The Greater Antilles consists of the Island of Hispaniola, which is now Haiti and the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico. The Lesser Antilles is made up of three groups of smaller islands: the Virgin Islands, Bahamas archipelago, and the Windward and Leeward Islands.
The state of Florida contains the closest point to the Greater Antilles within the U.S mainland, while the Florida Keys, although not within the Greater Antilles, is an island group north of Cuba.
What formed the Greater Antilles?
The Greater Antilles orthogeosyncline formed in latest Jurassic-Early Cretaceous time from Cuba to the Virgin Islands, and persisted until Eocene time. Locally 10 to 12 km of mafic to silicic igneous rocks and clastics accumulated. In Cuba and the Bahamas, 6 to 7 km of carbonates and evaporites were deposited.Jan 1, 1971
How were the Caribbean islands formed?
As Most of us know, the majority of the Caribbean Islands were formed by volcanic and tectonic plate activity. Tectonic plates wrestled and moved against each other to force one plate towards the ocean’s surface to create new Islands.
Which islands are part of the Greater Antilles quizlet?
They are Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (the island on which the countries of Haiti and the Dominican Republic are located), and Puerto Rico.
Where does the word Antilles come from?
The term Antilles dates traditionally from before Europeans reached the New World, when Antilia referred to semi-mythical lands located somewhere west of Europe across the Atlantic. On medieval charts it was sometimes indicated as a continent or large island and sometimes as an archipelago.
What are the Lesser Antilles made up of?
The Lesser Antilles is made up of three groups of smaller islands: the Virgin Islands, Bahamas archipelago, and the Windward and Leeward Islands.
What does Lesser Antilles mean?
The Lesser Antilles (Spanish: Pequeñas Antillas; French: Petites Antilles; Papiamento: Antias Menor; Dutch: Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc between the Greater Antilles to the north-west and the continent of South America.
What are the names of the two island groups in the Lesser Antilles?
The islands of the Lesser Antilles are divided into three groups: the Windward Islands in the south, the Leeward Islands in the north, and the Leeward Antilles in the west.
What is the difference between the Greater and Lesser Antilles?
The geographic location of the two groups is different, with the Greater Antilles located in the northern end of the Caribbean Sea south of the United States. . Furthermore, the Greater Antilles are made up of continental rock whereas the Lesser Antilles are mostly comprised of coral islands or volcanic rock.
What is considered the Lesser Antilles?
The Caribbean island grouping known as the Lesser Antilles consists of three smaller island groups—the Windward Islands, the Leeward Islands, and the Leeward Antilles—and includes all the small islands in the Caribbean south of Puerto Rico. The Windward Islands include Martinique, St. Lucia, St.
What is the largest island of the Caribbean?
Cuba
Which Caribbean islands make up the Lesser Antilles?
Three major physiographic divisions constitute the West Indies: the Greater Antilles, comprising the islands of Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), and Puerto Rico; the Lesser Antilles, including the Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, Montserrat, Guadeloupe, .
Where are the Lesser Antilles?
the Caribbean Sea
What are the Caribbean islands made out of?
The Caribbean islands are made up of island groups including Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles, Leeward Antilles, and the Windward Islands. The islands in the Caribbean are also sometimes referred to as the West Indies.
What makes up the Lesser Antilles?
The Caribbean island grouping known as the Lesser Antilles consists of three smaller island groups—the Windward Islands, the Leeward Islands, and the Leeward Antilles—and includes all the small islands in the Caribbean south of Puerto Rico. The Windward Islands include Martinique, St. Lucia, St.
Why is it called the Lesser Antilles?
The Windward Islands and the Leeward Islands make up the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean. . The Windward Islands got their name because they’re exposed to the wind (“windward”) of the northeast trade winds (northeasterlies).
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