Information
Country: HaitiContinent: North America
Haiti, North America
Overview
Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, sits on the sun‑washed western side of Hispaniola, sharing the island’s rugged mountains and coastline with the Dominican Republic.Haiti’s turbulent past sits alongside its rich culture and unshakable spirit, even as the country wrestles with poverty, political unrest, and the scars of hurricanes.Haiti sits in the warm blue waters of the Caribbean Sea, tucked between Cuba and Puerto Rico.It’s part of the Greater Antilles, and Hispaniola-home to Haiti and the Dominican Republic-ranks as the Caribbean’s second-largest island, stretching wide under the bright tropical sun.Haiti’s landscape is a striking mix of steep, rugged mountains and narrow river valleys, with the Chaîne de la Selle range stretching across the south.Low coastal plains edge the north and west, where palm-lined shores meet the sea.Pic la Selle towers above it all at 2,680 meters (8,793 feet).The country stays hot and humid all year, wrapped in its tropical climate.Along the coast, the air stays warm and sticky, while up in the mountains, it’s noticeably cooler.Rain sweeps in from April to October, pounding hardest between June and September-the peak of hurricane season.From November to March, the skies clear and the weather turns gentler, perfect for long walks or open-air markets.Haiti’s past moves through stark turns, from colonial rule and slavery to hard-won independence, fierce internal battles, and intricate political change.Before Europeans arrived, the Taíno-an Arawakan-speaking people-lived across Hispaniola, fishing its warm shallows and farming the fertile soil.Then, in 1492, Christopher Columbus stepped ashore, and Spanish rule began.Diseases, forced labor, and brutal attacks from the Spanish quickly decimated the Taíno people, their villages falling silent; from 1492 to 1697, Hispaniola remained under Spanish rule.Spanish interest faded as their gold ran out, and they left the island’s western lands quiet and untended; in 1697, that western third passed to France under the Treaty of Ryswick, becoming Saint-Domingue, a colony that grew rich on sugar, coffee, and tobacco worked by hundreds of thousands of enslaved Africans-by the late 1700s, nearly half a million lived there, fueling stark inequality and unrest that erupted in the Haitian Revolution, one of the Americas’ most pivotal uprisings.In 1791, enslaved Africans in the colony rose up against French rule, the crack of gunfire echoing through the night.Led by Toussaint Louverture-a former slave turned brilliant military strategist-they fought relentlessly for freedom.Thirteen years of war ended on January 1, 1804, when Haiti declared independence, becoming the first independent Black republic and the second free nation in the Western Hemisphere after the United States.It was the only successful slave revolt to create a new nation.In the years that followed, Haiti faced bitter internal rifts, economic ruin, and crushing foreign debt.In 1825, France forced Haiti to pay an enormous 150 million francs for losing its colony-a debt that strangled the nation’s economy for generations.Since then, Haiti has weathered military coups, dictatorships, and waves of unrest, the air at times thick with the sound of protest.Its official languages are Haitian Creole and French.Most people in Haiti speak Haitian Creole, a language born from French blended with several African tongues, carrying echoes of old coastal markets and village songs.French is the language of government, the courts, and formal occasions.Most Haitians are Roman Catholic, yet many also follow Vodou-a rich blend of African traditions and Catholic rituals, where drums and chanting often fill the air.Protestant churches are gaining followers, but faith in Haiti still weaves together both Christian and Vodou beliefs.The country’s art bursts with color and bold shapes, capturing everyday life and the sweep of its history.Haitian art blends threads of religion, culture, and politics, sometimes in vivid mural scenes.Music pulses through daily life too, with lively Kompa rhythms and the brass-and-drum parades of Rara.Haitian music carries the beat of African drums and the sway of French melodies, while its kitchens serve up rich, colorful plates like crispy griot, fragrant joumou, and hearty diri ak pwa.Meals often feature local staples such as sweet, golden plantains, hearty cassava, and tender poultry.Rhum Barbancourt, the island’s famous rum, carries the deep flavor of Haiti’s centuries-old sugar industry.Yet Haiti remains among the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere, struggling with fragile roads, limited schools, and scarce medical care.Haiti’s economy has long leaned on farming, with coffee beans, ripe mangoes, sugar, and cocoa heading out as key exports.But the land has suffered-forests stripped away, soil turned thin and dusty, and fields left exposed to hurricanes and long, punishing droughts.Industry remains small, focused mostly on textiles and assembling goods bound for other countries.Haiti supplies low-cost labor to several multinational companies, yet its white-sand beaches, vibrant culture, and historic sites hint at a rising tourism industry.At the same time, the nation struggles under heavy foreign debt and depends greatly on aid and the money sent home by Haitians overseas.International groups and nations like the United States have sent aid, but corruption and political turmoil keep slowing progress.In Haiti, leaders change often, graft runs deep, and the institutions meant to govern are too fragile to hold steady.Protests have often flared over poor economic conditions, government decisions, and the absence of basic services, while Haiti remains especially vulnerable to natural disasters like shuddering earthquakes, fierce hurricanes, and sudden floods.The 2010 earthquake tore through Haiti, killing more than 230,000 people, forcing millions from their homes, and reducing roads and buildings to rubble.Haiti’s fragile infrastructure and
