Saint Kitts and Nevis

The Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis (pronounced /seɪnt ˌkɪts ænd ˈniːvɪs/, also known as the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis),^[6] is a federal nation made up of two small islands in the Caribbean Sea. It is the smallest independent country in the Western Hemisphere.

Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Country Above Self"
Anthem: "O Land of Beauty!" Royal anthem: "God Save the King"
Capital and largest city	Basseterre 17°18′N 62°44′W
Official languages	English
Vernacular language	Saint Kitts Creole
Ethnic groups (2001)	92.5% African 3% Multiracial 2.1% European 1.5% Indian 0.6% Other 0.3% Unspecified
Religion (2010)[1]	94.6% Christianity 1.6% None 1.5% Hinduism 2.3% Others
Demonym(s)	Kittitian or Nevisian
Government	Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy
• Monarch	Charles III
• Governor-General	Dame Marcella Liburd
• Prime Minister	Terrance Drew
• Speaker of the National Assembly	Anthony Michael Perkins
Legislature	National Assembly
Independence
• Associated State	27 February 1967
• from the United Kingdom	19 September 1983
Area
• Total	261 km2 (101 sq mi) (187th)
• Water (%)	Negligible
Population
• 2021 estimate	47,606[2][3] (213th)
• 2011 census	46,204
• Density	164/km2 (424.8/sq mi) (64th)
GDP (PPP)	2019 estimate
• Total	$1.758 billion
• Per capita	$31,095[4]
GDP (nominal)	2019 estimate
• Total	$1.058 billion
• Per capita	$18,714[4]
HDI (2019)	0.779[5] high · 74th
Currency	East Caribbean dollar (XCD)
Time zone	UTC-4 (AST)
Driving side	left
Calling code	+1 869
ISO 3166 code	KN
Internet TLD	.kn
Or "Saint Kitts and Nevis".

The capital city is Basseterre. It is on the main island of St Kitts, also called Saint Christopher. The island of Nevis has some rights of self-government and two seats in the federal parliament.

St Kitts and Nevis is about one-third of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago.

The headquarters of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank is in St Kitts. That bank controls the East Caribbean dollar.

History and Politics

The two islands were part of the Leeward Islands Colony from 1871 to 1956, and of the West Indies Federation from 1958 to 1962.

The Islands, plus Anguilla, got limited self-government in 1967. Anguilla objected and the Metropolitan Police were sent there in 1968 to stop rioting. Until 19 December 1980 the official name of St Kitts and Nevis was Saint Christopher, Nevis and Anguilla.^[7]

St Kitts and Nevis became an independent Commonwealth realm in 1983, Anguilla has stayed a British overseas territory.

In 1970, a movement to make Nevis separate from St Kitts started.

In 1983, the constitution set up a 15-member National Assembly. The Assembly is unicameral, that is, it only has one chamber. 3 members of the Assembly are appointed by the Governor General, on the advice of the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. The other members are elected. If the Speaker decides to stand for re-election he is automatically elected, without a contest.

In 2023 Terrance Drew said that he planned a public consultation on whether St Kitts and Nevis should become a republic.^[8]

Nevis

Nevis is responsible for its own internal affairs. There is an eight-member Nevis Island Assembly, and an Island administration headed by the premier.

Geography

Map of Saint Kitts and Nevis

View of Nevis from St. Kitts

The country has two main islands, Saint Kitts and Nevis. The highest peak, at 1,156 metres, is Mount Liamuiga. There is also a smaller island named Booby Island. No one lives on Booby Island.

The islands are of volcanic origin. There are large central peaks covered in tropical rainforest. People do not live on the steeper slopes leading to these peaks. Most of the people on both islands live closer to the sea. There are many rivers coming from the mountains of both islands. These give fresh water to the people. St. Kitts also has one small lake.

Parishes

The federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis is divided into fourteen parishes. There are nine divisions on Saint Kitts and five on Nevis.

Name	Number of people	Capital	Other villages and towns
Saint Thomas Lowland, Nevis	2,035	Cotton Ground	Westbury Barnes Ghaut Jessup Stuart's
Saint John Figtree, Nevis	2,922	Figtree	Bath Church Ground Brown Hill Brown's Pasture Pembroke Bush Hill St. Peter's Hill Cole Hill
Saint George Gingerland, Nevis	2,568	Market Shop	Chicken Stone Taylors Pasture Zetlands Hull Ground Rawlins Crook's Ground Rices Buck's Hill Sheriffs Holmes Hill Fenton Hill Stony Hill Webb's Ground Harris Zion New River
Saint Paul Charlestown, Nevis	1,820	Charlestown	Craddocks
Saint James Windward, Nevis	1,836	Newcastle	Rawlins Fountain Scarborough Camps Rick's Brick Kiln White Hall Butler's Burnaby Mt. Lily Spring Hall Eden Browne
Saint George Basseterre, Saint Kitts	13,220	Basseterre	Bird Rock Frigate Bay
Trinity Palmetto Point, Saint Kitts	1,692	Palmetto Point	Mattingley Camps West Farm Boyds Conphipps Challengers Stone Fort
Saint Thomas Middle Island, Saint Kitts	2,332	Middle Island	Franklands Old Road Town Verchilds Lamberts Conyers Godwin's Ghaut Half Way Tree New Guinea
Saint Anne Sandy Point, Saint Kitts	3,140	Sandy Point Town	Fig Tree La Vallée Sir Gillee's
Saint Paul Capesterre, Saint Kitts	2,460	Saint Paul Capesterre	Cranston Newton Ground Belmont Estate
Saint John Capesterre, Saint Kitts	3,181	Dieppe Bay Town and Saddlers[9]	Parson's Harriss' Belle View Tabernacle
Christ Church Nichola Town, Saint Kitts	2,059	Nichola Town	Mansion Borryeux Molyneux Phillips'
Saint Mary Cayon, Saint Kitts	3,374	Cayon	Lodge Ottley's Little Italy Spooner's Keys
Saint Peter Basseterre. Saint Kitts	3,472	Monkey Hill	New Road Saint Peter's Stapleton Parry's Ogee's Morgan Heights La Fontaine Conaree

Cities and Towns

These are some of the more important cities and towns in Saint Kitts and Nevis.

Name	Number of people	Feature
Basseterre	16,696	Capital of Saint George Basseterre and of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Cayon	788	Capital of Saint Mary Cayon
Charlestown	1,538	Capital of Saint Paul Charlestown and of Nevis
Dieppe Bay Town	592	Capital of Saint John Capesterre and first town ever founded in the Caribbean by France
Gingerland	2,568	Capital of Saint George Gingerland and largest town on Nevis
Newcastle	493	Location of Nevis' airport
Old Road Town	1,647	First town ever founded in the Caribbean by Britain
Sandy Point Town	3,140	Capital of Saint Anne Sandy Point and second largest town in Saint Kitts and Nevis

Sports

Cricket is common in Saint Kitts and Nevis. Top players go to the West Indies cricket team. The late Runako Morton was from Nevis. Saint Kitts and Nevis is the smallest country on Earth to ever host a World Cup event. It was one of the host venues of the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

The St. Kitts and Nevis national football team, also known as the "Sugar Boyz", has had some international success. They went to the semifinal round of qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in the CONCACAF region. Led by Glence Glasgow they defeated U.S. Virgin Islands and Barbados. They then lost to Mexico, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.

The St. Kitts and Nevis Billiard Federation, SKNBF, is the governing body for cue sports across the two islands.

Kim Collins is the country's best known track and field athlete. He has won gold medals in the 100 metres at both the World Championships in Athletics and Commonwealth Games. At the 2000 Sydney Olympics he was the country's first athlete to reach an Olympic final. He and three other athletes represented St. Kitts and Nevis at the 2008 Summer Olympics. The four by one hundred metre relay team won a bronze medal in the 2011 world championships.

American writer and former figure skater and triathlete Kathryn Bertine was given dual citizenship. She tried to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics representing St. Kitts and Nevis in women's cycling. She did not make enough points to go the Olympics.^[10]

St. Kitts and Nevis had two athletes ride in the time trial at the 2010 UCI Road World Championships. Athletes included Reginald Douglas and James Weekes.^[11]

Related pages

• List of rivers of Saint Kitts and Nevis
• Saint Kitts and Nevis at the Olympics
• Saint Kitts and Nevis national football team

Other websites

• "Saint Kitts and Nevis". The World Factbook (2025 ed.). Central Intelligence Agency.
• Official website of the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis ^{[permanent dead link]}