World Atlas: United States Virgin Islands. On this page you can see the map, country flag and many detailed information about the people, history and economy of United States Virgin Islands.
Here you can find online selected information about the geography, inhabitants, government, economy and history of United States Virgin Islands. Included are selected statistics, an overview map and the detailed map of United States Virgin Islands. But let's start with the flag of United States Virgin Islands here:
United States Virgin Islands - Overview:
What you should know about United States Virgin Islands? Let's start with this: The Danes secured control over the southern Virgin Islands of Saint Thomas, Saint John, and Saint Croix during the 17th and early 18th centuries. Sugarcane, produced by African slave labor, drove the islands' economy during the 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1917, the US purchased the Danish holdings, which had been in economic decline since the abolition of slavery in 1848. On 6 September 2017, Hurricane Irma passed over the northern Virgin Islands of Saint Thomas and Saint John and inflicted severe damage to structures, roads, the airport on Saint Thomas, communications, and electricity. Less than two weeks later, Hurricane Maria passed over the island of Saint Croix in the southern Virgin Islands inflicting considerable damage with heavy winds and flooding rains.
Geography of United States Virgin Islands
Where on the globe is United States Virgin Islands? The location of this country is Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico. Total area of United States Virgin Islands is 1,910 sq km, of which 346 sq km is land. So this is quite a small country. How could we describe the terrain of the country? This way: mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little flat land. The lowest point of United States Virgin Islands is Caribbean Sea 0 m, the highest point Crown Mountain 474 m. And the climate is subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season September to Novembe.
Inhabitants of United States Virgin Islands
Let's take a look how many people live in United States Virgin Islands. The number is: 107,268 (July 2017 est.). So not so many people live here. Who lives here? black 76%, white 15.6%, Asian 1.4%, other 4.9%, mixed 2.1%. What are the languages in United States Virgin Islands? English 71.6%, Spanish or Spanish Creole 17.2%, French or French Creole 8.6%, other 2.5% (2010 est.). And the religions: Protestant 59% (Baptist 42%, Episcopalian 17%), Roman Catholic 34%, other 7%. How old are the people in average? 41 years. We have to add that this number is the median - so one half of the people is older than this, one half is younger. And what is their life expectancy (at birth)? This: 79.4 years. Where the people live in United States Virgin Islands? Here: while overall population density throughout the islands is relatively low, concentrations appear around Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas and Christiansted on St. Croix. The major urban areas of United States Virgin Islands are: Charlotte Amalie (capital) 52,000 (2014).
Government and Economy of United States Virgin Islands
The capital of United States Virgin Islands is Charlotte Amalie and the government type presidential democracy; a self-governing territory of the US. Let's take a look at the administrative divisions - none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 islands at the second order; Saint Croix, Saint John, Saint Thomas. Regarding the economy of United States Virgin Islands, important industrial products are tourism, watch assembly, rum distilling, construction, pharmaceuticals, electronics. Important agricultural products are fruit, vegetables, sorghum; Senepol cattle. The most important export commodities are rum and the most important export partners are unknown. The most important import commodities are foodstuffs, consumer goods, building materials and the most important import partners are unknown. How rich is United States Virgin Islands and how rich are people in this country? The most important number here is GDP per capita (PPP): $36,100 (2013 est.). This means the living standards are good here. Let's add that this means Gross Domestic Product per person, which is recalculated with respect to the relative cost of local goods and services. And one more important number - population below poverty line: 28.9% (2002 est.).