Facts About Bahamas

Bahamas is a North American country, which comprises of an archipelago of 700 islands. The English-speaking nation is situated in the Atlantic Ocean, spreading over an astounding area of 13,878 km². All the islands of the archipelago are low lying, with flat surface. The highest point in the country is Mount Alvernia, also known as Como Hill and has an altitude of 63 m. Bahamas is also quite prone to hurricanes, which have ravaged the island shores a number of times. This has left life stranded to an extent that it is still recovering to this day. Given below are some more interesting and fun facts about Bahamas.

 

Interesting & Fun Facts about Bahamas 

• The official name of the country is the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. It is an archipelago, consisting of more than 700 islands.
• The capital city of Bahamas is Nassau. The two other big cities of the country are Nassau and Freeport.
• The name of the country comes from the Spanish word ‘bajamar’, meaning ‘shallow water’. The official language spoken in the country is English and the currency, the Bahamas-Dollar is at par with the US-Dollar.
• Bahamas was a British colony until 1973 and is now an independent nation. The Duke of Windsor was the Royal Governor of The Bahamas during from 1940 to 1945.
• There is no income tax or corporate tax levied in Bahamas. Around 50 percent of the national GDP is generated by tourism. It is one of the wealthiest countries in the Caribbean. After tourism, financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy
• Eighty percent of Bahamian natives are of African descent. Two-thirds of the population lives in the New Providence Island (the location of Nassau).
• The largest immigrant community in the Bahamas is that of the Haitians. 30,000-50,000 of the residents are concentrated in the New Province, Abaco and Eleuthera islands, including the legal and illegal residents.
• School attendance in Bahamas is compulsory between the ages of 5 to16. Out of the 210 primary schools run in the country, 158 are operated by the government.  The remaining 52 schools are operated by private owners. Higher education is also offered by many non-Bahamian colleges in the country.
• The Bahamas is enrolled as an independent member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The political and legal traditions of Bahamas closely follow the British ones, owing to their commonwealth membership.  
• The country has a parliamentary form of democracy and regular elections are held. The Bahamian senate consists of 16 members, who are appointed by the Governor-General. The Governor-General also appoints the Chief Justice on the advice of the Prime Minister. The Privy Council of the United Kingdom serves as the highest appellate court.
• The local government districts in Bahamas elect local councils for town planning, business licenses, traffic issues and maintenance of government buildings. Lower level town councils are also accorded minor responsibilities in some large districts.
• Another interesting fact about the country is that the Bahamas women's 4x100 relay team won a silver medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.