28 Facts About Bahamas

Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is a country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic.

Bahamas became a British crown colony in 1718, when the British clamped down on piracy.

In terms of gross domestic product per capita, the Bahamas is one of the richest independent countries in the Americas, with an economy based on tourism and offshore finance.

Name Bahamas is derived from the Lucayan name, used by the indigenous Taino people for the island of Grand Bahama.

Whilst there is a general consensus that this island lay within the Bahamas, precisely which island Columbus landed on is a matter of scholarly debate.

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Bahamas did not enjoy the position, and referred to the islands as "a third-class British colony".

Bahamas opened the small local parliament on 29 October 1940.

Bahamas was praised for his resolution of civil unrest over low wages in Nassau in June 1942, when there was a "full-scale riot".

Shortly after independence, The Bahamas joined the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank on 22 August 1973, and later the United Nations on 18 September 1973.

Only once in recorded history has snow been seen in the air anywhere in The Bahamas, this occurred in Freeport on 19 January 1977, when snow mixed with rain was seen in the air for a short time.

The Bahamas is part of the Lucayan Archipelago, which continues into the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Mouchoir Bank, the Silver Bank, and the Navidad Bank.

Bahamas is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, with King of the Bahamas Charles III as head of state represented locally by a governor-general.

The Bahamas is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and shares its head of state with some other Commonwealth realms.

The Judiciary of the Bahamas is independent of the executive and the legislature.

Bahamas has a two-party system dominated by the centre-left Progressive Liberal Party and the centre-right Free National Movement.

Bahamas has strong bilateral relationships with the United States and the United Kingdom, represented by an ambassador in Washington and High Commissioner in London.

Under the Defence Act, the RBDF has been mandated, in the name of the King, to defend The Bahamas, protect its territorial integrity, patrol its waters, provide assistance and relief in times of disaster, maintain order in conjunction with the law enforcement agencies of The Bahamas, and carry out any such duties as determined by the National Security Council.

Districts of The Bahamas provide a system of local government everywhere except New Providence, whose affairs are handled directly by the central government.

Bahamas relies heavily on tourism to generate most of its economic activity.

The first Africans to arrive to The Bahamas were freed slaves from Bermuda; they arrived with the Eleutheran Adventurers looking for new lives.

Jews in the Bahamas have a history dating back to the Columbus expeditions, where Luis De Torres, an interpreter and member of Columbus' party, is believed to have been secretly Jewish.

Bahamas culture is rich with beliefs, traditions, folklore and legend.

Coat of arms of The Bahamas contains a shield with the national symbols as its focal point.

Bahamas is not a part of the West Indies Cricket Board, so players are not eligible to play for the West Indies cricket team.

Bahamas first participated at the Olympic Games in 1952, and has sent athletes to compete in every Summer Olympic Games since then, except when they participated in the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics.

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The Bahamas has won more Olympic medals than any other country with a population under one million.

Bahamas were hosts of the first men's senior FIFA tournament to be staged in the Caribbean, the 2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup.

The Bahamas hosted the first 3 editions of the IAAF World Relays.