An insight into Dominica

Dominica, also known as the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean region. Roseau is the capital as well as the largest city in the country. Roseau is situated on the island's western side.

Geography of Dominica
Dominica is an island county situated in the Caribbean. It is the Windward Islands' northernmost nation. The area of Dominica is about 289.5 square miles. Even more, Dominica is also covered by rainforest largely.

• It also has the second-largest Boiling Lake, the hot spring of the world. Two ecoregions lie within Dominica's border: Windward Islands xeric scrub and the Windward Islands moist forests.
• However, Morne Diablotins is the highest point of Dominica, with an elevation of 4,747 ft. According to the 2011 census, the population of the country was 71,293. Dominica has also been named as "Caribbean's natural island" due to its natural environment. Most importantly, Dominica is the Lesser Antilles' youngest island. Even the island is still being created because of geothermal-volcanic activities. Dominica also has a lush and diverse mountainous rainforest and contains various rare animals, plants, and birds.

A brief historical overview of Dominica
Arawak settled the island in the 5th century by arriving from South America. In the 15th century, Arawak was displaced by Kalinago. Most amazingly, it is said that the island passed Columbus in November 1493. Europeans colonized the island later from the 1690s to 1763, predominantly French. French then imported people here from West Africa to work on their coffee plantations. In 1763, the Dominican possession took by Great Britain after a war for 7 years. As a result, English was established as an official language here gradually. After all this, Dominica finally gained independence in 1978 as a republic.

The political culture of Dominica
The country is a parliamentary democracy in the Commonwealth of Nations. Roseau is the capital here. Commonwealth of Dominica is one of the few republics of the Caribbean. President is the head of state here, while executive powers lie within the cabinet. Commonly, the prime minister heads the cabinet in Dominica. The unicameral parliament is based on 30 members. 21 of these are directly elected, while the other 9 are senators appointed by House of Assembly members or by the president.

Unlike other British colonies in this region, Dominica wasn't a commonwealth realm. However, the country is a practicing member of OECS and CARICOM. The country is also International Criminal Court's member and has a protection agreement with the US military covered under article 98.

Culture of Dominica
A wide range of people is living in Dominica. Various native tribes in history occupied the country before European settlers reached the region. Both the British and French also tried to claim the island, and the French also imported slaves for labor from South Africa. In short, the mix of various cultures has produced the present Dominican culture. Even more, dance and music are also considered important facets of the culture in Dominica.

References

• Geonames
• Wikipedia

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