Description
Archipel d’Amérique centrale en forme d’arc, les Antilles comprennent les Bahamas, les Grandes Antilles – Cuba, Haïti, République Dominicaine, Porto-Rico et la Jamaïque -, les Petites-Antilles lesquelles se composent des îles du Vent et des îles Sous-le-Vent ainsi que Trinidad et Tobago. L’ensemble de l’archipel est d’une superficie de 236 500 Km². / The crescent-shaped group of islands known as the West Indies streches from Cuba almost to the north coast of South America. It is divided principally into the Greater and Lesser Antilles, plus isolated groups on the continental fringe, including tehe Bahams, Trinidad et Tobago, and the Netherlands Antilles. The Greater Antilles comprise the islands of Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic) and Puerto Rico; the Lesser Antilles are divided into the Leeward Islands (the northern group) and the Windward Islands (southern group) The land area of the islands is almost 91.000 square miles (236.500 square kilometres).