Gonâve Island

The Ile de la Gonâve (formerly Île de la Gonaïves ) is an island of the Greater Antilles in the Caribbean, which belongs to the state of Haiti. The island represents a district in Haiti Ouest Department and includes the communes of Anse -à- Galets ( capital of the arrondissement ) and Pointe -à- Raquette. The zip on the Île de la Gonâve start with 65

The 743 km ² island is located 50 kilometers west- north-west of the Haitian capital Port-au -Prince and about 30 km north of the Tiburon Peninsula in the Gulf of Gonâve, has a length of about 56 kilometers and a maximum width of 16 kilometers. This makes it the largest neighboring island of Hispaniola consists largely of limestone, surrounded by reefs, arid in many parts, desolate and hilly and reaches its highest point at an altitude of 778 meters.

The island is bounded by the following waters:

• North: Canal du Saint Marc
• South: Canal du Sud
• West: Golfe de la Gonâve
• East: Baie de Port -au -Prince

The annual rainfall is limited height 800-1600 mm per year, whereas the higher regions experience more precipitation. Overgrazing and water wastage affect the lives of around 200,000 (estimate for 2005) islanders. The island has no running water.

The Ile de la Gonâve was the last refuge of the Tainos in Haiti after they had fled from Hispaniola in 1503 on the Ile de la Gonâve. From them comes the present name of the island, which they named guanabo. Later, the island was the seat of pirates. 1925, during the U.S. occupation, the U.S. officer Faustin Wirkus appointed island king Faustino II ( " le roi blanc de la Gonâve " ), but was expelled in 1929 by the Haitian government. As a result of a hurricane that devastated parts 1976 Südhaitis to survivors settled on the Île de la Gonâve and founded the first agricultural villages of the island.