The Bahamas - wikipedia The Bahamas `` Bahama '' and `` Bahamas '' redirect here. For other uses, see Bahama ( disambiguation ). Coordinates : 24 ° 15 ′ N 76 ° 00 ′ W ﻿ / ﻿ 24.250 ° N 76.000 ° W ﻿ / 24.250 ; - 76.000 Commonwealth of The Bahamas Flag Coat of arms Motto : `` Forward, Upward, Onward, Together '' Anthem : `` March On, Bahamaland '' Royal anthem : `` God Save the Queen '' Capital and largest city Nassau 25 ° 4 ′ N 77 ° 20 ′ W ﻿ / ﻿ 25.067 ° N 77.333 ° W ﻿ / 25.067 ; - 77.333 Official languages English Vernacular language Creole Ethnic groups ( 2016 ) 92.7 % African 4.7 % European 2.1 % Mixed 1.9 % Other Demonym Bahamian Government Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy Monarch Elizabeth II Governor - General Dame Marguerite Pindling Prime Minister Hubert Minnis Legislature Parliament Upper house Senate Lower house House of Assembly Independence from the United Kingdom 10 July 1973 Area Total 13,878 km ( 5,358 sq mi ) ( 155th ) Water ( % ) 28 % Population 2016 estimate 391,232 ( 177th ) 2010 census 351,461 Density 25.21 / km ( 65.3 / sq mi ) ( 181st ) GDP ( PPP ) 2018 estimate Total $9.792 billion Per capita $26,005 GDP ( nominal ) 2018 estimate Total $9.529 billion Per capita $25,306 HDI ( 2017 ) 0.807 very high 54th Currency Bahamian dollar ( BSD ) ( US dollars widely accepted ) Time zone UTC − 5 ( EST ) Summer ( DST ) UTC − 4 ( EDT ) Driving side left Calling code + 1 242 ISO 3166 code BS Internet TLD. bs ^ Also referred to as Bahamian dialect or Bahamianese The Bahamas ( / bəˈhɑːməz / ( listen ) ), known officially as the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is a country within the Lucayan Archipelago. The archipelagic state consists of more than 700 islands, cays, and islets in the Atlantic Ocean, and is located north of Cuba and Hispaniola ( Haiti and the Dominican Republic ), northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, southeast of the United States state of Florida, and east of the Florida Keys. The capital is Nassau on the island of New Providence. The designation of `` the Bahamas '' can refer either to the country or to the larger island chain that it shares with the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Royal Bahamas Defence Force describes the Bahamas territory as encompassing 470,000 km ( 180,000 sq mi ) of ocean space. The Bahamas is the site of Columbus 's first landfall in the New World in 1492. At that time, the islands were inhabited by the Lucayan, a branch of the Arawakan - speaking Taino people. Although the Spanish never colonised The Bahamas, they shipped the native Lucayans to slavery in Hispaniola. The islands were mostly deserted from 1513 until 1648, when English colonists from Bermuda settled on the island of Eleuthera. The Bahamas became a British crown colony in 1718, when the British clamped down on piracy. After the American War of Independence, the Crown resettled thousands of American Loyalists in the Bahamas ; they brought their slaves with them and established plantations on land grants. Africans constituted the majority of the population from this period. The slave trade was abolished by the British in 1807 ; slavery in the Bahamas was abolished in 1834. Subsequently, the Bahamas became a haven for freed African slaves ; the Royal Navy resettled Africans there liberated from illegal slave ships, North American slaves and Seminoles escaped here from Florida, and the government freed slaves carried on US domestic ships that had reached the Bahamas due to weather. Today, Afro - Bahamians make up nearly 90 % of the population. The sovereign state of the Bahamas became an independent Commonwealth realm in 1973, retaining the British monarch, then and currently Queen Elizabeth II, as its head of state. In terms of gross domestic product per capita, The Bahamas is one of the richest countries in the Americas ( following the United States and Canada ), with an economy based on tourism and finance. Contents 1 Etymology 2 History 2.1 18th -- 19th centuries 2.2 20th century 2.3 Post-Second World War 3 Geography 3.1 Castaway Cay 3.2 Climate 4 Geology 5 Government and politics 5.1 Political culture 5.2 Foreign relations 5.3 Armed forces 5.4 Administrative divisions 5.5 National flag 5.6 Coat of arms 5.7 National flower 6 Economy 6.1 Tourism 6.2 Financial services 6.3 Agriculture 7 Demographics 7.1 Racial and ethnic groups 7.2 Languages 7.3 Religion 8 Culture 8.1 Sport 9 Education 10 See also 11 References 12 Further reading 12.1 General history 12.2 Economic history 12.3 Social history 13 External links Etymology The name Bahamas is most likely derived from either the Taíno ba ha ma ( `` big upper middle land '' ), which was a term for the region used by the indigenous Native Americans, or possibly from the Spanish baja mar ( `` shallow water or sea '' or `` low tide '' ) reflecting the shallow waters of the area. Alternatively, it may originate from Guanahani, a local name of unclear meaning. A peculiarity of the name is that the word The is a formal part of the abbreviated name and is, therefore, capitalised. So in contrast to `` the Congo '' and `` the United Kingdom '', it is proper to write `` The Bahamas ''. History Main article : History of The Bahamas This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( July 2017 ) A depiction of Columbus 's first landing, claiming possession of the New World for Spain in caravels ; the Niña and the Pinta, on Watling Island, an island of The Bahamas that the natives called Guanahani and that he named San Salvador, on 12 October 1492. Taino people moved into the uninhabited southern Bahamas from Hispaniola and Cuba around the 11th century, having migrated there from South America. They came to be known as the Lucayan people. An estimated 30,000 Lucayan inhabited the Bahamas at the time of Christopher Columbus 's arrival in 1492. Columbus 's first landfall in the New World was on an island he named San Salvador ( known to the Lucayan as Guanahani ). Some researchers believe this site to be present - day San Salvador Island ( formerly known as Watling 's Island ), situated in the southeastern Bahamas. An alternative theory holds that Columbus landed to the southeast on Samana Cay, according to calculations made in 1986 by National Geographic writer and editor Joseph Judge, based on Columbus 's log. Evidence in support of this remains inconclusive. On the landfall island, Columbus made first contact with the Lucayan and exchanged goods with them. The Spanish forced much of the Lucayan population to Hispaniola for use as forced labour. The slaves suffered from harsh conditions and most died from contracting diseases to which they had no immunity ; half of the Taino died from smallpox alone. The population of the Bahamas was severely diminished. In 1648, the Eleutherian Adventurers, led by William Sayle, migrated from Bermuda. These English Puritans established the first permanent European settlement on an island which they named Eleuthera -- the name derives from the Greek word for freedom. They later settled New Providence, naming it Sayle 's Island after one of their leaders. To survive, the settlers salvaged goods from wrecks. In 1670, King Charles II granted the islands to the Lords Proprietors of the Carolinas in North America. They rented the islands from the king with rights of trading, tax, appointing governors, and administering the country. In 1684 Spanish corsair Juan de Alcon raided the capital, Charles Town ( later renamed Nassau ). In 1703, a joint Franco - Spanish expedition briefly occupied the Bahamian capital during the War of the Spanish Succession. 18th -- 19th centuries Sign at Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park commemorating hundreds of African - American slaves who escaped to freedom in the early 1820s in the Bahamas Beach in Nassau, Bahamas. The lighthouse in Great Isaac Cay. During proprietary rule, the Bahamas became a haven for pirates, including the infamous Blackbeard ( circa 1680 -- 1718 ). To put an end to the ' Pirates ' republic ' and restore orderly government, Great Britain made the Bahamas a crown colony in 1718 under the royal governorship of Woodes Rogers. After a difficult struggle, he succeeded in suppressing piracy. In 1720, Rogers led local militia to drive off a Spanish attack. During the US War of Independence in the late 18th century, the islands became a target for US naval forces under the command of Commodore Esek Hopkins. US Marines occupied the capital of Nassau for a fortnight. In 1782, following the British defeat at Yorktown, a Spanish fleet appeared off the coast of Nassau. The city surrendered without a fight. Spain returned possession of the Bahamas to Great Britain the following year, under the terms of the Treaty of Paris. Before the news was received, however, the islands were recaptured by a small British force led by Andrew Deveaux. After US independence, the British resettled some 7,300 Loyalists with their slaves in the Bahamas, including two thousand from New York and at least 1,033 whites, 2,214 blacks and a few Creeks from East Florida. Most of the refugees resettled from New York had fled from other colonies, including West Florida, which the Spanish captured during the war. The government granted land to the planters to help compensate for losses on the continent. These Loyalists, who included Deveaux, established plantations on several islands and became a political force in the capital. European Americans were outnumbered by the African - American slaves they brought with them, and ethnic Europeans remained a minority in the territory. In 1807, the British abolished the slave trade, followed by the United States the next year. During the following decades, the Royal Navy intercepted the trade ; they resettled in the Bahamas thousands of Africans liberated from slave ships. In the 1820s during the period of the Seminole Wars in Florida, hundreds of North American slaves and African Seminoles escaped from Cape Florida to the Bahamas. They settled mostly on northwest Andros Island, where they developed the village of Red Bays. From eyewitness accounts, 300 escaped in a mass flight in 1823, aided by Bahamians in 27 sloops, with others using canoes for the journey. This was commemorated in 2004 by a large sign at Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park. Some of their descendants in Red Bays continue African Seminole traditions in basket making and grave marking. The United States ' National Park Service, which administers the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, is working with the African Bahamian Museum and Research Center ( ABAC ) in Nassau on development to identify Red Bays as a site related to North American slaves ' search for freedom. The museum has researched and documented the African Seminoles ' escape from southern Florida. It plans to develop interpretive programs at historical sites in Red Bay associated with the period of their settlement in the Bahamas. In 1818, the Home Office in London had ruled that `` any slave brought to the Bahamas from outside the British West Indies would be manumitted. '' This led to a total of nearly 300 slaves owned by US nationals being freed from 1830 to 1835. The American slave ships Comet and Encomium used in the United States domestic coastwise slave trade, were wrecked off Abaco Island in December 1830 and February 1834, respectively. When wreckers took the masters, passengers and slaves into Nassau, customs officers seized the slaves and British colonial officials freed them, over the protests of the Americans. There were 165 slaves on the Comet and 48 on the Encomium. The United Kingdom finally paid an indemnity to the United States in those two cases in 1855, under the Treaty of Claims of 1853, which settled several compensation cases between the two countries. Slavery was abolished in the British Empire on 1 August 1834. After that British colonial officials freed 78 North American slaves from the Enterprise, which went into Bermuda in 1835 ; and 38 from the Hermosa, which wrecked off Abaco Island in 1840. The most notable case was that of the Creole in 1841 : as a result of a slave revolt on board, the leaders ordered the US brig to Nassau. It was carrying 135 slaves from Virginia destined for sale in New Orleans. The Bahamian officials freed the 128 slaves who chose to stay in the islands. The Creole case has been described as the `` most successful slave revolt in U.S. history ''. These incidents, in which a total of 447 slaves belonging to US nationals were freed from 1830 to 1842, increased tension between the United States and the United Kingdom. They had been co-operating in patrols to suppress the international slave trade. However, worried about the stability of its large domestic slave trade and its value, the United States argued that the United Kingdom should not treat its domestic ships that came to its colonial ports under duress, as part of the international trade. The United States worried that the success of the Creole slaves in gaining freedom would encourage more slave revolts on merchant ships. 20th century The Duke of Windsor and Governor of the Bahamas from 1940 to 1945 In August 1940, the Duke of Windsor was appointed Governor of the Bahamas. He arrived in the colony with his wife, the Duchess. Although disheartened at the condition of Government House, they `` tried to make the best of a bad situation ''. He did not enjoy the position, and referred to the islands as `` a third - class British colony ''. He opened the small local parliament on 29 October 1940. The couple visited the `` Out Islands '' that November, on Axel Wenner - Gren 's yacht, which caused controversy ; the British Foreign Office strenuously objected because they had been advised ( mistakenly ) by United States intelligence that Wenner - Gren was a close friend of the Luftwaffe commander Hermann Göring of Nazi Germany. The Duke was praised at the time for his efforts to combat poverty on the islands. A 1991 biography by Philip Ziegler, however, described him as contemptuous of the Bahamians and other non-European peoples of the Empire. He was praised for his resolution of civil unrest over low wages in Nassau in June 1942, when there was a `` full - scale riot ''. Ziegler said that the Duke blamed the trouble on `` mischief makers -- communists '' and `` men of Central European Jewish descent, who had secured jobs as a pretext for obtaining a deferment of draft ''. The Duke resigned from the post on 16 March 1945. Post-second World War Sign at the entrance of the Sir Roland Symonette Park in North Eleuthera district commemorating Sir Roland Theodore Symonette, the Bahamas ' first Premier Modern political development began after the Second World War. The first political parties were formed in the 1950s. The British Parliament authorised the islands as internally self - governing in 1964, with Sir Roland Symonette, of the United Bahamian Party, as the first Premier. A new constitution granting the Bahamas internal autonomy went into effect on 7 January 1964. In 1967, Lynden Pindling of the Progressive Liberal Party, became the first native born Premier of the majority native Bahamian colony ; in 1968 the title of the position was changed to Prime Minister. In 1968, Pindling announced that the Bahamas would seek full independence. A new constitution giving the Bahamas increased control over its own affairs was adopted in 1968. The British House of Lords voted to give the Bahamas its independence on 22 June 1973. Prince Charles delivered the official documents to Prime Minister Lynden Pindling, officially declaring the Bahamas a fully independent nation on 10 July 1973. It joined the Commonwealth of Nations on the same day. Sir Milo Butler was appointed the first Governor - General of the Bahamas ( the official representative of Queen Elizabeth II ) shortly after independence. The Bahamas joined the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank on 22 August 1973, and it joined the United Nations on 18 September 1973. Based on the twin pillars of tourism and offshore finance, the Bahamian economy has prospered since the 1950s. Significant challenges in areas such as education, health care, housing, international narcotics trafficking and illegal immigration from Haiti continue to be issues. The University of The Bahamas ( UB ) is the national higher education / tertiary system. Offering baccalaureate, masters and associate degrees, UB has three campuses, and teaching and research centres throughout the Bahamas. The University of The Bahamas was chartered on 10 November 2016. Geography Main article : Geography of the Bahamas The Bahamas from space. NASA Aqua satellite image, 2009 The country lies between latitudes 20 ° and 28 ° N, and longitudes 72 ° and 80 ° W. In 1864, the Governor of the Bahamas reported that there were 29 islands, 661 cays, and 2,387 rocks in the colony. The closest island to the United States is Bimini, which is also known as the gateway to the Bahamas. The island of Abaco is to the east of Grand Bahama. The southeasternmost island is Inagua. The largest island is Andros Island. Other inhabited islands include Eleuthera, Cat Island, Rum Cay, Long Island, San Salvador Island, Ragged Island, Acklins, Crooked Island, Exuma, Berry Islands and Mayaguana. Nassau, capital city of the Bahamas, lies on the island of New Providence. All the islands are low and flat, with ridges that usually rise no more than 15 to 20 m ( 49 to 66 ft ). The highest point in the country is Mount Alvernia ( formerly Como Hill ) on Cat Island. It has an elevation of 63 metres ( 207 ft ). Damaged homes in the Bahamas in the aftermath of Hurricane Wilma in 2005 To the southeast, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and three more extensive submarine features called Mouchoir Bank, Silver Bank and Navidad Bank, are geographically a continuation of the Bahamas. Castaway Cay Main article : Castaway Cay Disney has its own private island in the Bahamas called Castaway Cay. It is located near Great Abaco Island and was formerly known as Gorda Cay. In 1997, The Walt Disney Company purchased a 99 - year land lease for the cay from the Bahamian government, set to expire in 2096. Climate See also : Geography of the Bahamas § Climate The climate of the Bahamas is tropical savannah climate or Aw according to Köppen climate classification. The low latitude, warm tropical Gulf Stream, and low elevation give the Bahamas a warm and winterless climate. As such, there has never been a frost or freeze reported in the Bahamas, although every few decades low temperatures can fall below 10 ° C ( 50 ° F ) for a few hours when a severe cold outbreak comes off the North American mainland. There is only an 8 ° C difference between the warmest month and coolest month in most of the Bahama islands. As with most tropical climates, seasonal rainfall follows the sun, and summer is the wettest season. The Bahamas are often sunny and dry for long periods of time, and average more than 3,000 hours or 340 days of sunlight annually. Tropical storms and hurricanes can on occasion impact the Bahamas. In 1992, Hurricane Andrew passed over the northern portions of the islands, and Hurricane Floyd passed near the eastern portions of the islands in 1999. hide Climate data for Nassau Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Average high ° C ( ° F ) 25.4 ( 77.7 ) 25.5 ( 77.9 ) 26.6 ( 79.9 ) 27.9 ( 82.2 ) 29.7 ( 85.5 ) 31.0 ( 87.8 ) 32.0 ( 89.6 ) 32.1 ( 89.8 ) 31.6 ( 88.9 ) 29.9 ( 85.8 ) 27.8 ( 82 ) 26.2 ( 79.2 ) 28.8 ( 83.9 ) Daily mean ° C ( ° F ) 21.4 ( 70.5 ) 21.4 ( 70.5 ) 22.3 ( 72.1 ) 23.8 ( 74.8 ) 25.6 ( 78.1 ) 27.2 ( 81 ) 28.0 ( 82.4 ) 28.1 ( 82.6 ) 27.7 ( 81.9 ) 26.2 ( 79.2 ) 24.2 ( 75.6 ) 22.3 ( 72.1 ) 24.8 ( 76.7 ) Average low ° C ( ° F ) 17.3 ( 63.1 ) 17.3 ( 63.1 ) 17.9 ( 64.2 ) 19.6 ( 67.3 ) 21.4 ( 70.5 ) 23.3 ( 73.9 ) 24.0 ( 75.2 ) 24.0 ( 75.2 ) 23.7 ( 74.7 ) 22.5 ( 72.5 ) 20.6 ( 69.1 ) 18.3 ( 64.9 ) 20.8 ( 69.5 ) Average precipitation mm ( inches ) 39.4 ( 1.551 ) 49.5 ( 1.949 ) 54.4 ( 2.142 ) 69.3 ( 2.728 ) 105.9 ( 4.169 ) 218.2 ( 8.591 ) 160.8 ( 6.331 ) 235.7 ( 9.28 ) 164.1 ( 6.461 ) 161.8 ( 6.37 ) 80.5 ( 3.169 ) 49.8 ( 1.961 ) 1,389.4 ( 54.701 ) Average precipitation days 8 6 7 8 10 15 17 19 17 15 10 8 140 Mean monthly sunshine hours 220.1 220.4 257.3 276.0 269.7 231.0 272.8 266.6 213.0 223.2 222.0 213.9 2,886 Source : World Meteorological Organization ( UN ), Hong Kong Observatory ( sun only ) Average Sea Temperature Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 23 ° C 73 ° F 23 ° C 73 ° F 24 ° C 75 ° F 26 ° C 79 ° F 27 ° C 81 ° F 28 ° C 82 ° F 28 ° C 82 ° F 28 ° C 82 ° F 28 ° C 82 ° F 27 ° C 81 ° F 26 ° C 79 ° F 24 ° C 75 ° F Geology Dean 's Blue Hole in Clarence Town on Long Island, Bahamas. The Blue Lagoon Island, Bahamas. The Bahamas is part of the Lucayan Archipelago, which continues into the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Mouchoir Bank, the Silver Bank, and the Navidad Bank. The Bahamas Platform, which includes the Bahamas, Southern Florida, Northern Cuba, the Turks and Caicos, and the Blake Plateau, formed about 150 Ma, not long after the formation of the North Atlantic. The 6.4 km thick limestones, which predominately make up The Bahamas, date back to the Cretaceous. These limestones would have been deposited in shallow seas, assumed to be a stretched and thinned portion of the North American continental crust. Sediments were forming at about the same rate as the crust below was sinking due to the added weight. Thus, the entire area consisted of a large marine plain with some islands. Then, at about 80 Ma, the area became flooded by the Gulf Stream. This resulted in the drowning of the Blake Plateau, the separation of The Bahamas from Cuba and Florida, the separation of the southeastern Bahamas into separate banks, the creation of the Cay Sal Bank, plus the Little and Great Bahama Banks. Sedimentation from the `` carbonate factory '' of each bank, or atoll, continues today at the rate of about 2 cm per kyr. Coral reefs form the `` retaining walls '' of these atolls, within which oolites and pellets form. Coral growth was greater through the Tertiary, until the start of the Ice Ages, and hence those deposits are more abundant below a depth of 36 m. In fact, an ancient extinct reef exists half a km seaward of the present one, 30 m below sea level. Oolites form when oceanic water penetrate the shallow banks, increasing the temperature about 3 ° C and the salinity by 0.5 per cent. Cemented ooids are referred to as grapestone. Additionally, giant stromatolites are found off the Exuma Cays. Sea level changes resulted in a drop in sea level, causing wind blown oolite to form sand dunes with distinct cross-bedding. Overlapping dunes form oolitic ridges, which become rapidly lithified through the action of rainwater, called eolianite. Most islands have ridges ranging from 30 to 45 m, though Cat Island has a ridge 60 m in height. The land between ridges is conducive to the formation of lakes and swamps. Solution weathering of the limestone results in a `` Bahamian Karst '' topography. This includes potholes, Blue holes such as Dean 's Blue Hole, sinkholes, beachrock such as the Bimini Road ( `` pavements of Atlantis '' ), limestone crust, caves due to the lack of rivers, and sea caves. Several blue holes are aligned along the South Andros Fault line. Tidal flats and tidal creeks are common, but the more impressive drainage patterns are formed by troughs and canyons such as Great Bahama Canyon with the evidence of turbidity currents and turbidite deposition. The stratigraphy of the islands consists of the Middle Pleistocene Owl 's Hole Formation, overlain by the Late Pleistocene Grotto Beach Formation, and then the Holocene Rice Bay Formation. However, these units are not necessarily stacked on top of each other but can be located laterally. The oldest formation, Owl 's Hole, is capped by a terra rosa paleosoil, as is the Grotto Beach, unless eroded. The Grotto Beach Formation is the most widespread. Government and politics Main article : Politics of the Bahamas The Bahamian Parliament, located in Nassau The Bahamas is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy headed by Queen Elizabeth II in her role as Queen of the Bahamas. Political and legal traditions closely follow those of the United Kingdom and the Westminster system. The Bahamas is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations as a Commonwealth realm, retaining the Queen as head of state ( represented by a Governor - General ). Legislative power is vested In a bicameral parliament, which consists of a 38 - member House of Assembly ( the lower house ), with members elected from single - member districts, and a 16 - member Senate, with members appointed by the Governor - General, including nine on the advice of the Prime Minister, four on the advice of the Leader of Her Majesty 's Loyal Opposition, and three on the advice of the Prime Minister after consultation with the Leader of the Opposition. The House of Assembly carries out all major legislative functions. As under the Westminster system, the Prime Minister may dissolve Parliament and call a general election at any time within a five - year term. The Prime Minister is the head of government and is the leader of the party with the most seats in the House of Assembly. Executive power is exercised by the Cabinet, selected by the Prime Minister and drawn from his supporters in the House of Assembly. The current Governor - General is Dame Marguerite Pindling, and the current Prime Minister is The Rt. Hon. Hubert Minnis MP. Constitutional safeguards include freedom of speech, press, worship, movement and association. The Judiciary of the Bahamas is independent of the executive and the legislature. Jurisprudence is based on English law. Political culture The Bahamas has a two - party system dominated by the centre - left Progressive Liberal Party and the centre - right Free National Movement. A handful of splinter parties have been unable to win election to parliament. These parties have included the Bahamas Democratic Movement, the Coalition for Democratic Reform, Bahamian Nationalist Party and the Democratic National Alliance. Foreign Relations Further information : Foreign relations of the Bahamas The Bahamas has strong bilateral relationships with the United States and the United Kingdom, represented by an ambassador in Washington and High Commissioner in London. The Bahamas also associates closely with other nations of the Caribbean Community ( CARICOM ). Armed forces Main article : Royal Bahamas Defence Force HMBS Nassau ( P - 61 ) The Bahamanian military is the Royal Bahamas Defence Force ( RBDF ), the navy of the Bahamas which includes a land unit called Commando Squadron ( Regiment ) and an Air Wing ( Air Force ). Under the Defence Act, the RBDF has been mandated, in the name of the Queen, to defend the Bahamas, protect its territorial integrity, patrol its waters, provide assistance and relief in times of disaster, maintain order in conjunction with the law enforcement agencies of the Bahamas, and carry out any such duties as determined by the National Security Council. The Defence Force is also a member of the Caribbean Community ( CARICOM ) 's Regional Security Task Force. The RBDF came into existence on 31 March 1980. Their duties include defending the Bahamas, stopping drug smuggling, illegal immigration and poaching, and providing assistance to mariners. The Defence Force has a fleet of 26 coastal and inshore patrol craft along with 3 aircraft and over 1,100 personnel including 65 officers and 74 women. Administrative divisions Main article : Local government in the Bahamas Districts of the Bahamas The districts of the Bahamas provide a system of local government everywhere except New Providence ( which holds 70 % of the national population ), whose affairs are handled directly by the central government. In 1996, the Bahamian Parliament passed the `` Local Government Act '' to facilitate the establishment of Family Island Administrators, Local Government Districts, Local District Councillors and Local Town Committees for the various island communities. The overall goal of this act is to allow the various elected leaders to govern and oversee the affairs of their respective districts without the interference of Central Government. In total, there are 32 districts, with elections being held every five years. There are 110 Councillors and 281 Town Committee members are elected to represent the various districts. Each Councillor or Town Committee member is responsible for the proper use of public funds for the maintenance and development of their constituency. The Bahamas uses drive - on - the - Left traffic rules throughout the Commonwealth. The districts other than New Providence are : Acklins Berry Islands Bimini Black Point, Exuma Cat Island Central Abaco Central Andros Central Eleuthera City of Freeport, Grand Bahama Crooked Island East Grand Bahama Exuma Grand Cay, Abaco Harbour Island, Eleuthera Hope Town, Abaco Inagua Long Island Mangrove Cay, Andros Mayaguana Moore 's Island, Abaco North Abaco North Andros North Eleuthera Ragged Island Rum Cay San Salvador South Abaco South Andros South Eleuthera Spanish Wells, Eleuthera West Grand Bahama National flag Main article : Flag of the Bahamas The national flag of the Bahamas The Bahamian flag was adopted in 1973. Its colours symbolise the strength of the Bahamian people ; its design reflects aspects of the natural environment ( sun and sea ) and economic and social development. The flag is a black equilateral triangle against the mast, superimposed on a horizontal background made up of three equal stripes of aquamarine, gold and aquamarine. Coat of arms Main article : Coat of arms of the Bahamas Bahamian Coat of Arms The coat of arms of the Bahamas contains a shield with the national symbols as its focal point. The shield is supported by a marlin and a flamingo, which are the national animals of the Bahamas. The flamingo is located on the land, and the marlin on the sea, indicating the geography of the islands. On top of the shield is a conch shell, which represents the varied marine life of the island chain. The conch shell rests on a helmet. Below this is the actual shield, the main symbol of which is a ship representing the Santa María of Christopher Columbus, shown sailing beneath the sun. Along the bottom, below the shield appears a banner upon which is the national motto : `` Forward, Upward, Onward Together. '' National flower The yellow elder was chosen as the national flower of the Bahamas because it is native to the Bahama islands, and it blooms throughout the year. Selection of the yellow elder over many other flowers was made through the combined popular vote of members of all four of New Providence 's garden clubs of the 1970s -- the Nassau Garden Club, the Carver Garden Club, the International Garden Club and the YWCA Garden Club. They reasoned that other flowers grown there -- such as the bougainvillea, hibiscus and poinciana -- had already been chosen as the national flowers of other countries. The yellow elder, on the other hand, was unclaimed by other countries ( although it is now also the national flower of the United States Virgin Islands ) and also the yellow elder is native to the family islands. Economy Main article : Economy of the Bahamas By the terms of GDP per capita, the Bahamas is one of the richest countries in the Americas. It was revealed in the Panama Papers that The Bahamas is the jurisdiction with the most offshore entities or companies. Tourism The Atlantis Paradise Island in Nassau The Bahamas relies on tourism to generate most of its economic activity. Tourism as an industry not only accounts for over 60 % of the Bahamian GDP, but provides jobs for more than half the country 's workforce. The Bahamas attracted 5.8 million visitors in 2012, more than 70 % of whom were cruise visitors. Financial services After tourism, the next most important economic sector is banking and offshore international financial services, accounting for some 15 % of GDP. The government has adopted incentives to encourage foreign financial business, and further banking and finance reforms are in progress. The government plans to merge the regulatory functions of key financial institutions, including the Central Bank of the Bahamas ( CBB ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Central Bank administers restrictions and controls on capital and money market instruments. The Bahamas International Securities Exchange consists of 19 listed public companies. Reflecting the relative soundness of the banking system ( mostly populated by Canadian banks ), the impact of the global financial crisis on the financial sector has been limited. A proportional representation of the Bahamas exports. The economy has a very competitive tax regime ( classified as a tax haven ). The government derives its revenue from import tariffs, VAT, licence fees, property and stamp taxes, but there is no income tax, corporate tax, capital gains tax, or wealth tax. Payroll taxes fund social insurance benefits and amount to 3.9 % paid by the employee and 5.9 % paid by the employer. In 2010, overall tax revenue as a percentage of GDP was 17.2 %. Agriculture Further information : Agriculture in the Bahamas Agriculture is the third largest sector of the Bahamian economy, representing 5 -- 7 % of total GDP. An estimated 80 % of the Bahamian food supply is imported. Major crops include onions, okra, tomatoes, oranges, grapefruit, cucumbers, sugar cane, lemons, limes, and sweet potatoes. Demographics Main article : Demographics of the Bahamas The Bahamas has an estimated population of 391,232, of which 25.9 % are under 14, 67.2 % 15 to 64 and 6.9 % over 65. It has a population growth rate of 0.925 % ( 2010 ), with a birth rate of 17.81 / 1,000 population, death rate of 9.35 / 1,000, and net migration rate of − 2.13 migrant ( s ) / 1,000 population. The infant mortality rate is 23.21 deaths / 1,000 live births. Residents have a life expectancy at birth of 69.87 years : 73.49 years for females, 66.32 years for males. The total fertility rate is 2.0 children born / woman ( 2010 ). The most populous islands are New Providence, where Nassau, the capital and largest city, is located ; and Grand Bahama, home to the second largest city of Freeport. Racial and ethnic groups According to the 99 % response rate obtained from the race question on the 2010 Census questionnaire, 90.6 % of the population identified themselves as being Black, 4.7 % White and 2.1 % of a mixed race ( Black and White ). Three centuries prior, in 1722 when the first official census of the Bahamas was taken, 74 % of the population was White and 26 % Black. Afro - Bahamian children at a local school Since the colonial era of plantations, Africans or Afro - Bahamians have been the largest ethnic group in the Bahamas, whose primary ancestry was based in West Africa. The first Africans to arrive to the Bahamas were freed slaves from Bermuda ; they arrived with the Eleutheran Adventurers looking for new lives. The Haitian community in the Bahamas is also largely of African descent and numbers about 80,000. Due to an extremely high immigration of Haitians to the Bahamas, the Bahamian government started deporting illegal Haitian immigrants to their homeland in late 2014. The White Bahamian population are mainly the descendants of the English Puritans looking to flee religious persecution in England and American Loyalists escaping the American Revolution who arrived in 1649 and 1783, respectively. Many Southern Loyalists went to the Abaco Islands, half of whose population was of European descent as of 1985. The term white is usually used to identify Bahamians with Anglo ancestry, as well as `` light - skinned '' Afro - Bahamians. Sometimes Bahamians use the term Conchy Joe to describe people of Anglo descent. A small portion of the Euro - Bahamian population is descended from Greek labourers who came to help develop the sponging industry in the 1900s. They make up less than 1 % of the nation 's population, but have still preserved their distinct Greek Bahamian culture. Bahamians typically identify themselves simply as either black or white. Languages The official language of the Bahamas is English. Many people speak an English - based creole language called Bahamian dialect ( known simply as `` dialect '' ) or `` Bahamianese. '' Laurente Gibbs, a Bahamian writer and actor, was the first to coin the latter name in a poem and has since promoted its usage. Both are used as autoglossonyms. Haitian Creole, a French - based creole language is spoken by Haitians and their descendants, who make up of about 25 % of the total population. It is known simply as Creole to differentiate it from Bahamian English. Also note that the Bahamas was once under British rule and therefore the English taught in the Bahamian schools is still `` British - based ''. Religion Further information : Religion in the Bahamas Religion in the Bahamas ( 2010 ) Protestant ( 80 % ) Roman Catholic ( 14.5 % ) Other Christian ( 1.3 % ) Unaffiliated ( 3.1 % ) Other religion ( 1.1 % ) According to International Religious Freedom Report 2008 prepared by United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, the islands ' population is predominantly Christian. Protestant denominations are widespread and collectively account for more than 70 % of the population, with Baptists representing 35 % of the population, Anglicans 15 %, Pentecostals 8 %, Church of God 5 %, Seventh - day Adventists 5 % and Methodists 4 %. There is also a significant Roman Catholic community accounting for about 14 %. There are also smaller communities of Jews, Muslims, Baha'is, Hindus, Rastafarians and practitioners of Obeah. Culture Main articles : Culture of the Bahamas and Music of the Bahamas Junkanoo celebration in Nassau In the less developed outer islands ( or Family Islands ), handicrafts include basketry made from palm fronds. This material, commonly called `` straw '', is plaited into hats and bags that are popular tourist items. Another use is for so - called `` Voodoo dolls '', even though such dolls are the result of foreign influences and not based in historic fact. A form of folk magic ( obeah ) is practised by some Bahamians, mainly in the Family Islands ( out - islands ) of the Bahamas. The practice of obeah is illegal in the Bahamas and punishable by law. Junkanoo is a traditional Afro - Bahamian street parade of ' rushing ', music, dance and art held in Nassau ( and a few other settlements ) every Boxing Day and New Year 's Day. Junkanoo is also used to celebrate other holidays and events such as Emancipation Day. Regattas are important social events in many family island settlements. They usually feature one or more days of sailing by old - fashioned work boats, as well as an onshore festival. Many dishes are associated with Bahamian cuisine, which reflects Caribbean, African and European influences. Some settlements have festivals associated with the traditional crop or food of that area, such as the `` Pineapple Fest '' in Gregory Town, Eleuthera or the `` Crab Fest '' on Andros. Other significant traditions include story telling. Bahamians have created a rich literature of poetry, short stories, plays and short fictional works. Common themes in these works are ( 1 ) an awareness of change, ( 2 ) a striving for sophistication, ( 3 ) a search for identity, ( 4 ) nostalgia for the old ways and ( 5 ) an appreciation of beauty. Some contributing writers are Susan Wallace, Percival Miller, Robert Johnson, Raymond Brown, O.M. Smith, William Johnson, Eddie Minnis and Winston Saunders. Bahamas culture is rich with beliefs, traditions, folklore and legend. The most well - known folklore and legends in the Bahamas includes Lusca in Andros Bahamas, Pretty Molly on Exuma Bahamas, the Chickcharnies of Andro Bahamas, and the Lost City of Atlantis on Bimini Bahamas. Sport Sport is a significant part of Bahamian culture. The national sport is cricket. Cricket has been played in the Bahamas from 1846, the oldest sport being played in the country today. The Bahamas Cricket Association was formed in 1936, and from the 1940s to the 1970s, cricket was played amongst many Bahamians. Bahamas is not a part of the West Indies Cricket Board, so players are not eligible to play for the West Indies cricket team. The late 1970s saw the game begin to decline in the country as teachers, who had previously come from the United Kingdom with a passion for cricket, were replaced by teachers who had been trained in the United States. The Bahamian physical education teachers had no knowledge of the game and instead taught track and field, basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball and football where primary and high schools compete against each other. Today cricket is still enjoyed by a few locals and immigrants in the country usually from Jamaica, Guyana, Haiti and Barbados. Cricket is played on Saturdays and Sundays at Windsor Park and Haynes Oval. The only other sporting event that began before cricket was horse racing, which started in 1796. The most popular spectator sports are those imported from United States, such as basketball, American football and baseball, rather than from Great Britain, due to the country 's close proximity to the United States, unlike their other Caribbean counterparts, where cricket, rugby, and netball have proven to be more popular. Dexter Cambridge, Rick Fox, Ian Lockhart, Magnum Rolle, Buddy Hield and Deandre Ayton are a few Bahamians who joined Bahamian Mychal Thompson of the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA ranks. Over the years American football has become much more popular than soccer, though not implemented in the high school system yet. Leagues for teens and adults have been developed by the Bahamas American Football Federation. However soccer, as it is commonly known in the country, is still a very popular sport amongst high school pupils. Leagues are governed by the Bahamas Football Association. Recently the Bahamian government has been working closely with Tottenham Hotspur of London to promote the sport in the country as well as promoting the Bahamas in the European market. In 2013 ' Spurs ' became the first Premier League club to play an exhibition match in the Bahamas, facing the Jamaican national team. Joe Lewis, the owner of the club, is based in the Bahamas. Other popular sports are swimming, tennis and boxing, where Bahamians have enjoyed some degree of success at the international level. Other sports such as golf, rugby league, rugby union, beach soccer, and netball are considered growing sports. Athletics, commonly known as ' track and field ' in the country, is the most successful sport by far amongst Bahamians. Bahamians have a strong tradition in the sprints and jumps. Track and field is probably the most popular spectator sport in the country next to basketball due to their success over the years. Triathlons are gaining popularity in Nassau and the Family Islands. Bahamians have gone on to win numerous track and field medals at the Olympic Games, IAAF World Championships in Athletics, Commonwealth Games and Pan American Games. Frank Rutherford is the first athletics olympic medallist for the country. He won a bronze medal for triple jump during the 1992 Summer Olympics. Pauline Davis - Thompson, Debbie Ferguson, Chandra Sturrup, Savatheda Fynes and Eldece Clarke - Lewis teamed up for the first athletics Olympic Gold medal for the country when they won the 4 × 100 m relay at the 2000 Summer Olympics. They are affectionately known as the `` Golden Girls ''. Tonique Williams - Darling became the first athletics individual Olympic gold medallist when she won the 400m sprint in 2004 Summer Olympics. In 2007, with the disqualification of Marion Jones, Pauline Davis - Thompson was advanced to the gold medal position in the 200 metres at the 2000 Olympics, predating William - Darling. The Bahamas were hosts of the first men 's senior FIFA tournament to be staged in the Caribbean, the 2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup. Education Main article : Education in the Bahamas According to 1995 estimates, 98.2 % of the Bahamian adult population is literate. See also Bahamas portal New Spain portal Outline of the Bahamas Index of Bahamas - related articles Bahamas -- Wikipedia book References ^ Jump up to : Bahamas, The. CIA World Factbook. Jump up ^ Bahamas Department of Statistics, PDF document retrieved 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ `` GENERAL SITUATION AND TRENDS ''. Pan American Health Organization. Jump up ^ `` Mission to Long Island in the Bahamas ''. Evangelical Association of the Caribbean. Jump up ^ `` 1973 : Bahamas ' sun sets on British Empire ''. BBC News. 9 July 1973. Retrieved 1 May 2009. Jump up ^ `` World Population Prospects : The 2017 Revision ''. ESA.UN.org ( custom data acquired via website ). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 10 September 2017. ^ Jump up to : `` The Bahamas ''. International Monetary Fund. Jump up ^ `` 2018 Human Development Report '' ( PDF ). United Nations Development Programme. 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2018. Jump up ^ `` Bahamas ''. Jump up ^ Official government website. `` The Constitution ''. Retrieved 29 May 2017. Jump up ^ Country Comparison : : GDP -- per capita ( PPP ). CIA World Factbook. Jump up ^ Peter Barratt ( 2004 ). Bahama Saga : The epic story of The Bahama Islands. p. 47. Jump up ^ Harper, Douglas. `` bahamas ''. Online Etymology Dictionary. Jump up ^ Markham, Clements R. ( 1893 ). The Journal of Christopher Columbus ( during His First Voyage, 1492 -- 93 ). London : The Hakluyt Society. p. 35. Retrieved 13 September 2015. Jump up ^ `` Schools Grapple With Columbus 's Legacy : Intrepid Explorer or Ruthless Conqueror ? '', Education Week, 9 October 1991 Jump up ^ Dumene, Joanne E. ( 1990 ). `` Looking for Columbus ''. Five Hundred Magazine. 2 ( 1 ) : 11 -- 15. Archived from the original on 19 September 2008. Jump up ^ `` Diocesan History ''. Copyright 2009 Anglican Communications Department. 2009. Archived from the original on 5 May 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2009. Jump up ^ Woodard, Colin ( 2010 ). The Republic of Pirates. Harcourt, Inc. pp. 166 -- 168, 262 -- 314. ISBN 978 - 0 - 15 - 603462 - 3. Jump up ^ Wertenbaker, Thomas Jefferson ( 1948 ). Father Knickerbocker Rebels : New York City during the Revolution. New York : Charles Scribner 's Sons. p. 260. Jump up ^ Peters, Thelma ( October 1961 ). `` The Loyalist Migration from East Florida to the Bahama Islands ''. The Florida Historical Quarterly. 40 ( 2 ) : 123 -- 141 -- via JSTOR. p. 132, 136, 137 Jump up ^ `` Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park '', Network to Freedom, National Park Service, 2010, accessed 10 April 2013 Jump up ^ Vignoles, Charles Blacker ( 1823 ) Observations on the Floridas, New York : E. Bliss & E. White, pp. 135 -- 136 Jump up ^ Howard, R. ( 2006 ). `` The `` Wild Indians '' of Andros Island : Black Seminole Legacy in the Bahamas ``. Journal of Black Studies. 37 ( 2 ) : 275. doi : 10.1177 / 0021934705280085. Jump up ^ Partners : `` African Bahamian Museum and Research Center ( ABAC ) '', Network to Freedom, National Park Service, accessed 10 April 2013 Jump up ^ Appendix : `` Brigs Encomium and Enterprise '', Register of Debates in Congress, Gales & Seaton, 1837, pp. 251 -- 253. Note : In trying to retrieve North American slaves off the Encomium from colonial officials ( who freed them ), the U.S. consul in February 1834 was told by the Lieutenant Governor that `` he was acting in regard to the slaves under an opinion of 1818 by Sir Christopher Robinson and Lord Gifford to the British Secretary of State ''. Jump up ^ Horne, p. 103 Jump up ^ Horne, p. 137 Jump up ^ Register of Debates in Congress, Gales & Seaton, 1837, The section, `` Brigs Encomium and Enterprise '', has a collection of lengthy correspondence between US ( including M. Van Buren ), Vail, the U.S. chargé d'affaires in London, and British agents, including Lord Palmerston, sent to the Senate on 13 February 1837, by President Andrew Jackson, as part of the continuing process of seeking compensation. Jump up ^ Horne, pp. 107 -- 108 Jump up ^ Williams, Michael Paul ( 11 February 2002 ). `` Brig Creole slaves ''. Richmond Times - Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. Retrieved 25 October 2018. Jump up ^ Higham, pp. 300 -- 302 Jump up ^ Bloch, Michael ( 1982 ). The Duke of Windsor 's War, London : Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 0 - 297 - 77947 - 8, p. 364. ^ Jump up to : Higham, pp. 307 -- 309 Jump up ^ Bloch, Michael ( 1982 ). The Duke of Windsor 's War. London : Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 0 - 297 - 77947 - 8, pp. 154 -- 159, 230 -- 233 Jump up ^ Higham, pp. 331 -- 332 Jump up ^ Ziegler, Philip ( 1991 ). King Edward VIII : The Official Biography. New York : Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0 - 394 - 57730 - 2. pp. 471 -- 472 Jump up ^ Matthew, H.C.G. ( September 2004 ; online edition January 2008 ) `` Edward VIII, later Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor ( 1894 -- 1972 ) '', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, doi : 10.1093 / ref : odnb / 31061, retrieved 1 May 2010 ( Subscription required ) Jump up ^ Higham, p. 359 places the date of his resignation as 15 March, and that he left on 5 April. Jump up ^ `` Bahaman Proposes Independence Move ''. The Washington Post. United Press International. 19 August 1966. p. A20. Jump up ^ BIgart, Homer ( 7 January 1968 ). `` Bahamas Will Ask Britain For More Independence ''. The New York Times. p. 1. Jump up ^ Armstrong, Stephen V. ( 28 September 1968 ). `` Britain and Bahamas Agree on Constitution ''. The Washington Post. p. A13. Jump up ^ `` British grant independence to Bahamas ''. The Baltimore Afro - American. 23 June 1973. p. 22. Jump up ^ `` Bahamas gets deed ''. Chicago Defender. United Press International. 11 July 1973. p. 3. Jump up ^ `` Bahama Independence ''. Tri-State Defender. Memphis, Tennessee. 14 July 1973. p. 16. Jump up ^ `` Bahamas Joins IMF, World Bank ''. The Washington Post. 23 August 1973. p. C2. Jump up ^ Alden, Robert ( 19 September 1973 ). `` 2 Germanys Join U.N. as Assembly Opens 28th Year ''. The New York Times. p. 1. Jump up ^ Albury, Paul ( 1975 ). The Story of the Bahamas. London : MacMillan Caribbean, p. 6 Jump up ^ `` Caribbean Islands -- Bahamas ( rev. 2015 ) ''. Retrieved 4 December 2015. Jump up ^ `` Weather Information for Nassau ''. worldweather.org. Jump up ^ `` Climatological Information for Nassau, Bahamas '' ( 1961 -- 1990 ) -- Hong Kong Observatory ^ Jump up to : Carew, James ; Mylroie, John ( 1997 ). Vacher, H.L. ; Quinn, T., eds. Geology of Bahamas, in Geology and Hydrology of Carbonate Islands, Developments in Sedimentology 54. Amsterdam : Elsevier Science B.V. pp. 91 -- 139. ISBN 9780444516442. ^ Jump up to : Sealey, Neil ( 2006 ). Bahamian Landscapes ; An Introduction to the Geology and Physical Geography of The Bahamas. Oxford : Macmillan Education. pp. 1 -- 24. ISBN 9781405064064. Jump up ^ `` Bahamas 1973 ( rev. 2002 ) ''. Constitute. Retrieved 17 March 2015. Jump up ^ Family Island District Councillors & Town Committee Members. Bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ ASJ - Bahamas National Coat of Arms. Bahamasschools.com. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ ASJ - Bahamas Symbol -- Flower. Bahamasschools.com. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ GDP ( current US $ ) Data Table. World Bank, Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ `` Panama Papers ''. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Jump up ^ `` The Bahamas -- Economy '', Encyclopedia of the Nations, Retrieved 21 March 2010. Jump up ^ `` Contributions Table ''. The National Insurance Board of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas. 11 May 2010. Retrieved 22 December 2011. Jump up ^ Country Comparison `` Total fertility rate '', CIA World Factbook. Jump up ^ `` NEW PROVIDENCE ''. Government of the Bahamas. Retrieved 15 May 2015. Jump up ^ `` GRAND BAHAMA ''. Government of the Bahamas. Retrieved 15 May 2015. ^ Jump up to : The Commonwealth of the Bahamas ( August 2012 ). `` 2010 Census of Population and Housing '' ( PDF ). pp. 10 and 82. In 1722 when the first official census of the Bahamas was taken, 74 % of the population was European or native British and 26 % was African or mixed. Three centuries later, and according to the 99 % response rate obtained from the race question on the 2010 Census questionnaire, 90.6 % of the population identified themselves as being Afro - Bahamian, about five percent ( 4.7 % ) Euro - Bahamian and two percent ( 2 % ) of a mixed race ( African and European ) and ( 1 % ) other races and ( 1 % ) not stated. Jump up ^ Davis, Nick ( 20 September 2009 ), `` Bahamas outlook clouds for Haitians '', BBC. Jump up ^ `` The Names of Loyalist Settlers and Grants of Land Which They Received from the British Government : 1778 -- 1783 ''. Jump up ^ Christmas, Rachel J. and Christmas, Walter ( 1984 ) Fielding 's Bermuda and the Bahamas 1985. Fielding Travel Books. p. 158. ISBN 0 - 688 - 03965 - 0 ^ Jump up to : Schreier, Daniel ; Trudgill, Peter ; Schneider, Edgar W. ; Williams, Jeffrey P., eds. ( 2010 ). `` The Lesser - Known Varieties of English : An Introduction ''. Cambridge University Press. p. 162. ISBN 9781139487412. Retrieved 3 February 2017. Jump up ^ Hackert, Stephanie, ed. ( 2010 ). `` ICE Bahamas : Why and how ? '' ( PDF ). University of Augsburg. pp. 41 -- 45. Retrieved 3 February 2017. Jump up ^ Staff, ed. ( 27 February 2013 ). `` SWAA students have accomplished Bahamian playwright, actor and poet Laurente Gibbs as Guest Speaker ''. Eleuthera News. Retrieved 1 February 2017. Jump up ^ Collie, Linda ( 2003 ). `` Preserving Our Heritage : Language Arts, an Integrated Approach, Part 1 ''. Heinemann. pp. 26 -- 29. ISBN 9780435984809. Retrieved 1 February 2017. Jump up ^ Michaelis, Susanne Maria ; Maurer, Philippe ; Haspelmath, Martin ; Huber, Magnus, eds. ( 2013 ). `` The Survey of Pidgin and Creole Languages, Volume 1 ''. OUP Oxford. pp. 127 -- 129. ISBN 9780199691401. Retrieved 1 February 2017. Jump up ^ Osiapem, Iyabo F., ed. ( 2006 ). `` Book Review : Urban Bahamian Creole : System and Variation ''. Journal of English Linguistics. 34 : 362 -- 366. doi : 10.1177 / 0075424206292990. Retrieved 3 February 2017. Jump up ^ `` Religion in Bahamas ''. Pew Global Religious Futures. Jump up ^ United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. Bahamas : International Religious Freedom Report 2008. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Jump up ^ Hurbon, Laennec ( 1995 ). `` American Fantasy and Haitian Vodou. '' Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou. Ed. Donald J. Cosentino. Los Angeles : UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History, pp. 181 -- 97. Jump up ^ `` International Religious Freedom Report 2005 -- Bahamas ''. United States Department of State. Retrieved 22 July 2012. Jump up ^ `` Practising Obeah, etc. '', Ch. 84 Penal Code. laws.bahamas.gov.bs Jump up ^ Collinwood, Dean W. and Dodge, Steve ( 1989 ) Modern Bahamian Society, Caribbean Books, ISBN 0931209013. Jump up ^ Collinwood, Dean ; Phillips, Rick ( 1990 ). `` The National Literature of the New Bahamas ''. Weber Studies. 7 ( 1 ) : 43 -- 62. Jump up ^ Cricket -- Government -- Non-Residents. Bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ Call to continue to develop softball The Tribune. Tribune242.com ( 1 February 2013 ). Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ `` Team Bahamas ratified for volleyball championships '', The Tribune ( 12 July 2013 ). Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ Bahamas -- Football Association. Bahamasfa.com. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ The Bahamas Basketball Federation. The Bahamas Basketball Federation. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ IFAF -- Federations. Ifaf.info. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ www. Baseball Bahamas.net. www. Baseball Bahamas.net. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ `` The Bahamas Basketball Federation ''. The Bahamas Basketball Federation. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ Parrish, Gary ( 16 June 2016 ). `` NBA Mock Draft 2016 : Denzel Valentine takes big dive due to possible knee issue ''. CBSSports.com. Retrieved 16 June 2016. Jump up ^ Fred Sturrup, `` American Football Expanding Locally '', The Nassau Guardian. 17 June 2011. Jump up ^ `` From Champions League heartache to paradise... but why are Spurs in the Bahamas for post-season tour ? ''. Daily Mail. London. Jump up ^ Home. Bahamas Swimming Federation ( 6 April 2014 ). Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ Bahamas Tennis. Bahamas Tennis. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ Boxing -- Government -- Non-Residents. Bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ Golf -- Government -- Non-Residents. Bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ Rugby -- Government -- Non-Residents. Bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ RugbyBahamas --. Rugbybahamas.com. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2013 -- CONCACAF Qualifier Bahamas. beachsoccer.com Jump up ^ `` Elite Bahamian Education Program -- About Us ''. Frankrutherfordfoundation.com. Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ `` Golden Inspiration '', The Tribune. ( 9 August 2012 ). Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ `` Olympic champion Tonique Williams - Darling looks forward to World Athletics Final ''. International Association of Athletics Federations ( 26 August 2004 ). Retrieved on 20 April 2014. Jump up ^ `` Ethics : Executive Committee unanimously supports recommendation to publish report on 2018 / 2022 FIFA World Cup TM bidding process ''. FIFA.com. 19 December 2014. Bibliography Horne, Gerald ( 2012 ). Negro Comrades of the Crown : African Americans and the British Empire Fight the U.S. Before Emancipation. NYU Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8147 - 4463 - 5. Higham, Charles ( 1988 ). The Dutchess of Windsor : The Secret Life. McGraw Hill. ISBN 0471485233. Further reading Main article : Bibliography of the Bahamas General History Cash Philip et al. ( Don Maples, Alison Packer ). The Making of The Bahamas : A History for Schools. London : Collins, 1978. Miller, Hubert W. The Colonization of The Bahamas, 1647 -- 1670, The William and Mary Quarterly 2 no. 1 ( January 1945 ) : 33 -- 46. Craton, Michael. A History of The Bahamas. London : Collins, 1962. Craton, Michael and Saunders, Gail. Islanders in the Stream : A History of the Bahamian People. Athens : University of Georgia Press, 1992 Collinwood, Dean. `` Columbus and the Discovery of Self, '' Weber Studies, Vol. 9 No. 3 ( Fall ) 1992 : 29 -- 44. Dodge, Steve. Abaco : The History of an Out Island and its Cays, Tropic Isle Publications, 1983. Dodge, Steve. The Compleat Guide to Nassau, White Sound Press, 1987. Boultbee, Paul G. The Bahamas. Oxford : ABC - Clio Press, 1990. Wood, David E., comp., A Guide to Selected Sources to the History of the Seminole Settlements of Red Bays, Andros, 1817 -- 1980, Nassau : Department of Archives Economic History Johnson, Howard. The Bahamas in Slavery and Freedom. Kingston : Ian Randle Publishing, 1991. Johnson, Howard. The Bahamas from Slavery to Servitude, 1783 -- 1933. Gainesville : University of Florida Press, 1996. Alan A. Block. Masters of Paradise, New Brunswick and London, Transaction Publishers, 1998. Storr, Virgil H. Enterprising Slaves and Master Pirates : Understanding Economic Life in the Bahamas. New York : Peter Lang, 2004. Social History Johnson, Wittington B. Race Relations in the Bahamas, 1784 -- 1834 : The Nonviolent Transformation from a Slave to a Free Society, Fayetteville : University of Arkansas, 2000. Shirley, Paul. `` Tek Force Wid Force '', History Today 54, no. 41 ( April 2004 ) : 30 -- 35. Saunders, Gail. The Social Life in the Bahamas 1880s -- 1920s. Nassau : Media Publishing, 1996. Saunders, Gail. Bahamas Society After Emancipation. Kingston : Ian Randle Publishing, 1990. Curry, Jimmy. Filthy Rich Gangster / First Bahamian Movie. Movie Mogul Pictures : 1996. Curry, Jimmy. To the Rescue / First Bahamian Rap / Hip Hop Song. Royal Crown Records, 1985. Collinwood, Dean. The Bahamas Between Worlds, White Sound Press, 1989. Collinwood, Dean and Steve Dodge. Modern Bahamian Society, Caribbean Books, 1989. Dodge, Steve, Robert McIntire and Dean Collinwood. The Bahamas Index, White Sound Press, 1989. Collinwood, Dean. `` The Bahamas, '' in The Whole World Handbook 1992 -- 1995, 12th ed., New York : St. Martin 's Press, 1994. Collinwood, Dean. `` The Bahamas, '' chapters in Jack W. Hopkins, ed., Latin American and Caribbean Contemporary Record, Vols. 1, 2, 3, 4, Holmes and Meier Publishers, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986. Collinwood, Dean. `` Problems of Research and Training in Small Islands with a Social Science Faculty, '' in Social Science in Latin America and the Caribbean, UNESCO, No. 48, 1982. Collinwood, Dean and Rick Phillips, `` The National Literature of the New Bahamas, '' Weber Studies, Vol. 7, No. 1 ( Spring ) 1990 : 43 -- 62. Collinwood, Dean. `` Writers, Social Scientists and Sexual Norms in the Caribbean, '' Tsuda Review, No. 31 ( November ) 1986 : 45 -- 57. Collinwood, Dean. `` Terra Incognita : Research on the Modern Bahamian Society, '' Journal of Caribbean Studies, Vol. 1, Nos. 2 -- 3 ( Winter ) 1981 : 284 -- 297. Collinwood, Dean and Steve Dodge. `` Political Leadership in the Bahamas, '' The Bahamas Research Institute, No. 1, May 1987. External links Find more aboutBahamasat Wikipedia 's sister projects Definitions from Wiktionary Media from Wikimedia Commons News from Wikinews Quotations from Wikiquote Texts from Wikisource Textbooks from Wikibooks Travel guide from Wikivoyage Learning resources from Wikiversity Official website Wikimedia Atlas of Bahamas `` Bahamas ''. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. The Bahamas from UCB Libraries GovPubs The Bahamas at Curlie The Bahamas from the BBC News Key Development Forecasts for The Bahamas from International Futures Maps of the Bahamas from the American Geographical Society Library The Bahamas articles History Colonial heads Eleutheran Adventurers Raid on Charles Town Battle of Nassau ( 1720 ) Raid of Nassau Capture of the Bahamas ( 1782 ) Capture of the Bahamas ( 1783 ) American Civil War Geography Cities Nassau Freeport Islands New Providence Grand Bahama Rivers Wildlife birds mammals Politics Defence Force Elections Foreign relations Governor - General Law Judiciary Supreme Court Chief Justice Enforcement Capital punishment Local government Monarchy Parliament Political parties Prime Minister Security and intelligence Economy Agriculture Communications Dollar ( currency ) Stock exchange Transport Society Demographics Ethnic groups Education Languages Religion LGBT rights in the Bahamas Culture Coat of Arms Creole Flag Films Music Television Anthem National Song Pledge Outline Index Bibliography Book Category Portal Articles relating to the Bahamas Caribbean articles History Timeline Taíno -- Arawak Spanish Caribbean ( 1492 -- 1898 ) Dutch Caribbean ( 1554 -- 1863 ) British Caribbean ( 1586 -- 1834 ) French Caribbean ( 1625 -- 1817 ) Baltic - 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Declared itself a republic in 1970. Members of the Commonwealth of Nations Sovereign states ( Members ) Antigua and Barbuda Australia Bahamas Bangladesh Barbados Belize Botswana Brunei Cameroon Canada Cyprus Dominica eSwatini ( Swaziland ) Fiji The Gambia Ghana Grenada Guyana India Jamaica Kenya Kiribati Lesotho Malawi Malaysia Malta Mauritius Mozambique Namibia Nauru New Zealand Nigeria Pakistan Papua New Guinea Rwanda St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Solomon Islands South Africa Sri Lanka Tanzania Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tuvalu Uganda United Kingdom Vanuatu Zambia Dependencies of Members Australia Ashmore and Cartier Islands Australian Antarctic Territory Christmas Island Cocos ( Keeling ) Islands Coral Sea Islands Heard Island and McDonald Islands Norfolk Island New Zealand Cook Islands Niue Ross Dependency Tokelau United Kingdom Akrotiri and Dhekelia Anguilla Bermuda British Antarctic Territory British Indian Ocean Territory British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Falkland Islands Gibraltar Guernsey Isle of Man Jersey Montserrat Pitcairn Islands St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Turks and Caicos Islands Source : Commonwealth Secretariat - Member States Dialects and accents of Modern English by continent Europe United Kingdom England Varieties by common name Barrovian Black Country Brummie Bristolian Cheshire Cockney `` Mockney '' Cornish Cumbrian East Anglian East Midlands Essex Estuary Geordie Kentish Lancastrian Mackem Mancunian Multicultural London Norfolk Northern Pitmatic Potteries Received Pronunciation Scouse Southern Suffolk Sussex West Country `` Mummerset '' West Midlands Yorkshire Varieties by geographic location East of England Essex Norfolk Suffolk East Midlands North Cheshire Cumbria Barrow Lancashire Manchester Merseyside Northumbria Sunderland Tyneside Pitmatic Yorkshire South Kent London Cockney Multicultural London Sussex Thames Estuary West Country Bristol Cornwall Dorset West Midlands Black Country Birmingham Stoke - on - Trent Scotland and Northern Ireland Scottish Highlands Wales Abercraf Cardiff Gower Port Talbot Ireland Dublin South and West Ulster Elsewhere Channel Islands Gibraltar Isle of Man Malta North and South America United States Varieties by common name African American Vernacular Appalachian Baltimorese Boston Cajun California Chicago ; Detroit ; Great Lakes Chicano General American Hoi Toider Indian ; Native American Maine Miami Midland Midwestern New England New Mexico New York Old Southern Northwestern Philadelphia Pennsylvania Dutch Pittsburghese Rhode Island Southern Texan Upper Midwestern Western Vermont Yat Yeshivish Yooper Varieties by geographic location Delaware Valley ; Mid-Atlantic Pennsylvania Dutch Philadelphia ; South Jersey Baltimore Midland Midwest Great Lakes ; Inland North Upper Midwest Upper Peninsula of Michigan New England Boston Maine Rhode Island Vermont New York City ; Northeastern New Jersey New York Latino North South Acadiana Appalachia Chesapeake ; Pamlico Miami New Orleans Tangier Texas West California New Mexico Pacific Northwest Western Pennsylvania Canada Aboriginal Atlantic Cape Breton Newfoundland Lunenburg Standard Ottawa Valley Pacific Northwest Quebec Caribbean Bahamas Barbados Dominican Republic Jamaica Puerto Rico Trinidad Elsewhere Bermuda Falkland Islands Guyana Oceania Australia Aboriginal Broad ; Strine General South Australian Torres Strait West Australian Elsewhere Fiji New Zealand Palau Solomon Islands Other continents Africa Cameroon Ghana Kenya Liberia Malawi Namibia Nigeria Sierra Leone South Africa White Cultivated General Broad Cape Flats Black Indian Uganda Asia Bangladesh Brunei Burma or Myanmar Hong Kong India Malaysia Nepal Pakistan Philippines Singapore Sri Lanka WorldCat Identities BNE : XX450739 BNF : cb15322056w ( data ) GND : 4069081 - 7 HDS : 3381 LCCN : n79081362 NARA : 10044661 NDL : 00575689 NKC : ge427005 SUDOC : 027552357 VIAF : 131337264 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Bahamas&oldid=866000495 '' Categories : The Bahamas Countries in the Caribbean Archipelagoes of the Atlantic Ocean English - speaking countries and territories Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations Member states of the Caribbean Community Member states of the United Nations Small Island Developing States Former English colonies Populated places established in 1647 1647 establishments in North America 1647 establishments in the British Empire States and territories established in 1973 1973 establishments in North America 1970s establishments in the Caribbean Countries in North America Hidden categories : Wikipedia indefinitely move - protected pages EngvarB from October 2015 Use dmy dates from March 2018 Coordinates on Wikidata Articles with hAudio microformats Articles including recorded pronunciations ( English ) Articles containing Taino - language text Articles containing Spanish - language text Articles needing additional references from July 2017 All articles needing additional references All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from April 2011 Articles with unsourced statements from February 2017 Articles with Curlie links Wikipedia articles with BNE identifiers Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with HDS identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with NARA identifiers Wikipedia articles with NDL identifiers Wikipedia articles with NKC identifiers Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikivoyage Languages Acèh Afrikaans Alemannisch አማርኛ Aragonés Armãneashti Arpetan Asturianu Avañe'ẽ Aymar aru Azərbaycanca تۆرکجه Bamanankan বাংলা Bân - lâm - gú Башҡортса Беларуская Беларуская ( тарашкевіца ) ‎ भोजपुरी Bikol Central Български Boarisch བོད ་ ཡིག Bosanski Brezhoneg Буряад Català Чӑвашла Cebuano Čeština Chavacano de Zamboanga ChiShona Cymraeg Dansk Davvisámegiella Deutsch ދިވެހިބަސް Dolnoserbski ཇོང ་ ཁ Eesti Ελληνικά Эрзянь Español Esperanto Estremeñu Euskara Eʋegbe فارسی Fiji Hindi Føroyskt Français Frysk Gaeilge Gaelg Gagauz Gàidhlig Galego गोंयची कोंकणी / Gõychi Konknni 客家 語 / Hak - kâ - ngî Хальмг 한국어 Հայերեն हिन्दी Hornjoserbsce Hrvatski Ido Ilokano বিষ্ণুপ্রিয়া মণিপুরী Bahasa Indonesia Interlingua Ирон Íslenska Italiano עברית Basa Jawa ಕನ್ನಡ Kapampangan ქართული Қазақша Kernowek Kinyarwanda Kiswahili Kreyòl ayisyen Kurdî Кыргызча Кырык мары Ladino Latina Latviešu Lëtzebuergesch Lietuvių Ligure Limburgs Lingála Livvinkarjala Lumbaart Magyar मैथिली Македонски Malagasy മലയാളം Malti मराठी მარგალური مصرى مازِرونی Bahasa Melayu Mìng - dĕ̤ng - ngṳ̄ Mirandés Монгол မြန်မာဘာသာ Dorerin Naoero Nederlands नेपाली नेपाल भाषा 日本 語 Нохчийн Nordfriisk Norfuk / Pitkern Norsk Norsk nynorsk Novial Occitan Олык марий Oromoo Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча ਪੰਜਾਬੀ पालि پنجابی Papiamentu Patois Piemontèis Plattdüütsch Polski Português Qırımtatarca Română Rumantsch Runa Simi Русиньскый Русский Саха тыла संस्कृतम् Scots Seeltersk Shqip Sicilianu සිංහල Simple English سنڌي SiSwati Slovenčina Slovenščina Ślůnski Soomaaliga کوردی Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Basa Sunda Suomi Svenska Tagalog தமிழ் Taqbaylit Татарча / tatarça తెలుగు Tetun ไทย Тоҷикӣ Türkçe Türkmençe Українська اردو ئۇيغۇرچە / Uyghurche Vahcuengh Vèneto Vepsän kel ' Tiếng Việt Volapük Võro 文言 Winaray Wolof 吴语 ייִדיש Yorùbá 粵語 Zazaki Zeêuws Žemaitėška 中文 डोटेली Lingua Franca Nova 185 more Edit links This page was last edited on 27 October 2018, at 16 : 21 ( UTC ). 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Question: what is the main language in the bahamas
Answer: English