubic meters |
| Crude oil, production | million tons |
Infrastructure
| Internet users | 76.8 per 100 residents |
| Mobile subscriptions | 85 per 100 residents |
| Passenger cars | per 1000 residents |
Business and economics
| Unemployment | 15% of the workforce |
| GDP | 25200 per resident |
| Primary occupations | 5 % |
| Secondary profession | 5 % |
| Tertiary professions | 90 % |
The climate in the Bahamas lies in the borderland between subtropical and tropical. The Gulf Stream and the passage winds from the Atlantic contribute to relatively small differences in temperature during the day as well as the year. In the summer it is humid and hot throughout the country. Winters are cooler and the difference is greater between north and south. Cold air sometimes sweeps down from the north, causing heavy rains and surprisingly low temperatures.
The rainfall is greatest between June and September. Tropical hurricanes during late summer sometimes cause great havoc, especially as the islands are low. Hurricane Dorian, which swept across the Bahamas in September 2019, claimed at least 50 lives and around 1,300 were still missing after a couple of weeks. Dorian was the worst hurricane to hit the country and the second most powerful to be measured in the Atlantic.
FACTS – GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE
Surface
13 939 km2 (2018)
Time
Swedish –6 hours
Adjacent country (s)
–
Capital with number of residents
Nassau 274,400
Other major cities
Freeport 27,000 (2016 estimate)
Highest mountain
Mount Alvernia (63 m asl) 1
Important rivers
there are no rivers
Largest lake
there are no lakes
Average Precipitation / year
Nassau 1179 mm
Average / day
Nassau 27 °C (July), 22 °C (Jan)