Netherlands Antilles

The Netherlands Antilles (Dutch: Nederlandse Antillen), previously known as the Netherlands West Indies, are part of the Lesser Antilles and consist of two groups of islands in the Caribbean Sea that form an autonomous part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (none of the other Antilles use this term in their name). The islands' economy is dependent mostly upon tourism and petroleum, though a large amount of money is also made through illegal drug trafficking.

Islands

Main article: Islands of the Netherlands Antilles

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Netherland Antilles have no major administrative divisions, although each island has its own local government.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The two island groups of which the Netherlands Antilles consists are:

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• the "Leeward Islands" (Benedenwindse Eilanden) off the Venezuelan coast (with also Aruba nearby):
• Bonaire, including an islet called Klein Bonaire ("Little Bonaire")
• Curaçao, including an islet called Klein Curaçao ("Little Curaçao")
• the "Windward Islands" (Bovenwindse Eilanden) east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. These are part of what are in English called the Leeward Islands, but in e.g. French, Spanish, German, Dutch and the English spoken locally these are considered part of the Windward Islands.
• Saba
• Sint Eustatius
• Sint Maarten, the southern half of the island Saint Martin (the northern half, Saint-Martin, is French and part of the overseas department of Guadeloupe).