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The Lesser Antilles (also known as the Caribbees) is the name given to a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most form a long, partly volcanic island arc between the Greater Antilles to the north-west and the continent of South America.[1] The islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean. Together, the Lesser Antilles and the Greater Antilles compose the Antilles (or the Caribbean in its narrowest definition). When combined with the Lucayan Archipelago, all three are known as the West Indies.
The islands of the Lesser Antilles are divided into three groups. The two main groups are the Windward Islands in the south and the Leeward Islands in the north. The Windward Islands are so called because they were more windward to sailing ships arriving in the New World than the Leeward Islands, given that the prevailing trade winds blow east to west. The trans-Atlantic currents and winds that provided the fastest route across the ocean brought these ships to the rough dividing line between the Windward and Leeward Islands.
The third group is the Leeward Antilles in the west. These consist of the Dutch ABC islands just off the coast of Venezuela, plus a group of Venezuelan islands.
The Lesser Antilles more or less coincide with the outer edge of the Caribbean Plate. Many of the islands were formed as a result of the subduction of oceanic crust of the South American Plate under the Caribbean Plate in the Lesser Antilles subduction zone. This process is ongoing and is responsible not only for many of the islands, but also for volcanic and earthquake activity in the region. The islands along the South American coast are largely the result of the interaction of the South American Plate and the Caribbean Plate which is mainly strike-slip, but includes a component of compression.
The Lesser Antilles are divided into eight independent nations and numerous dependent and non-sovereign states (which are politically associated with the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and the United States). Over one third of the total area and population of the Lesser Antilles lies within Trinidad and Tobago, a sovereign nation comprising the two southernmost islands of the Windward Island chain.
Several islands along the north coast of Venezuela and politically part of that country are also occasionally considered part of the Lesser Antilles. These are listed in the section below.
The main Lesser Antilles are (from north to south to west):
Leeward Islands:
Windward Islands:
Leeward Antilles – islands north of the Venezuelan coast (from west to east):
The dictionary definition of Lesser Antilles at Wiktionary
Colombia, Caracas, Bolivia, Argentina, Brazil
United Kingdom, European Union, Italy, Canada, Spain
Isle of Man, India, Canada, European Union, British Overseas Territories
Netherlands, Aruba, Dutch language, Curaçao, Sint Maarten
Potomac River, Lesser Antilles, Channel Islands of California, Cyclades, Aleutian Islands
Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, Ohio River, Wake Island, Potomac River
Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Lesser Antilles
Canada, Ontario, Australia, Torres Strait Islands, United States
Leeward Islands, Mississippi River, Lesser Antilles, Dahlak Archipelago, Windward Islands